Ticket sales booming for Manny Pacquiao fight

More than 20,000 tickets have been sold for Manny Pacquiao's March 13 fight against welterweight Joshua Clottey at Dallas Cowboys Stadium, and officials say there could be close to 60,000 in attendance on fight night.

"The first days of sales for boxing events can be about 25% of the total," said Texas boxing publicist Lester Bedford, who's assisting Top Rank and Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones in the Pacquiao-Clottey fight promotion. "There'll be a heavy Hispanic undercard that has yet to be announced, and that could trigger more sales.

"With the fight being in this new stadium there's no history to predict how a boxing event will do. It could go to 50,000, 60,000."

Jones originally arranged a seating plan to accommodate 40,000, and tickets went on sale Saturday through Ticketmaster.

The undercard could feature the return of former world welterweight champion Antonio Margarito, who had his boxing license revoked by the California State Athletic Commission February 2009 after officials removed plaster-caked inserts inside wraps on both of his hands before being defeated by Shane Mosley last January at Staples Center.

Margarito is planning to apply to get his license restored in Texas next month, and promoter Bob Arum said if Margarito wins the super-welterweight undercard fight against Carson Jones, he'd strongly consider making a Margarito-Pacquiao bout at Dallas Cowboys Stadium later this year.

Bedford said former lightweight world champion Jose Luis Castillo will also appear on the Pacquiao-Clottey undercard.

-- Lance Pugmire

Source: latimesblogs.latimes.com

Pacquiao works out at Wildcard

Six-time world champion pound-for-pound king Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao worked out Monday with chief trainer Freddie Roach at the Wildcard Boxing Club in Hollywood during his first day training since arriving in the United States on Saturday. Pacquiao is preparing for his upcoming “FIREPOWER” welterweight championship fight against three-time world champion and the pride of Puerto Rico Miguel Cotto. Pacquiao vs Cotto is promoted by Top Rank, in association with MP Promotions, Cotto Promotions, MGM Grand and Tecate, and will take place November 14 at the sold out MGM Grand in Las Vegas. It will also be available on pay per view.

Source: fightnews.com

Cotto hits back at Roach; Pacquiao flies to LA tonight

MANILA, Philippines - Freddie Roach will do anything for his fighter, and that includes throwing the opponent off.

Miguel Cotto, however, isn’t buying any of his statements.

“I have never seen a fighter win with the talking of his trainer,” Cotto, who’s just 20 days away from a fight with Manny Pacquiao, told Puerto Rican paper El Nuevo Dia yesterday.

“So, I want to tell Freddie Roach, Miguel Cotto and his team do not care. The important thing here is that I’m not going to see Freddie Roach’s face in the ring. I will be there with Manny Pacquiao,” Cotto added.

Roach is playing mind games with Cotto the way he’d played them with Pacquiao’s most recent opponents.


He did it with Juan Manuel Marquez by trading harsh words with his counterpart, Nacho Beristain, with Oscar dela Hoya through his famous “can’t-pull-the-trigger” battlecry, and with Ricky Hatton when he told Pacquiao he’d be “disappointed if the fight lasts more than three rounds.”

“I’d do anything to try and throw them off,” said Roach, who created a stir just days before the Dela Hoya fight when he started questioning the Golden Boy’s hand wraps.

This time, so close to the fight, Roach is saying Pacquiao is capable of “knocking out Cotto in the first round.”

“He can say anything, try anything to draw the attention and try to be the hero of the whole promotion. But on Nov. 14, we will see who talks in the end, the ones who did all the talking or the ones who stayed silent,” said Cotto.

The WBO welterweight champion from Puerto Rico is the silent one.

He opened camp a couple of weeks ahead of Pacquiao, and stayed in there the whole time, eating, breathing and thinking of nothing but Pacquiao. Chances of watching Cotto as he trains in the gym are slim and none.

In contrast, Pacquiao is always there to see, except for sparring days when Roach would rather close the doors. But otherwise, on the road, in the gym and inside his suite, he’s always in the company of friends, of fans.

Roach said Pacquiao is down to 156.5 lb, which is just a little over the catchweight of 150, and is now 90 percent fit and ready to fight.

Pacquiao was to spar 10 rounds yesterday at the Gerry Peñalosa Gym in Mandaluyong City, was scheduled to host dinner with close friends and team members, and at 10 p.m. should board the PAL plane to Los Angeles.

In the long flight to LA, one that may take 12 hours and a little over 7,000 miles, Roach can always think of something new to say.

Because Cotto, still, isn’t buying.

Source: philstar.com

Will All Of These Distractions Be The Down Fall Of Manny Pacquiao?

In numerous interviews on ESPN, Bernard Hopkins has stated that he feels Manny Pacquiao is the current number one pound for pound fighter in the world; and he's also stated that the only way Manny will lose, is if he makes himself lose.

So that essentially means, that no one can defeat Pacquiao right now for he is in his prime and in the zone. But, if he starts to slack in training or get's too distracted, a defeat could be waiting in the wings.

With report after report arising about the significant distractions and drama affecting Pacquiao's training camp, it can only be disadvantages for the pound for pound fighter.

From the various TV and movie rolls, public appearances, future political plans, typhoons and humanitarian work, Manny may just have too much on his plate right now. Don't forget the recent drama with his financial advisor Michael Koncz, getting beat up by his strength and conditioning coach Alex Ariza.

It really does sound like HBO has a very interesting 24/7 on their hands.

I began to worry about Manny when he was sitting ringside for the Clottey v Cotto fight. I saw Manny distracted from everything around him and not focusing on the fight. It appeared to be the look of over confidence as he witnessed Cotto struggling against the durable, tough Clottey.

In past Pacquiao fights, when Manny has been rather distracted, the most seemed to be during his first fight with Erik Morales, the Oscar Larios match and his rematches with Marco Antonio Barrera and Juan Manuel Marquez.

Whether it was management troubles, rock star lifestyle partying, or being too over confident, Manny's performance in the ring was affected by these distractions.

The first Morales fight was Manny's last loss. I felt the fact he wasn't able to wear his signature Reyes puncher gloves, really affected him. Pacquiao without his Reyes gloves is like Popeye without his spinach.

In both the rematch and rubber match, Pacquiao was able to wear his Reyes gloves and gave Morales his first knockdown of his career and first stoppage. He then totally destroyed him in the three rounds of the rubber match.

In the Oscar Larios fight, which was back in his homeland at the famous Araneta Coliseum, many criticized Manny for not training as hard as he should have and not stopping Larios; but letting it go to a full 12 round decision. Other rumors indicated that Manny intentionally carried Larios for the full 12 rounds to fit in sufficient time to endorse all of his sponsors.

This rumor can be viewed as more credible, as in the post fight ring interview, Manny was holding many different soda and energy drinks; as well as wearing several different endorsement hats.

In the Marco Antonio Barrera and Juan Manuel Marquez fights, it was reported that Manny was enjoying his new rock star party life style and was not 100 percent devoted to training.

The HBO countdown series focused more on Manny's distractions than his actual training.

In both the Barrera and Marquez rematch, Paquiao took it to a decision win. The Marquez rematch ended up as one of the most highly debated split decision wins in recent boxing history.

Now, when Pacquiao is fully focused and in prime animal conditioning, it can be hard to view him losing at all. Evidence of this can be seen in his near perfect fights with the stopping of Oscar De La Hoya and the demolition of Ricky Hatton.

Miguel Cotto is also a machine that will not quit. His only loss came from the highly suspected illegally plastered hands of Antonio Margarito. When ever Cotto was hurt or down, he came back up to win like a true champion should.

But one thing is for sure entering Nov. 14, Cotto will be the toughest fight of Paquiao's career. Cotto is the true Welterweight Champion of the world. He is the strongest, most devastating body puncher Manny will ever step into the ring with. Miguel Cotto is not a fighter to be taken lightly, over looked or to fight after a camp full of drama and distractions.

As a big fan of both Cotto and Pacquiao, one can not be more than happy that this fight will be happening in less than a month.

Again, these two guys have been keeping the sport of boxing alive. When many criticize boxing to be growing more and more boring and dying, one can easily defend it by showing them any of Pacquiao or Cotto's fights.

So having both of these men in the ring with each other can only be a true fight fan's dream.

Miguel Cotto has been taking this fight very seriously- to the point of possibly over training himself- as he started weeks before Pacquiao even began training camp.

As for Pacquiao, until I see footage of him flooring and destroying much larger, stronger, sparring partners in camp at the Wild Card gym on a daily basis, I will not feel entirely comfortable about his performance come fight night.

Source: bleacherreport.com

Shaq wants to lead Pacman to ring for bout

MANILA, Philippines - Shaquille O’Neal leading Manny Pacquiao up to the ring against Miguel Cotto?

Well, to Pacquiao’s chief trainer, Freddie Roach, it sounds a good idea.

The hottest trainer in boxing today said the bulging NBA superstar had thought of leading Pacquiao to the ring although Roach said he has yet to take it up with Pacquiao seriously – barely four weeks the fight set at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

Roach said that awhile back, during the NBA break, he had the chance to give the 7-1 O’Neal, who wears size 23” shoes, some boxing lessons in Los Angeles, and the former Laker superstar brought up the idea and offered himself for the role.

“He sounded like he really wanted to do it,” said Roach, not forgetting that a couple of wrestling superstars have led Pacquiao up the ring in his previous fights.

Former World Wrestling Entertainment champion “The Undertaker” was the first to play the role when he led Pacquiao in his march up the ring for his fight with Hector Velasquez at the Staples Center in 2005. And for the Ricky Hatton fight last May, it was Dave Batista, with Filipino blood, leading Pacquiao to the ring.

So, why not O’Neal?

Roach said the NBA player who weighs over 300 lb is such a fun guy to be with.

“I saw his shoes in the gym and I wanted to keep them as souvenir so I tried to steal them. But they wouldn’t fit in my gym bag so I had to leave them behind,” said Roach, who recalled the incident with a smile.

O’Neal learned about it, and the next thing Roach knew was that the future NBA Hall-of-Famer had sent him a pair.

“They were so huge they looked like a kid’s toy truck,” said Roach of the giant fellow.

“In the gym, I had to put vaseline on his face and I had to use a stool to do that,” said the American trainer, almost laughing.

He really has nothing against the idea of O’Neal being up there on the ring with Pacquiao.

Source: philstar.com

Roach predicts KO victory by Pacquiao

BAGUIO CITY — Three-time Trainer of the Year Freddie Roach here Friday predicted Filipino boxing sensation Manny Pacquiao will win his seventh title when he collides with World Boxing Organization (WBO) welterweight champion Miguel Cotto next month.

Pacquiao and Cotto will be testing each other’s mettle in a blockbuster title bout on November 14 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

“Manny has been doing excellent work in his training here. We are confident we could finish the fight early to prevent Cotto from getting his second wind.” Roach stressed.

In his latest sparring session late Thursday afternoon, the 30-year-old world champion floored undefeated superwelterweight contender Shawn Porter in the second round of their four-round blistering encounter with a solid left straight to the latter’s jaw.

After knocking down Porter, Pacquiao also virtually mauled two-time world lightweight champion Jose Luis Castillo of Mexico as he displayed awesome speed and power.

Pacquiao is on his fourth week of rigid training in this mountain resort city in preparation for the Cotto fight. Team Pacquiao will be breaking camp here on October 23 in order to catch the late evening flight for Los Angeles the following day where he will be entering the Wild Card gym on October 26 for the final stage of his training.

“Manny is nearing his peak form. We are now regulating his training regimen so that he could maintain his excellent performance in the ring until the fight. We already got our game going with the help of his supportive sparring partners,” Roach added.

While admitting that Typhoon Pepeng had a slight effect on the pound for pound king’s roadwork, Roach claimed they are now taking advantage of the good weather to get back lost time although the gym work is way ahead of schedule.

Earlier, Roach predicted Pacquiao will knock out Cotto in either the eighth or ninth round but said the champion’s performance in recent days shows that there will be an early knockout victory for his favorite ward.

Since Cotto is known to be able to get his second wind in the later part of his previous fights, the American trainer claimed Pacquiao will be working aggressively in the early rounds in order to catch the champion off balanced to be assured of a victory.

Source: mb.com.ph

Manny Pacquiao Looks Stronger Than Ever in Camp

Following eight rounds of solid sparring with formrr world champion Jose Luis Castillo and undefeated light middleweight Shawn Porter, celebrated trainer Freddie Roach indicated he was really pleased with his prized fighter’s showing as he picks up tempo in preparation for his “Fire Power” showdown against WBO champion Miguel Cotto on November 14.

In a conversation with BoxingScene.com, insidesports.ph, Standard Today and Viva Sports, conditioning guru Alex Ariza said Pacquiao did really well and that Roach said he had “never seen him (Pacquiao) look stronger.”

Castillo himself said he was “not used to movement like this” as shown by Pacquiao and added that in his assessment Pacquiao is “better than Floyd Mayweather Jr, is faster and stronger.”

Ariza said that Pacquiao gets hit only if he wants to get hit and that when he decides to move, nobody can touch him.

The conditioning expert who helped enhance the explosiveness of Pacquiao ever since he joined Roach some weeks prior to the title fight against David Diaz whom Pacquiao demolished in nine rounds and then annihilated Oscar De La Hoya and Ricky “Hitman” Hatton said Pacquiao was “a little sore from the conditioning and strengthening routine” he’s been working on.

However, Ariza said Pacquiao “wants to pick it up. He’s seeing his body get firm and he looks and feels so strong.”

He said he was extremely satisfied with how Pacquiao is right now and expects him to get even better when they move to the Wild Card Gym in the final week of October.

Over in Miami, Florida, boxing writer Lem Satterfield reports that Miguel Cotto engaged in a spirited sparring session with talented southpaw Fred Tukes of Atlanta while Cotto's trainer Joe Santiago was on top of the situation in the ring.

Santiago was quoted as saying "We're a team and we're behind Miguel every single minute, thinking about the fight in Tampa. We have no distractions. Our focus is Manny Pacquiao and that's our target.."

Santiago said that the 28-year-old Cotto (34-1, 27 knockouts) has been "tirelessly" toiling in Florida in preparation for Pacquiao (49-3-2, 37 KOs). He disclosed that they did four weeks in [Cotto's native] Puerto Rico, and would accomplish eight weeks outside of Puerto Rico -- six in Tampa and two more in Las Vegas, starting on Nov. 1.

The trainer said they " wake up early in the morning to train in the morning workout, and we go to the gym because Manny Pacquiao is our No. 1 target."

Satterfield reported that during the sparring session Cotto's eyes were fixed firmly upon Tukes, whom he pursued from behind a rapier-like jab during the first of three, three-minute rounds with 30 seconds rest in-between.

"I'm working on everything -- my distance, how to take the control of every round," said Cotto. "I have a plan A, plan B, and I'm pretty sure that I'm not going to have any problems the night of the fight." It was reported that Cotto pursued his rival like an animal tracking prey.

"[Santiago] said that he needed for me to give Miguel a lot of movement, try to make him miss and to throw straight left hands at him. I was trying to emulate Pacquiao as much as possible. I think I did a pretty good job ," said Tukes, a muscular, 35-year-old southpaw with a professional record of 8-1-1 that includes five knockouts.

At one point, Cotto trapped Tukes in a neutral corner and fired away. Tukes acknowledged that he "felt every punch."

"If Miguel gets Pacquiao on the ropes, I think that Miguel's body shots are going to be significant," said Tukes. "That overhand left and his straight right hand and his hook that he throws off of the jab -- he's a lot faster than people think that he is."

Source: boxingscene.com

More on Pacquiao-Castillo

Proving that last week’s bad weather was never an issue in training camp, Manny Pacquiao dominated his sparring partners Tuesday at the Shape-Up Gym in Cooyesan Hotel in Baguio City. Pacquiao sparred with highly touted former two-time world lightweight champion Jose Luis Castillo of Mexico for three rounds. Pacquiao is preparing for his upcoming world welterweight with Puerto Rican Miguel Cotto set for 12-rounds at a catch weight of 145lbs scheduled on November 14 at the MGM Grand Garden in Las Vegas, Nevada. In his anticipated sparring with Castillo, Pacquiao used his vastly improved lateral movements in trying to avoid the Mexican’s uppercuts and body shots. Pacquiao stalled Castillo’s aggressive attacks with three to five punch combos and counter left straights.

The 35-year-old Castillo (60-9-1, 52 KOs) ended his first day of sparring with specks of blood in his left nostril.

“I can’t see his left. It’s very fast and strong. I think that will be a big problem of Cotto,” Castillo told Fightnews after the work out.

Chief trainer Freddie Roach, who at first seemed cautious when it comes to having Castillo as a sparring partner now expressed his contentment in having the Mexican inside the gym.

“Castillo looked to be off a little bit and he’s never sparred as fast as anyone like Manny. But I like his movement because he moves similar to Cotto. Overall it was a great workout and I was very happy,” said Roach.

In sparring with Porter, Pacquiao again worked on his footwork and stiff combinations while moving out of harm’s way.

“That will one of Manny’s best assets. His ability to throw strong punches while moving out of the ropes,” said two-time world champion Dodie Boy Penalosa who now works as one of Pacquiao’s assistant trainers.

Meanwhile Roach denied reports circulating on the internet that Pacquiao was knocked down in one sparring session last week.

Roach said no one has come close to flooring Pacquiao in any of their sparring sessions in their Baguio training camp.

Last weekend internet forums were deluged with queries and reports that Pacquiao got tagged by American sparring partner Shawn Porter.

“That’s a lie. I would know because I would have to pay. He’s getting hit but he’s never been floored ever. Not in eight years. The money is still in my pocket,” said Roach.

Roach has promised $1,000 for anyone among the sparring partners who could put down Pacquiao during sparring.

Source: fightnews.com

Pacquiao safe at 150 for bout

MANILA, Philippines - Steady at 150.

With still 34 days before the big fight, Manny Pacquiao hovered around 150 lb and should have no problem making the catchweight of 145 lb when he faces Miguel Cotto for the WBO welterweight crown at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

Nonoy Neri of Team Pacquiao yesterday said Pacquiao tipped the scales at 150 the other day after working at the Shape Up Gym in Baguio City. He said the reigning pound-for-pound champ is now training as hard and eating as much.

“He’s very comfortable right now because he gets to eat anything he likes. And by training so hard, he stays at 150. He can lose the five pounds in the last two weeks of training and he’ll be safe,” said Neri, a long-time Pacquiao assistant.

Cotto, who agreed to stake his 147 lb title at a catchweight two pounds lower, said during last month’s press tour in the United States he was at 160 lb, and Pacquiao’s conditioning coach, Alex Ariza, said this should favor the FIlipino icon.

“Cotto has to work harder than us making weight,” said Ariza.

Pacquiao’s chief trainer, Freddie Roach, said Pacquiao is where he should be right now as they entered their third week of training in the country’s summer capital. They will move to Los Angeles on Oct. 24, and to Las Vegas a week before the Nov. 14 fight.

There were reports, however, that Pacquiao might fly to the US earlier because of the spate of typhoons that have hit the country and may have had an effect on his training in Baguio City, which has been terribly affected by typhoon “Pepeng” this week.

Jose Luis Castillo, the former WBC lightweight champion, arrived in Manila yesterday along with super-lightweight Danny Escobar but couldn’t proceed to Baguio to spar with Pacquiao because the major roads leading to the city are impassable due to flooding or landslides.

It’s the first time Pacquiao will fight at 145 lb, even if he took on Oscar dela Hoya at 147 last December. For the fight against the Golden Boy, Pacquiao tipped the scales on the eve of the fight at 142 lb and climbed the ring at 148 1/2.

For this fight, Roach has set the numbers.

“I see him (Pacquiao) coming into the fight at 149 lb, the heaviest he’ll be in,” said Roach.”He was 148 1/2 for Oscar and 147 for Ricky Hatton last May.”

“But I don’t want him going over 150 because going past 150 will make him sluggish. I don’t care if Cotto climbs the ring at 165. We’ll stay at 150 or less,” said Roach, adding that for the official weigh-in the Pinoy champ should be at arounf 143 lb.

Again, weight is no weighty issue for Pacquiao.

Source: philstar.com

Pacquiao’s speed awes sparmate

Undefeated super-welterweight Shawn Porter, the main sparring partner of Manny Pacquiao, asserted on Wednesday that he wasn’t bothered by the Filipino’s vaunted power but admitted he was awed by the pound-for-pound king’s other inimitable trait.

“Its’ not much about his power, it’s his speed,” Porter told the Bulletin.

The Ohio-bred Porter is said to be a clone of Miguel Cotto, who Pacquiao faces on November 14 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

Porter, 21, the 2007 US Golden Gloves middleweight champion and alternate on the 2008 Olympic team, battled Pacquiao for three intense rounds at the Shape Up Gym inside the Cooyeesan Hotel in Baguio City.

In Thursday’s media day, Porter is going to be sent up again to bang with Pacquiao although their session will last for only two rounds since Pacquiao has also to contend with another sparmate, lightweight Urbano Antillon, for two rounds.

“I am looking forward to my second sparring with Manny, who is a great person outside the ring,” said Porter, who flew in last Sunday but only got to Baguio the following day owing to the inclement weather.

Taking center stage as well during Thursday’s open workout for the media is Hall of Fame promoter Bob Arum, who is arriving this morning from the US. Arum, who heads Top Rank Inc. will be in Baguio until Sunday morning.

In the coming weeks, Pacquiao will have to deal with Porter and Antillon and possibly another one to be flown over if ever Pacquiao decides to extend his training camp in the City of Pines.

Meanwhile, Cotto’s own training camp is doing very well, Bryan Perez, the Puerto Rican’s aide-de-camp revealed on Thursday.

Cotto has been working out at the Fight Factory in Tampa, Florida, the past two weeks.

“Everything is running up pretty well right now,” said Perez, who is also joined there by chief trainer Joe Santiago and conditioning coach Phil Landman.

Source: mb.com.ph

Pacquiao, sparmate toe-to-toe

Manny Pacquiao went three blistering rounds with unbeaten super-welterweight Shawn Porter as the Filipino pound-for-pound king's training for his November 14 clash with Miguel Cotto went up a notch with his first sparring session.

“They both traded hard shots,” said Pacquiao trainer Freddie Roach after the workout at the Shape Up Gym inside the Cooyeesan Hotel in Baguio City. “Porter is (very strong).”

Now that sparring has started, Pacquiao will now have to do it thrice a week and on Thursday, Roach said he will go four rounds, two with the Ohio-bred Porter and another two with Urbano Antillon, a lightweight contender from California.

After Wednesday's session, Pacquiao will have to get himself ready again for the Saturday session.

Porter and Antillon arrived in the country from Los Angeles last Sunday but only made it to Baguio the following day due to massive flooding in Metropolis and low-lying areas in Luzon the past few days.

Porter, 21, an alternate in the US team to the 2008 Beijing Olympics, has a 10-0 win-loss card with eight knockouts and is revving up for a fight sometime in the third week of November in Mississippi.

Owing to the similarity of his fighting style to Cotto, Porter will be Pacquiao's main sparring partner.

“He's just perfect (for this training camp),” said Roach, who will camp out in the City of Pines until Pacquiao advises his entire team to transfer to either Los Angeles or even straight to Las Vegas.

Meanwhile, Hall of Fame promoter Bob Arum, who heads Top Rank Inc., is arriving in Manila tomorrow morning for the media day scheduled that day.

If weather permits, Arum will be flown to Baguio by former Ilocos Sur Governor Chavit Singson's private plane.

If it is deemed unsafe to travel by air because of the current weather conditions, Arum will be brought there on board one of Singson's full-sized SUVs.

Source: mb.com.ph

Pacquiao begins rigid sparring sessions

BAGUIO CITY — Filipino boxing sensation Manny Pacquiao will now enter the most difficult part of his five-week training camp in this mountain resort city as he starts holding sparring sessions with four foreign boxers chosen by three-time trainer of the year Freddie Roach.

Buboy Fernandez, Pacquiao’s assistant trainer, said the sparring mates of the Filipino world champion have moves similar to that of Puerto Rican welterweight champion Miguel Cotto to help Manny prepare necessary techniques to outwit and outbox the much bigger and powerful boxer.

Pacquiao and Cotto will be mixing it up inside the ring for the World Boxing Organization (WBO) welterweight crown held by the Puerto Rican on November 14, 2009 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada.

The four sparring mates of Pacquiao include David Rodela; Shawn Porter, an African-American who was a former member of the US Olympic team; Urbano Antillon, WBO super featherweight champion who knocked down Manny’s brother, Bobby Pacquiao in a title bout early this year, and Raymond Tito Serrano, a Puerto Rican champion who could match the moves of Cotto.

Fernandez said the sparring sessions with the foreign boxers will be done in a staggered manner so as not to overwork the champion and to allow him to reach his peak form during the fight.

Team Pacquiao is confident their ward will be able to adjust to Cotto’s style with the help of his sparring mates to emerge victorious.

Source: mb.com.ph

Sparring partners ready for Pacman's fury

MANILA, Philippines - Manny Pacquiao’s sparring partners, American Shawn Porter and Mexican Urbano Antillon, did not waste time priming themselves up for the beating up ahead.

They flew in from Los Angeles last Sunday but because of the poor weather were forced to spend the day in Manila. They were brought up to Baguio City yesterday.

Barely rested, Porter and Antillon joined Pacquiao at the gym, doing their own thing as the Filipino pound-for-pound champion worked out under Freddie Roach.

“Naghanda na din para hindi masaktan sa bugbugan bukas (They’re getting ready for tomorrow’s beating),” said Team Pacquiao’s Roger Fernandez of the sparring partners.

“Alam nilang mapapalaban sila, eh (They know they’ll be in for some roughing up),” added Fernandez of Porter, undefeated in 10 fights, and Antillon, a veteran of 27 fights.

Pacquiao was getting ready himself for the tougher days ahead, and instead of the normal two hours, he stayed at the gym for close to three hours.

“Ayaw tumigil. Alam mo naman si Manny (He wouldn’t stop. You know Manny),” said Fernandez, adding that Pacquiao worked out so hard as if he did not run in the morning.

Nonoy Neri, the assistant trainer, said Pacquiao is getting along so well, and barely a week up in Baguio has flashed the form you’d normally see him a month into training.

“Lumalabas na ang bilis. Ang power naman nandiyan na (His speed is starting to show and his power has always been there),” said Neri, who also dabbles as Pacquiao’s chef.

“Grabe ang ensayo kanina (It was a tough workout earlier),” added Neri. He said Pacquiao should kick off his sparring sessions with four rounds – two each with Porter and Antillon.

Porter, according to Freddie Roach, will try to imitate Miguel Cotto with his heavy left hooks to the body. Porter, a light-middleweight, can knock out a foe with a single shot to the body.

“I really like him in this camp,” said Roach of the 1997 National Golden Gloves champion in the US. He needed only 18 rounds to win his first 10 fights, with six knockouts coming in the first round.

Antillon is not new to the Pacquiao camp, having been there before. He’s a lightweight with a ring record of 26-1-0 with 19 knockouts, including one over Bobby Pacquiao.

Antillon knocked out the younger Pacquiao with a single body shot in the first round of their scheduled 10-rounder in March last year at the Hard Rock Hotel in Las Vegas. – Abac Cordero

Source: philstar.com

Pacquiao sparmates in Manila

Unbeaten super-welterweight Shawn Porter of Ohio and lightweight hotshot Urbano Antillon of California arrived in the Philippines early Sunday morning after a 15-hour flight from Los Angeles. Porter and Antillon were selected by Pacquiao trainer Freddie Roach to work with Manny Pacquiao, who is revving up for a Nov. 14 bout with Miguel Cotto at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Roach, who is camping out with Pacquiao in Baguio, said sparring could start as early as Tuesday afternoon. “We’re ready to go (sparring),” said Antillon, who is of Mexican lineage. Porter and Antillon are scheduled to travel to Baguio by land on Monday morning. They’ll be joined in the five-to-six hour journey by Shawn’s dad Ken. Porter, the 2007 US National Golden Gloves middleweight champion, is said to be a clone of Cotto. The Porters and Antillon were fetched at the airport by movie bad guy Cris Aguilar, who, in reality is a nice fellow. Aguilar used to be one of Pacquiao’s bodyguards. “Just give my regards to Manny,” said the hefty Aguilar. Bob Arum’s Top Rank Inc. is staging the Pacquiao-Cotto slugfest dubbed “Firepower.”

A Pacquiao Win Over Cotto Places Him Above Mayweather All-Time Pound for Pound

By Giancarlo Malinconico: If you review the careers of Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao, you will notice many championships in many different weight classes. Pacquiao started his career at 106 pounds and moved as far up as welterweight, defeating the “Golden Boy” Oscar De La Hoya. Mayweather started at 131 pounds and eventually went as high as 154 pounds, also defeating De La Hoya. Both fighters fought many good and great boxers at almost every division they ascended through respectively throughout their careers.

Mayweather, however, did not face the best in the Welterweight division and faced (at the time) the best 140 pound fighter in Hatton, but made him come up to welterweight to make the fight happen. Pacquiao may have skipped over some of the better fighters in the lower divisions, including lightweight, but he holds a win against Juan Manuel Marquez who is currently the top rated lightweight. What sets Pacquiao apart from Mayweather is that Pacman is attempting to fight the best fighters in the higher divisions. I don’t feel Pamcan should be criticized for skipping over the top lightweight fighters since he moved up to battle the best fighter in the division above lightweight in facing Hatton. Furthermore, Pacquiao is challenging Miguel Cotto. Although he is not the Ring Magazine Welterweight Champion, Cotto is clearly the first or second best welterweight in the world. And if you believe “Sugar” Shane Mosley is the number one welterweight on the planet, he has a loss on his record to Cotto. Besides, Cotto’s loss to Margarito (by using inductive reasoning) is tainted, for it is hard to believe Margarito would just begin loading his gloves against Mosley after he just beat Cotto who beat Mosley.

The reason that the Pacman’s career will surpass Mayweather’s if he is successful against Cotto is– he would have defeated two of the best fighters in their respective weight classes (Hatton at 140 and Cotto at 147 pounds). Cotto, moreover, would be a bigger win than anyone Floyd has on his record. Cotto has a win over the great Shane Mosley apart from beating solid opponents throughout his career. Mayweather’s biggest wins are against Diego Corrales at 130 pounds, Jose Luis Castillo at 135 pounds, Arturo Gatti (the recently deceased blood and guts warrior) at 140 pounds, Ricky Hatton at a 147 pounds and De La Hoya at 154. Pacman has wins over Hall of Famers– Barrera, Morales and JM Marquez between 126 and 130 pounds. And he has a win over the former-140 pound kingpin, Hatton.

Many will say Pacquiao has been beaten before, and has looked less than spectacular in past performances. Therefore, how can you place him ahead of an undefeated, multi-division champion like Mayweather? Here are a few of my responses to the question. First, being undefeated does not equate to greatness (see: Sven Ottke). I understand Mayweather has fought much better opposition than say, an Ottke, but being undefeated cannot be the end of the discussion. Secondly, I believe (like many pundits) that Jose Luis Castillo clearly beat Mayweather in their first encounter. I understand Mayweather hurt his hand, complained of an arm injury and sickness, but he lost the fight. Pacman has a few losses throughout his career, one to Morales, and he looked bad against Nedal Hussein, a journeyman. But he got off the canvas to beat Hussein and avenged his loss to Morales with two knockouts, which was far more impressive than what Mayweather did in the Castillo rematch. Thirdly, Pacman, including the Cotto fight, will have faced the better opposition at the higher weights. As I mentioned Cotto will be the best opponent either man faced, unless you want to count a De La Hoya who I believe was passed his prime in both fights. Besides, Cotto beat Mosley who beat De La Hoya. In addition, Pacman destroyed Hatton and De La Hoya more convincingly than Mayweather, who actually only got a split-decision against De La Hoya and lost rounds against Hatton. The bottom line, although both fighters climbed through the higher weight divisions to win championships, Pacman challenges a top (if not the top) boxer at welterweight in Cotto, while Mayweather fought Carlos Baldomir.

Although Marquez is no pushover, Mayweather is yet to challenge a top, legitimate welterweight. And I am now hearing Mayweather is asking for more than a 50/50 split against Pacman if a match is to emerge between the two next year. It is probably another excuse for Mayweather to duck the dangerous fight with Pacman in favor of facing a lesser fighter, whom he can push around in the negotiations over the purse split and other match arraignments.

Source: boxingnews24.com

UFC pits their biggest Filipino star versus Pacquiao on November 14

The UFC recently announced that on November 14, they will be pitting Randy Couture against Filipino-American Brandon "The Truth" Vera to headline UFC 105 in England. On the same day, boxing's biggest fight of the year between Manny Pacquiao of the Philippines and Miguel Cotto will also be taking place in Las Vegas.

Some fight fans scoff at the pairing because they will have to choose who to watch but personally I think it's beautiful. I think this is a monumental night for Philippine sports as two Filipinos will be headlining the two biggest sports spectacles on the same night. And in terms of the rivalry between Boxing and UFC, I think the UFC did the right thing by holding the bout in England.

It's a smart strategic move by Dana White in the ongoing rivalry between UFC and boxing. Not only do they keep their momentum going by challenging the institution that is boxing, but by taking the card to England, they will be backed up in terms of PPV numbers and audience by the strong European market. Not only that, they also put Manny Pacquiao's last KO victim, England's Ricky Hatton, in the co-main event to try and help revive Hatton's career and boost ticket sales- oops my bad, never mind, I thought that was Hatton. It's actually Michael Bisping, but close enough. Bisping who got embarrassed in American soil last June by Dan Henderson, returns home and will try to regain some lost pride with the help of his loyal and rabid hometown fans.

As to whether Brandon Vera's Filipino background had anything to do with his selection to face Couture on the same night Boxing's most popular fighter climbs the ring, is left for me and you to

speculate. If you ask me, I say yes and no. Yes in the sensethat it makes sense for White to try and pull away some of the Filipino fight fans from watching the Pacquiao fight and encourage them to tune in to Vera instead. Vera himself is a big Pacquiao fan so that guarantees one Pay-Per-View buy boxing already lost to the UFC.

All jokes aside however, and as much a I am a Vera fan myself, the ploy does not work. If anything, the effects will be miniscule. Vera does have a huge Filipino following in the MMA community but for the casual fight fan, it's a no brainer. Pacquiao is Kobe Bryant, Brandon Vera is Jordan- not Michael Jordan though, more like Jordan Farmar. Pacquiao brings the excitement, and despite Vera's recent wins, they came against mediocre fighters and were accomplished in ho-hum fashion. How it works however is with the publicity from the rivalry, Vera gets more exposure. For those who don't have a Blue's clue, they will soon find out about "The Truth".

So at the end of the day, this whole Boxing vs. UFC yields a clear winner- the fans. You get to watch bigger, better and more loaded events while the two sports fight for our viewership. So if I were you, keep the rivalry heated!

Source: Indianapolis Fight Sports Examiner

Video: Mayweather Sr. accuses Manny Pacquiao of taking steroids, supplements

LAS VEGAS -- Manny Pacquiao may have claimed boxing's mythical pound-for-pound throne with wins over Oscar De La Hoya and Ricky Hatton while Grand Rapids' Floyd Mayweather Jr. was in retirement, but Floyd Mayweather Sr. says it wasn't without help.

"I believe he's on some type of supplements. I'm convinced about a lot of (boxers)," Mayweather Sr. said. "That's what they're doing right now. Everybody should be checked a little bit more thoroughly. Sometimes people know what's going on but they ain't saying nothing."

Pacquiao's next fight is Nov. 14 against Miguel Cotto. Mayweather Jr. (39-0) returns to the ring Saturday against Juan Manuel Marquez at MGM Grand.

A Mayweather-Pacquaio showdown could be on the horizon for 2010.

"I don't think he can beat Lil' Floyd with steroids in him or not," Mayweather Sr. said. "He don't have that kind of talent. He don't have that kind of skill, whatever he has in him.

"I think they're pushing Pacquiao a little too much, even if he's got 'roids in his body. The steroids aren't going to make him no faster. It's going make him relentless and hit strong, but that's it. It ain't going to put no knowledge in your head."



Source: Josh Slagter | The Grand Rapids Press