Filipino ring idol Manny Pacquiao is scheduled to leave for the U.S today amidst growing concern about his planned April 28 fight against WBC featherweight champion In Jin Chi at the Wynn Hotel & Casino in the gambling enclave of Macau.
Filipino boxing people who have checked the plush hotel which is a carbon copy of the plush Wynn Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas told Viva Sports/Manila Standard Today that there was no suitable venue in the hotel complex in Macau for staging a fight unlike in the various sites in Las Vegas.
At the same time they expressed concern over drawing a crowd in Macau because there were mainly Chinese gamblers in Hong Kong who have no interest in boxing and don’t even know who Manny Pacquiao is, unlike in the US, Mexico and other countries where Pacquiao is a fan favorite.
Even Pacquiao’s close friend and confidant Rex “Wakee” Salud who visited Macau last weekend said only the Filipinos working in Macau know Pacquiao. He disclosed that hotel officials in Macau knew nothing about Bob Arum’s announcement about the Pacquiao fight. Salud said there were no Koreans in Macau and if Pacquiao eventually fights In Jin Chi there wont be a big Korean contingent.
Salud said if the fight pushes through in Macau it will be a predominantly Filipino crowd since the flying time from Manila is about one hour and fifteen minutes.
Pacquiao who will be accompanied to Los Angeles by lawyer Franklin “Jing” Gacal will discuss the fight plans with Arum and that there is a possibility the fight may not be held in Macau after all. Arum himself told Viva Sports/Manila Standard Today that he plans to make a big announcement about Pacquiao’s next fight when the exciting fighter regarded as the No.1 pound-for-pound fighter in the world arrives in Los Angeles.
Meantime, celebrated trainer Freddie Roach says that while Pacquiao “plays hard” when not in training will buckle down to work in preparation for his planned fight against In Jin Chi or any other opponent. Roach said that when Pacquiai walks through the door of his gym he is all business and all he needs is around six weeks to get him ready.
