IS TOP RANK DEAL ALREADY HURTING MANNY?
San Mateo, CA- Entering a popular Japanese restaurant, Kamameshi, located in South San Francisco, I was surprised to learn that the workers and custumers, mostly Filipino, did not know that Manny Pacquiao is making his 2007 debut this Saturday. “I usually wait for HBO to announce Manny’s next fight. That never happened.” said one employee, who is a big Pacquiao fan. Very few commercials have hit the Comcast Cable waves and no pre-show countdown has been available on their On Demand video service, where viewers can choose to watch a variety of programs. In fact, the preview to Oscar De La Hoya’s bout against Floyd Mayweather is already available On Demand.
DO WE BLAME TOP RANK, GOLDEN BOY, MANNY?
With litigation between Top Rank and Golden Boy Promotions over the promotional rights to Manny Pacquiao still ongoing (the trial has not started yet), neither HBO nor Showtime were eager in buying this fight. Instead, Top Rank will spend their own money and hire their own crew to present the four-fight card to the paying audience. The last time Top Rank televised a PPV promotion without HBO was when Miguel Cotto fought Paulie Malignaggi back on June 10th, 2006. HBO did not televise that contest because they were in Atlantic City, televising Bernard Hopkins’ upset win over Antonio Tarver. Top Rank could not switch the Cotto date because the date of the fight was on Puerto Rican Pride weekend.
SLIM CHANCE PPV HITS 300,000 BUYS
Both Top Rank and Manny Pacquiao have done their best to promote this fight. Pacquiao’s training camp at the Wild Card Gym has been more open to the public than in previous fights. No one can deny that Pacquiao’s future bid for a Congressional seat has sparked interest in this upcoming fight. Manny has done his part, participating in press conferences and doing radio interviews, including one with ”Ring Talk Radio host, Pedro Fernandez, available to listen right now.
PACMAN “LATE” TO ARRIVE IN EL LAY
However, Manny Pacquiao did land in Los Angeles later than usual and it was only a couple of days ago when Pacquiao and his opponent, undefeated Jorge Solis, finally met in an informal setting in the ”Pound4Pound’ boxing gym, in Los Angeles. You can find many Jorge Solis fans on the Internet pissing off Paclanders, generating heat and anticipation. Without HBO’s commercial backing and exposure, it is hard to imagine, with UFC 69 PPV airing last week and the May 5th PPV just weeks away, casual boxing fans investing in what is perceived as a “tune-up” bout.
BUZZ HUGE IN THE PHILIPPINES THOUGH
The lack of knowledge and exposure on this upcoming PPV is only felt in the United States. Meanwhile, Filipinos are eagerly anticipating their Icon and hero once against return to the ring and thrill the fans once again. Most movie theaters playing the fight commercial free have been sold out and ticket prices for those showings were higher than the last Pacquiao fight. Expect the streets to once again be empty and the crime rate drop substantially on the morning of April 15th.
QUICK JABS…
VILORIA GETS ANOTHER SHOT: Brain Viloria will once again fight on the undercard of Manny Pacquiao and will try to once again recapture the WBC light flyweight (108 lbs.), facing WBC #2 contender, Edgar Sosa. Viloria, 19-1-1 (12 KOs) won the title in a sensational first round knock out against Eric Ortiz in September of 2005. After one successful title defense, he shockingly lost his crown to Omar Nino in a lopsided decision. In an immediate rematch last November, Viloria knocked Nino down twice but couldn’t close the show, losing the last two rounds to back into a draw.
NINO TESTED “POSITVE” FOR DRUGS!
Nino shortly tested positive for drugs and the title became vacant. Viloria will now fight Sosa, who is not as skilled as Nino and has fought soft competition as of late. Sosa, 26-5 (14 KOs), has not lost since 2003, losing a close majority decision to the top fighter in that division, IBF champion, Ulises Solis, brother of Jorge Solis. With trainer Joe Goossen in his corner, expect Viloria to have one of his best fights, becoming a two time champion. He’ll have to be at his best if he can recapture the fame he once had when he was champ. MAXBOXING COLUMN ON THE WALL AT WILD CARD: Recently, Doug Fischer of Maxboxing, penned a piece where he felt that Manny Pacquiao was not as sharp as he normally is. Fischer watched Pacquiao spar for ten rounds against three sparring partners. Once the column was released, it became the topic of discussion within all the “regulars” at the Wild Card Gym. Rob Peters, the Pacman enforcer who was present through out Manny’s entire L.A training camp, disagrees with Fischer’s notes. “Why would you score sparring rounds? Manny was working on several combinations he plans to use in the fight. You don’t go into every round in sparring trying to win the round. Manny often times lets a fighter hit him to the body.” Peters reacted when he read the piece. However, as Fischer wrote in his piece, “We’ll find out in a week and half.”
