MANNY PACQUIAO is already in a combative mood two months before the biggest fight of his career.
A few hours after arriving in Los Angeles on Monday night (Tuesday morning in Manila), Pacquiao said he is looking forward to his first day of training at the Wild Card Boxing Club in Hollywood for the megabuck rematch with Juan Manuel Marquez of Mexico on March 15 in Las Vegas.
“Tomorrow (Tuesday), I will start training,” Pacquiao told the Bulletin while unpacking at his high-end apartment at The Palazzo in Los Angeles.
Being in first class, Pacquiao said he was well-rested in the 12-hour trans-Pacific flight and was eager to dedicate the succeeding eight weeks to a life of sacrifice and suffering.
A press conference is scheduled at 12 noon Tuesday (today in Manila) at the Rodeo Room of The Beverly Hills Hotel where Marquez is also attending and the 29-year-old hardhitting lefty said he will show up at the Wild Card gym afterwards.
But Wild Card honcho Freddie Roach said he might ask Pacquiao to take a break and tell him to report for training on Wednesday instead.
Roach said eight weeks is enough to get Pacquiao back to his old, fiery form and a couple of Hispanic ringsters, unbeaten super-lightweight Daniel Cervantes and lightweight Roger ?Speedy” Gonzalez, have been contracted to serve as Pacquiao?s sparring partners beginning February.
“Everything is all set as far as Manny?s training program is concerned,” said Roach in an overseas call yesterday.
“I will be running with him in the morning,” said Roach, who revealed that former Pacquiao conditioning coach, Justin Fortune, has been sending out signals that it would be difficult to put Pacquiao in terrific condition.
“He wants his job back,” said Roach, who had a falling out with Fortune after Pacquiao?s April 14, 2007 fight with Jorge Solis owing to money matters.
Pacquiao had kicked off the initial phase of his training on Jan. 5, while Marquez, who battled Pacquiao to a blood-splattered 12-round draw in May 2004, started his in Mexico City during the Christmas season.
“Marquez is ahead of Pacquiao (in terms of training),” said Golden Boy Promotions (GBP) publicity chief Ramiro Gonzalez, who had covered Marquez when he was still working as a sportswriter for La Opinion.
GBP is staging the rematch alongside Top Rank at the 12,000-seat Mandalay Bay and the co-promoters are optimistic that pay-per-view sales would break into the 500,000 barrier since Pacquiao is a certified box-office draw and the rematch itself is worth watching.
