The pre-dawn hours at the Centennial terminal of Philippine Airlines were punctuated by shouts of “idol,” “hero,” “champion” and “warrior” as Manny Pacquiao, “The People’s Featherweight Champion” arrived to a rousing welcome at 4:45 a.m. yesterday.
Wearing fancy shades that hid the evidence of the bruises suffered in an epic ring battle with the courageous WBA/IBF champion Juan Manuel Marquez, Pacquiao smiled through the pain of knowing he lost a fight he clearly should have won. The ring gladiator from Mindanao said he still “can’t accept the unbelievably bad decision” and said he wants nothing more in his career than a rematch with Marquez even as he felt the Mexican would never agree.
