LAS VEGAS, Nevada, United States of America — The frail visitor who showed up late yesterday for a scheduled war against Manny Pacquiao did not look like the Aztec warrior who held three world boxing crowns.
Erik Morales, weak of voice and wrapped in a thick blue jacket with its collars stiffly rolled, resembled a patient newly released from the hospital.
But he swore he was ready to wage war and emerge victorious in his monumental showdown on Saturday (Sunday in Manila) against the fire-breathing Pacquiao.
Originally scheduled to check in at 5:30 p.m., Morales arrived at the MGM Grand Hotel three hours late, long after a mariachi band, which played lilting Mexican tunes to glorify his arrival, had left the hotel main lobby.
Morales came 10 hours after Pacquiao registered an $800 triumph in the black jack tables at the MGM casino grounds, where the Filipino boxing superstar, with a band of followers, strayed off after a buffet breakfast yesterday.
Morales did not look set to immediately do battle, unlike the bearded, hefty Pacquiao who checked in a day earlier, ripe and ready for a brawl.
Reporters had to keep close and strain to get what Morales had to explain that Pacquiao is a strong and good fighter and that he was looking forward to a hard fight.
Severe diet
If Morales did not appear sharp after a long trip from Mexico, it could all be due to a severe diet in a struggle to check his poundage.
Pacquiao, on the other hand, has been eating regularly to fuel his intense workouts.
It had been reported that the Pacquiao fight could be the last in the super featherweight for Morales, who has been having a terrible time making 130 pounds.
Morales could appear to have lost some edge in his struggle with the scales but he can be expected to come with everything — con todo — when he squares off with Pacquiao at the MGM Garden Arena Saturday evening.
Morales will blossom into a strong, fiery warrior again after the weigh-in.
Lest critics belittle Morales, based on his arrival appearance, his manager, Fernando Beltran promptly swore his boxer will “come out fighting, no matter what, because he’s got balls, a lot of heart.”
The manager explained they were delayed despite having left Mexico on time after his group was held by immigration hassles before they were finally cleared for entry in the United States.
All fights difficult
Does Morales have any message for Pacquiao?
“No, nada,” he told television host Dyan Castillejo, who interviewed Morales in Spanish and later shared details with Filipino reporters.
Does he think the fight will last 12 rounds?
“I’m not sure,” Morales said. “But I’m sure it will be a good fight.”
Asked if Pacquiao will be his most difficult opponent, Morales shook his head.
“All fights are very difficult,” he answered in Spanish.
Pacquiao and Morales, who first met last January in Los Angeles where the fight was announced, face each other again in today’s press conference in Studio A of MGM Grand.
Take it easy
Pacquiao completed 161 rounds of sparring in Los Angeles before coming here. He will take it easy, walk and do light calisthenics the next two days in time for the weigh-in.
In fact, Pacquiao felt so sure of his conditioning that he chose to stray off to the gaming tables on the ground floor of his hotel to try his luck at black jack. He was rewarded by three straight perfect 21s, was nearing $2,000 in winnings but later quit with a neat $800 harvest.
It was the first time Pacquiao had been allowed to gamble while still in training.
He later joined a group including General Santos City Mayor Pedro Acharon and prayed the rosary in his hotel suite before moving out for dinner with his wife and his group of backers who have all checked in at MGM.
