MANNY Pacquiao flashed a wide grin the moment he set foot at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas Monday.
The reaction was not surprising for Pacquiao was accorded a warm welcome by the Vegas folks, and even by journalists who are held in awe by the punching machine from the Philippines.
He may not have momentarily noticed that this is the same place–MGM Grand–where he fought Juan Manuel Marquez for the World Boxing Association and International Boxing Federation titles in May last year–and the draw verdict has haunted him ever since.
Pacquiao, then still fresh from his conquest of Marco Antonio Barrera, answered the opening bell with guns blazing, dropping Marquez three times in one of the most memorable first round performances in the history of boxing.
Firing left straights non-stop, Pacquiao seemed headed for a first round knockout win. He had Marquez on the seat of his pants and bloodied the Mexican’s nose.
But just as Pacquiao and the entire Filipino nation were anticipating an early KO victory, Marquez rose to his feet each time he hit the canvas and put on a great display of surviving and stalling the Filipino’s bid for greatness.
A disappointed Pacquiao couldn’t believe what happened. All he could do was offer an apology to his countrymen.
For failing to wrest the titles from Marquez, Pacquiao seemed to have crashed back to earth, and his performance that night exposed him as a one-dimensional fighter.
On March 19 (March 20 in Manila), Pacquiao gets the chance to redeem himself and bury that sad memory when he steps in the ring against another Mexican, Erik Morales.
But Vegas isn’t that kind of a jinx to Pacquiao, and when he climbs the ring on Saturday, he will in fact try to prove that he is one of the greatest boxers ever to step into the ring in that gambling city.
In case you may have forgotten, it was also in Las Vegas where Pacquiao snatched the IBF super bantamweight crown from Lehlo Ledwaba.
