FILIPINO boxing superstar Manny Pacquiao, aiming for a multimillion-dollar rematch with Erik Morales, faces Mexican Hector Velasquez today in a 12-round battle for the vacant World Boxing Council International super featherweight title at the Staples Center in Los Angeles.
Morales himself will be appearing against former Olympian Zahir Raheem in the co-main event of the “Double Trouble” card in another 12-round tiff for the WBC International lightweight tiara.
Both fights will be simulcast today starting at 10 a.m. over Solar Sports and RPN-9. Also to be shown are the fights of Bohol’s Rey Bautista and Hawaii-raised Ilocano Brian Viloria against separate opponents.
On the eve of the fight, President Macapagal-Arroyo said she and the nation were praying for Pacquiao’s victory.
“You are the inspiration of our youth and a good example of the skills possessed by Filipinos,” she said in Filipino.
President Arroyo said the nation believes in Pacquiao’s ighting ability and is behind him all the way.
Both Pacquiao and Velasquez came in at an exact 130 lbs during the official weigh-in held yesterday at the Staples Center. Morales came in at 134 while Raheem tipped in at 133.
Pacquiao, wearing a blue-and-yellow cap at the weigh-in, flexed his muscles for the media to see, reminiscent of his post-weigh-in antics during the Morales and Barrera fights.
Viloria (17-0 11KOs) is seeking the WBC light flyweight crown of Eric Ortiz of Mexico (34-4-1 16KOs). Viloria and Ortiz both weighed in at the regulatory limit of 108 lbs.
Bautista will fight Felix Murilo of Colombia.
For Pacquiao, today’s fight will be his meal ticket to a rich pay-per-view rematch with Morales on Jan. 21, which guarantees him a whooping $6 million purse, the biggest for any Filipino athlete in history.
Experts predict a win for Pacquiao to keep him on track of avenging his unanimous decision loss to Morales last March.
The southpaw from General Santos City, who claims being in tip-top shape following a rigorous one-month training at Freddie Roach’s Wild Card Gym, is up against a less formidable fighter with a 42-10-2 win-loss-draw record.
The feeling is that Pacquiao (39-3-2) must utilize his speed to befuddle the slower Velasquez and go for an early knockout since his stamina is suspect due to his scrambling preparation.
The lineup of officials for the bout does not augur well for the Filipino icon, however, with one of the judges–Alejandro Rochin– being a Mexican like Velasquez. The other two judges are Americans Marty Sammon and Pat Russell.
