LOS ANGELES, California — It’s now Erik Morales who’s the odds-on favorite in the sportsbook windows in Las Vegas, site of his rematch with Filipino boxing icon Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao on Jan. 21.
Pacquiao, 7-5 favorite since the announcement of the second encounter last year, was pegged a 10-8 underdog versus the Mexican hero Morales yesterday.
This means a bet of $125 on Morales would pay $100, said Pacquiao publicist Winchell Campos.
Expect more shifts in the betting trend, advised sportsman Rex “Wakee” Salud, a Pacquiao confidante.
If it were in cockfighting, an P80 bet would pay P100 for Pacquiao, or “lo-diyes”, Salud said.
Nothing much has been heard from Morales who is winding up a rigid training in the Mexican outskirts.
Pacquiao, meanwhile, continued to train behind closed doors.
All the three Manila scribes here to cover the big rematch, together with Games and Amusements Board (GAB) boxing division head Noli Flores, were not allowed entry to the Wild Card gym of trainer Freddie Roach during Pacquiao’s workout yesterday.
The taller Morales rode on guts and superior craft in conquering Pacquiao by unanimous decision in a bloody, dramatic first encounter at the MGM Grand, also in Las Vegas, in March last year.
Majority of experts believe Pacquiao could win only via a knockout, but Roach disagreed and insisted the superbly honed Filipino idol would also go for a win on points.
Roach also confirmed the Inquirer report that he had ordered changes in Pacquiao’s arsenal, thereby correcting serious flaws that cost them the first fight.
“We would be foolish to go only for the knockout knowing Morales has never been stopped before,” Roach told the Inquirer yesterday.
That said, Roach remarked he sees nothing less than a spectacular win for Pacquiao at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas.
