After feeding on the cheers of his countrymen in his recent historic fight, Manny Pacquiao now takes on the role of a cheerleader as he flies to Japan to root for two Cebuano champions who will defend their respective titles.
Pacquiao, who sealed his superstar status with a 10th-round demolition of Mexican icon Erik Morales in their Jan. 22 rematch in Las Vegas, will be at ringside when Orient and Pacific Boxing Federation (OPBF) champions Malcolm Tu?acao and Randy Suico defend their titles on Feb. 5 at the International Conference Hall in Nagoya, Japan.
The Filipino boxing hero will be in Cebu today to secure a Japanese visa for his trip to Japan. However, unlike his trip to Manila and General Santos City, Pacquiao’s entourage would rather have his Cebu trip minus the fanfare and tickertape parade.
Pacquiao, who was greeted by throngs of people when he arrived from the US last Friday, will be accompanied by his close friend, Cebuano boxing promoter Rex “Wakee” Salud, who was also with Manny when Pacquiao decked Erik Morales in the 10th round of their rematch last Jan. 22. Salud has accompanied Pacquiao in all his trips in the Philippines since he arrived from the US.
Arrival
Pacquiao is expected to arrive at the Mactan International Airport at 11 a.m. today and will proceed directly to the Japanese embassy to process their papers for their Japan trip on Saturday.
The two will leave for Manila tomorrow, before leaving for Japan.
Tu?acao, 19-1-2 win-loss-draw with 13 KOs, will defend his bantamweight title for the first time against Kohe Ohba, who is perfect in 13 fights with eight KOs. Suico, 22-2 with 20 KOs, will defend his super-featherweight title against Rhuhei Sugita, who has a 30-2-2 record with 22 KOs. (ML)
