MANNY PACQUIAO finally showed up for training late yesterday afternoon after attending a photo shoot at the ABS-CBN headquarters.
Tipping the scales at 141 lbs, Pacquiao did the punch-mitt routine at the Wild Card Gym in Sucat, Para?aque, as he expressed his desire to put on a show of force against Mexican Oscar Larios on July 2 at the Araneta Coliseum.
Asked about his planned departure for Los Angeles, Pacquiao smiled, put up a funny face and let pass a few seconds before coming up with answer.
‘’Not later than May 16 I will go to the States,’’ said Pacquiao, who is being persuaded by close associate Wakee Salud to train in the US so he could concentrate on his preparation.
‘’There’s just too many distractions here and I don’t think Manny can train well while he is here,’’ said Salud, who was present during Pacquiao’s light workout.
Pacquiao arrived at 5:30 p.m., and slowly people began to flock at the famed workshop named after the original training center on Vine Street in Hollywood owned and operated by the revered Freddie Roach.
‘’Definitely, we are leaving for the States,’’ declared Pacquiao’s adviser Joe Ramos.
Doubts were raised the past few days as to whether Pacquiao would make good on his promise to spend some time under Roach.
ABS-CBN, which is staging the Big Dome show, is shelling out million for the slugfest that will feature the best and the brightest Filipino prospects like lightweight Randy Suico, super-featherweight Jimrex Jaca, bantam Rey Bautista and ex-world champ Gerry Pe?alosa.
Larios is expected to be in terrific shape since a win over Pacquiao would propel him to greater heights and the Guadalajara native has vowed to break the hearts of the Filipino southpaw’s adoring fans.
The Larios fight is being eyed as a buildup for the megabuck rubber match with Erik Morales in late-October or early-November at 130 lbs.
Pacquiao is doing his part to make the encounter a success. He agreed to shoot a music video for ABS-CBN to drum up the bout even more. He did not say what the MTV was all about though it could feature him doing some singing and maybe dancing.
Some of the distractions which Pacquiao has done the past months include negotiations for a movie about his life, recording an album that turned out to be a best-seller, and doing commercials.
On the other hand, Larios has his own timetable. The Mexican said he would train in Guadalajara for four weeks and transfer base in Tokyo where he will spend another four weeks before landing in Manila five days before the 12-rounder at the Araneta Coliseum.
