NEW YORK — Like a mafiosi don who thinks his family’s honor had been tarnished, Manny Pacquiao is seeking revenge against the boxer who made a punching bag of his younger brother Bobby during a bout Saturday night at the Madison Square Garden.
Pacquiao was incensed at the beating his brother got from Mexican Humberto Soto that he promised to give up his purse or even hand it to Soto just so the fight can be arranged.
“Even if I give my prize money to him, I would fight him,” said Pacquiao who appeared to have taken his brother’s loss as a personal matter to be settled between him and Soto.
Pacquiao could not come to terms with the fact that it was only boxing and that it was normal for fighters to win or lose bouts.
Pacquiao was almost inconsolable after watching Soto punish his younger brother Bobby who was bloodied and on the verge of a a knockout when the referee stepped in during the seventh round to stop the carnage.
Pacquiao handlers are already talking of a Sept. 15 or Oct. 6 fight between Manny and Soto with Las Vegas or Vancouver, Canada as possible venue.
Bobby fought Soto in the undercard of the Cotta-Judah welterweight world championship bout with Manny among 20,658 fans who packed the Garden. The gate receipts totaled .6 million, according to Top Rank chairman Bob Arum, whose outfit promoted the card.
Manny was so furious at the beating his brother got that he told his wife, Jinkee, that he plans to go back into training the soonest time possible.
“I was really hurt when I saw Bobby lose to Soto and I can’t think of anything right now but to seek revenge,” said Pacquiao hours before taking the direct flight from New York to Los Angeles.
It is unclear whether Joan Guzman of the Dominican Republic and Edwin Valero of Venezuela, who are both itching to square off with Pacquiao, are still in the picture.
But if Arum and Team Pacquiao decide to go for Soto, the bout is expected to be a big draw with revenge and restoring family honor as the main plot.
