First it was the entertainment capital of the world, where no Filipino boxer had ever won. Then it was the Bay City, where he was up against one of the division?s most notorious names. Five months later, it was the birthplace of the Elvis, where none among his intimate acquaintances were accommodated for the fight. And just four months ago in the City of Angels, he punctuated the most tumultuous six months of his career with another resounding triumph.
So when Manny Pacquiao treads the 126-lb division for the first time on November 16 in Texas, where no Filipino had won a bout before, to square off against the most prolific name in his division, the 24-year-old will face the kind of odds, the magnitude of which he has faced and defied before. Although his wife and his close mentors will be on the sidelines this time and no off-ring controversies have been distracting him, Pacquiao faces what could be the Mount Olympus of his career — confronting no less than the living legend of the featherweight class, Marco Antonio Barrera.
