And no belts are even at stake here.
But Top Rank Promotions saw a record draw of attendees Wednesday night in Los Angeles when it introduced officially the main protagonists of what is billed as a ?superfight? at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas nearly two months from now.
Erik Morales of Mexico, the former World Boxing Council super-featherweight champion, and Manny Pacquiao of the Philippines, former super-bantamweight king of the International Boxing Federation, took center stage Thursday at the Beverly Hills Hotel in California formally announcing their face-off on March 19 in Nevada.
Itching for that world-caliber opponent denied him since May, Pacquiao finally caught a huge name in Morales?an opponent the Filipino leftie has so coveted the last two years.
?I?m going to give you a real good fight,? said Pacquiao, who wore a casual long-sleeved sports top.
While only one opponent?in Mexican boxer Juan Manuel Marquez?satisfied Pacquiao?s hunger for a quality foe in 2004, Morales?s appetite was full last year as the Mexican faced and beat a couple of 40-bout winners.
Then on November, Morales lost to countryman Marco Antonio Barrera, the second time he lost to Barrera and only the second time Morales lost in a 12-year career spanning 47 victories.
Morales?s 50th career fight will be against Pacquiao.
?I had three great fights last year,? said Morales, wearing a trim black coat over a buttoned shirt. ?It didn?t finalize the way I had hoped it to, but I?m very satisfied with my performances. I didn?t want to take anyone easy coming back.
?I think this will be a great, explosive fight.?
In more ways than one actually.
Both fighters, characterized by head-on, devil-may-care bravado, work similar methods.
?While Marquez and Barrera would probably try to produce a boxing clinic to stifle Pac Man?[the Morales-Pacquiao bout] pits the quick, powerful southpaw against the Mexican great who goes to war every time he steps into the ring,? said United Kingdom-based writer Steve McKenna.
Last year both fighters were considered the best in their sport, individually and in the fights they were involved in.
In USA Today?s yearender, it adjudged the Morales-Barrera bout as 2004?s Fight of the Year while it quickly mentioned the Pacquiao-Marquez tiff that ended in a draw as one of the year?s unforgettable slugfests.
Morales and Pacquiao were also on the top-10 list of Ring, HBO and USA Today?s top pound-for-pound fighters in 2004.
?Without a doubt he?s very strong and he?s probably the strongest fighter I ever faced,? said Morales in an interview with www.maxboxing.com.
?[But] I?m probably the strongest fighter he?s ever going to face. So we?ll see who?s the strongest guy out there.?
And with Top Rank head Bob Arum commending the fruition of another prized investment?while invoking the growing animosity between Latin American and Filipino fight fans, the business side of the March bout is expected to be a blockbuster.
?This smells like it?s going to do tremendous business because Morales-Barrera did big, but it was two Mexicans. I think a Filipino and a Mexican brings another element to it, because it energizes over two million Filipinos in Southern California.?
Tickets for the bout go on sale Saturday. They are priced from $75 to $400.
