Top Rank and Golden Boy traded moon shots Friday afternoon at the Manny Pacquiao-Oscar De La Hoya press conference at the NASA Space Center in Houston, Texas.
The conference was a very calm, civil event compared to the recent Shane Mosley-Ricardo Mayorga conference that featured an ever confident, eccentric and slightly insane Mayorga and a smiling Mosley. Pacquiao and De La Hoya both let their promotions teams and sponsors do most of the talking. For the majority of the conference, Golden Boy CEO Richard Schaefer and Top Rank CEO Bob Arum traded discussion, jokes and bragging rights with each other and the crowd.
One thing that both CEOs agreed upon was that the fight was an epic arrangement.
?It matches one of the most popular fighters in the world for so many years now (Oscar De La Hoya) against the Pound for Pound best in the world in Manny Pacquiao,? said Arum.
De La Hoya dialed down expectations in his statements to the public. ?I know that Manny Pacquiao is a great fighter and he is a southpaw and I am now 35 years old,? he said. ?I know that I need to really get in the gym and get into great shape for this fight.?
The evening actually opened with Oscar De La Hoya and Manny Pacquiao posing with a guy in an astronaut suit in between them. I don?t know if that is a first in Boxing, but it would not surprise me.
This bout, referred to by promotion teams as the ?Dream Match.? Boxing voices are divided regarding whether or not the match is legitimate or not. Many have said that the match is good for the sport because of the attention it garners and the legacy to which it may lead. Others have lambasted the bout, arguing that De La Hoya?s size difference will make the fight one-sided and lame.
The counter attack to such an argument has been that Manny Pacquiao is lightning quick and will be able to get in some hard shots and trade successfully here and there. Even so, no one knows with certainty how much of an effect either attribute (power or speed) will have on the precise outcome of the fight.
Another angle on this fight is that this is one of the largest cultural events in Boxing history. Manny Pacquiao is probably the best fighter ever to come out of Asia, while De La Hoya is on the most popular Mexican-American fighters of all time.
Quick Jabs
The media tour originally started in New York City at the Statue of Liberty before moving onto the Sears Tower. I wouldn?t exactly put the NASA Space Center in the same category as those two buildings in terms of tourist attraction. NASA has some shuttle gear here and there, but most of the building is centered on attracting preteens. As Championship Contender Rocky Juarez put it, ?I haven?t been here since elementary school.?
Juarez, 28-4, 20 KO?s, always a class act, gave us some good conversation time. Juarez is looking toward a possible fight on the Ricky Hatton-Paulie Malignaggi under card. He thinks De La Hoya will win but tempered it by saying ?It?s Boxing, so anything can happen.? Interestingly, Juarez also told us that Jorge Barrios was able to hurt him while Barrera and Marquez were not.
Also in attendance were Willie Savannah and IBO Lightweight Champion Juan ?The Baby Bull? Diaz, 34-1, 17 KO?s. I saw the suburban they came in outside. It?s pretty recognizable because it has ?Champion Juan ?The Baby Bull? Diaz? written on the side.
Former IBF Supermiddleweight Champion Jeff ?Left Hook? Lacy, 24-1, 17 KO?s was also in attendance. Lacy is preparing for his November 15th bout against former Undisputed Middleweight Champion Jermain “Bad Intentions” Taylor.
Bob Arum said about halfway through the conference that Filipinos ?Have the most beautiful women in the world.? Schaefer rebutted that Latino women were better looking. If those guys are anywhere near correct in those statements, Vegas might be the place to be come December.
Freddie Roach and Nacho Beristain were in attendance, but they aren?t letting any strategy slip out.
