“No more distractions.”
That, Manny Pacquiao and his handlers said, is the crucial difference in his current preparations for an upcoming fight against another formidable boxing opponent.
On Sept. 10, he will go mano a mano with Hector Velasquez at Staples Center in Los Angeles. Velazquez, nicknamed “El Artillero” (The Artillery Man), is a compatriot of Erik Morales, the boxer who defeated Pacquiao last March.
The Filipino boxer’s big loss to Morales was largely attributed to a number of highly publicized missteps that had the early favored boxer appearing less mighty during their fight.
Issues about his failure to fight using his preferred gloves, the late administration of a pre-fight medical test, and rumored infighting within his camp had caused the boxer and his closest advisers to make some big changes this time around to help him focus solely on the business of the fight itself.
“He’s out of his contract with Murad Muhammad, so that’s also one less distraction,” his manager Shelly Finkel said at Thursday’s press conference in Glendale, Calif.
Pacquiao’s off-ring skirmish with boxing promoter Muhammad that dealt with the profits from his televised via Pay-Per-View bout with Morales was recently settled out of court. He also had a rocky falling out with former business manager Rod Nazario over money issues.
“I can’t answer that,” he said when asked about the status of his relationship with Nazario whom he referred to as “like a father” to him in a previous interview.
Also, as part of their “no distractions” strategy, Pacquiao’s faithful fans can no longer watch his training under Freddie Roach at Wild Card Gym.
Previously, the boxer’s horde of Filipino supporters trooped to the Los Angeles gym almost every Saturday to get a chance to see their idol in action. Media people’s access to the boxer during training has also been restricted.
Making his training activities a closed-door affair was a change instituted by his camp to get Pacquiao to live up to his ring champion status which wobbled a bit when he was defeated by Morales who many boxing aficionados noted after their bloody March bout as simply the better-prepared fighter.
Both pugilists, two of the boxing world’s biggest crowd drawers, will be seeing action on Sept. 10 in the much-awaited event billed as “Double Trouble.”
With Los Angeles as the ring brawl site, Mexicans and Filipinos, two of the city’s biggest groups of immigrant residents, are expected to pack the stadium.
Tickets are being sold at popular prices, starting at $25.
“The friendly boxing rivalry between both ethnic groups is exciting,” fight promoter Bob Arum said at the press con. “The boxers from both sides come to fight. Whenever they face each other, you know you’re gonna see fireworks.”
Arum praised Pacquiao for his intensity as a fighter and his phenomenal rise to the top. He credited the support of Filipino fans for much of the 26-year-old fighter’s wide acclaim.
“The way that he has captured the hearts of everyone in his nation is amazing,” he said.
Twenty-three year-old U.S. Olympian Brian Viloria, another Filipino boxer, is expected to win fans’ hearts as well during the Pacquiao-Velasquez fight card. The Hawaii-born boxing warrior will try to seize the WBC light flyweight belt that night.
“It’s a dream come true to fight on the same card as Manny. He’s my personal hero,” Viloria said.
At the packed press conference, Arum also praised Velazquez and said that because the Mexican ring veteran is already 30 years old, El Artillero is prepared to use all of his vaunted firepower to get his shot at glory.
“He knows that if he can beat Manny Pacquiao, a new future awaits for him,” he said. “He is tough as nails.”
Asked if he is concerned that Velazquez’s perceived intense hunger for victory is a concern for him, Pacquiao said that it wasn’t.
“I will win because I’m hungry, too,” he said, before breaking into a smile as he posed for yet another fan’s camera.
