Gary Shaw said he felt like a college football coach who had landed the top recruit in the nation when he signed boxer Manny Pacquiao to a promotional contract a few months ago.
“He’s a blue-chip prospect,” said Shaw, who also promotes Winky Wright, Diego Corrales and Jeff Lacy.
Pacquiao’s boxing ability, knockout power and charisma have made him a two-time world champion and an icon in the Philippines. He drew 50,000 to an outdoor stadium in Manila for a non-title fight in 2003.
Shopkeepers close their businesses when Pacquiao fights. He is mobbed by fans wherever he goes in the Philippines.
Politicians were lining up for Pacquiao’s endorsement in the most recent presidential election in the Philippines. Pacquiao gave his support to Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, and she won.
He also has starred in five action films, the latest one, “Licensed Fists,” had its Hollywood premiere Wednesday.
Pacquiao already was a national treasure in his home country before he faced Marco Antonio Barrera in 2003, but his popularity went to new heights in his homeland and in the U.S. when he stopped Barrera in 11 rounds.
Pacquiao will get a chance to fight in front of his many Filipino fans in the Southern California area when he takes on veteran Hector Velazquez in the co-main event tonight at Staples Center on HBO. The live card starts at 4p.m., and the telecast begins at 6:45.
Erik Morales faces Zahir Raheem in the other featured bout. If Morales and Pacquiao are victorious, they will meet in a highly anticipated rematch in January.
Pacquiao’s first bout against Morales in March was a memorable fight. It was a tactical match at times and a toe-to-toe slugfest at others. It remains a candidate for fight of the year. It was a close decision on the scorecards, but Morales came out as the clear-cut winner.
“We let Erik dictate the pace of the fight with his jab,” Pacquiao’s trainer, Freddie Roach, said. “We didn’t fight a good fight that night. I think we can improve in a lot of areas. Morales was on that night, and he had a good night.”
Pacquiao had a lot of distractions outside the ring before the Morales fight, and ongoing legal battles with his former promoter, Murad Muhammed. Pacquiao said he doesn’t want to talk about his past promotional problems.
“My job is to keep all the distractions away from him, so when he gets in the ring the only thing he has to do is worry about the opponent,” Shaw said.
Pacquiao does not want to talk about Muhammed, but that didn’t stop Roach from letting off some steam.
“I’m so happy there is no more Murad Muhammed,” Roach said. “We don’t have to listen to this guy speak about himself (at news conferences). I mean this guy, you know, Manny made $1.7 million for his last fight (against Morales) and his promoter made $2.6million? How many punches did he throw? You know (Bob) Arum ran the show. All he did was show up because he had Manny under contract. He didn’t do anything. He had no risk whatsoever.
“It was a big distraction. He took Manny’s room (at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas). Manny had a regular room with six people in it because Murad checked into the suite he (Pacquaio) was supposed to have. Manny had to buy tickets for his wife. We had to wear Winning gloves because Murad OK’d that without asking anybody. Manny wanted Reyes gloves because those are puncher’s gloves.
“When you go into a battle of that magnitude, a fight like that, you can’t have nothing on your mind but the fight.”
Roach closed his Wild Card Gym in Hollywood, which is always bustling with activity, during Pacquiao’s training sessions so Pacquiao could focus on improving his overall skills.
“In his last couple of fights he’s been pretty one-dimensional,” Roach said. “When he fought Barrera, he fought a much better, a much smarter fight.
“The last couple of fights he’s been stuck in a mode of trying to knock people out.”
Nothing is etched in stone. Pacquiao and Morales still have tough bouts to get past tonight before they can talk about a rematch in January.
“I’m not overlooking my opponent,” Pacquiao said. “He’s a nice guy and a good boxer. I’m not thinking about my future fights.”
