THERE WAS a point in the last round of Manny Pacquiao’s first fight with Erik Morales last March when the Filipino boxing sensation had appeared very close to scoring a knockdown.
After he opted to slug it out at mid-ring, Morales got tagged hard and was observed to have wobbled, his legs briefly swaying like tossed Chinese noodles.
But the gifted Mexican dug deep, summoned magical reserves to regain footing and come up the winner on points.
That, mind you, is the most gripping, the most saleable detail of Morales-Pacquiao I, the main reason why the Second Encounter has again soared in the charts.
To Filipino fight devotees, Morales managed to survive only after the final bell interrupted the Pacquiao fusillade.
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So where did Pacquiao take the Filipinos after that?
Up high, of course, close to an emotional Everest.
To this day, there’s the prevailing view hereabouts that Pacquiao could have stopped Morales had there been another round left in the bout.
Well, this is already 10 months after Morales had conquered Pacquiao with a masterful combination of craft and guts, but the Filipinos have remained stuck on a cliff of great expectations.
Suspense, the thought of what might have been, continues to whet sporting appetites as Morales-Pacquiao II draws near.
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As proof of an inevitable Pacquiao fever, all the P500 seats in at least two theaters at Rockwell where the fight will be beamed live from Las Vegas have reportedly been sold out.
Promoters call the rematch The Battle, but it’s a monumental encounter that has stolen the fancy of Filipinos, including those who can’t distinguish between a foul blow and a foul throw.
Other than advanced bookings in various venues, there’s a scramble for choice spots, early meals. And, of course, what drinks to serve in preparation for a grand blowout.
Yes, like it or not, there’s this growing feeling hereabouts that Pacquiao cannot miss this time out.
Why? Because the Second Encounter, to be staged at the Thomas and Mack Center also in Las Vegas, should be nothing less than a continuation of the interrupted 12th round at MGM Grand last March.
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Wow, wowie! Another 12 rounds when they thought all Pacquiao had needed the last time out was an extra round.
My uncle, Milo Agellon, driving by from a wake for boyhood chum Sancho Geronimo in our village, protested and sneered when informed that, in fact, Pacquiao could be caught in a more precarious position in the rematch.
No way, impossible, he mumbled drably. He singled out the bloody cut suffered by Pacquiao in the first fight.
That wound — a result of a headbutt in the fifth round — had definitely hampered Pacquiao’s vision and had reportedly pushed him close to calling it quits in the eighth round.
Naturally, there’s also this growing sentiment that all Pacquiao has to do this time is stay clear of a headbutt, and victory should be in the bag.
Add to that the expert insistence that Pacquiao, who had charged blindly like a KO-seeking bull in the first fight, would be bringing in better skills into the second fight.
There, indeed, are enough reasons for the Filipinos to get carried away as Pacquiao takes them along on his drive towards greatness and immortality.
It’s not very funny what’s happening here. What’s actually needed is a slug-out, not a boxing bout, if Pacquiao, who lost to a complete boxer the first time, is to triumph.
But, all told, Pacquiao can’t really afford to lose again.
That, folks, appears to be the most saleable goad to a dream revenge win by the Pacman.
