SANTA MONICA, California?Manny Pacquiao on Saturday sought to allay fears that his political career and skipping training camp were jeopardizing his chances of winning his WBC super welterweight fight in two weeks against Antonio Margarito in Arlington, Texas.
Pacquiao, the seven-division title holder also known as the Pacman, told a roaring crowd at Santa Monica Place, a spanking mall in this swanky oceanside city, that he had been diligently training and had just come from a grueling 12-round sparring session with four fighters from different divisions.
The event was sponsored by Nike, which was releasing a new line of products, ranging from flipflops to hoodies to boxing shoes in its new store here.
Later in a hurried press interview, Pacquiao told the Philippine Daily Inquirer that he would be fighting at 150 pounds, which is five more than when he fought and beat welterweight Joshua Clottey, his last victim. The catch weight in the WBC super welterweight division is 151 pounds.
If Pacquiao beats Margarito in their Nov. 13 bout, he will be the first man to win eight titles in as many weight divisions.
Currently, Pacquiao shares the seven-title record with Hector ?Macho? Camacho, a troubled Puerto Rican pugilist who retired in 2008. Camacho never gained renown because some of his titles were not recognized by major boxing organizations.
Boxing pundits and aficionados here and in the Philippines have expressed concern that Pacquiao?s emergent political career as the congressman from Sarangani is causing him to lose focus on his training.
Distractions
Pacquiao?s coach, Freddie Roach, has been quoted in a boxing website as saying he was ?thrilled? that his ward had left the Philippines where there were too many ?distractions ? just too much (expletive).?
But since Pacquiao arrived on Oct. 23, he has skipped training camp twice already. He went to San Diego, about an hour?s drive away south from here, to coach a Filipino-American basketball team he sponsors.
He later flew to Las Vegas, Nevada, on the request of boxing promoter Bob Arum, to support the flagging reelection bid of Democrat Senate President Harry Reid.
The Vegas trip has already raised a howl here among Republicans.
Roach said this training camp was Pacquiao?s ?worst ever,? which has led to speculation among boxing fans here that Roach was still upset and that this was the reason it was conditioning coach Alex Ariza who was with the boxer during the Nike event.
All?s well
Speaking with the media, however, Pacquiao said all was well in Team Pacquiao, though he did not say why Roach was not with him.
For his part, Roach, in the doghouseboxing.com article, said he was confident that Pacquiao would ?be prepared? in his fight with Margarito, a Mexican living in Torrance, California, at the ultramodern Dallas Cowboys Football Stadium.
Margarito, 32, became the WBO welterweight champ on March 16, 2002, with a knockout of Antonio Diaz. On Dec. 2, 2006, setting a furious clip of 1,675 punches in 12 rounds, he decisioned Joshua Clottey. Two years later, on July 26, 2008, he would TKO Miguel Cotto in the 11th round.
Then on Jan. 24, 2009, he lost a ninth round technical knockout to Shane Mosley. But during these fights, Margarito?s gloves were found to have substances used to make plaster of Paris. As a result, Margarito and his trainer Javier Capetillo were suspended by the California State Athletic Commission.
Resuming his career, on May 8 this year, Margarito won a 10-round decision against Robert Garcia for the vacant WBC international light-middleweight title.
Height, reach handicap
Margarito stands 5?11?; Pacquiao is 5?6?. Margarito?s reach is 73 inches, and Manny?s is 67 inches.
This will be the biggest height and reach handicap that Pacquiao will be facing, which is why he has two 6-ft boxers among his sparring partners.
During the Nike event, the host, Laila Ali, daughter of boxing great Muhamad Ali and herself a boxing champion, asked Pacquiao for a prediction, which he declined to do.
Special guests in the audience were Fil-Am high school students from Carson City, another Filipino enclave in California, some of whom got to ask Pacquiao some questions about his career and motivations as a boxer.
Pacquiao?s advice: ?Finish school, and if you want to become a boxer, you would need to have the passion and the discipline to succeed.?
