LOS ANGELES ? Manny Pacquiao says he is through making friends with opponents in the build up to his championship bouts and vows to take a hard-line approach in his next fight against Juan Manuel Marquez.
The 32-year-old Filipino boxing champion has decisively won his last. three fights but failed to score knockouts over Shane Mosley, Antonio Margarito and Joshua Clottey.
?If my opponent is nice and friendly to me then that carries over into the fight,? Pacquiao said Wednesday. ?Then I am not eager to finish the fight.?
The Filipino southpaw has vowed not to go easy when he puts his World Boxing Organization welterweight title on the line against Mexico?s Marquez on November 12 in Las Vegas. ?Before Marquez was saying bad things about me. Now he is saying good things about me,? said Pacquiao (53-3, 2 draws, 38 KOs).
In a sport that thrives on hype to sell tickets, staredowns and angry exchanges are usually common when two fighters get together to promote the fight. But that?s not been the case with nice-guy Pacquiao.
Mosley and Clottey were able to disarm Pacquiao with plenty of compliments and talk of how grateful they were the champion was giving them an opportunity to fight for a title, not to mention millions of dollars.
Margarito mocked and insulted Pacquiao?s trainer Freddie Roach but stayed away from firing verbal jabs aimed specifically at Pacquiao.
