MANNY PACQUIAO has been behaving confused. If not, why was he worried sick about his forthcoming big fight at the Araneta Coliseum?
There’s a tested product: Pacquiao himself, the single most saleable commodity in the Philippines, the strongest one-man sales force in the country today.
Pacman could go sell the Jones Bridge to City Hall and the prospective buyers would most probably bite.
But our man of the hour had suddenly sounded unsure of himself.
It was totally unexpected, but Pacquiao angrily protested after it was noted that Oscar Larios, the boxer he’ll be fighting on July 2, could be no better than recycled Mexican meat.
“Sorry, Kuyang, but we can’t blame Manny, he’s the hands-on promoter of his fight against Larios, baka nagkasunod-sunod lang,” explained Peter Musngi, ABS-CBN’s tested impresario.
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By “nagkasunod-sunod,” our friendly ABS-CBN exec meant the succeeding reports in this column which stated, among others, that: 1) Larios suffered a silly knockdown against an obscure Japanese pug in Tokyo last year; 2) Larios was beaten silly by Israel Vasquez, a Pacquiao sparmate, in their last clash for the world 122-pound crown.
Also, the subsequent question on why Larios was allotted a whopping $450,000 purse, more expensive than a world champion, had not been answered.
Again, that itself should not be cause for worry among handlers of the July 2 super bout at Araneta Coliseum.
Of course, some clarifications would’ve helped.
But the good news for Manny Pacquiao Promotions is that the masa, the wet-market crowds in particular, has been properly incensed, excited, won over, captivated by the Pacquioa-Larios mano-a-mano.
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Talo ba tayo? (Are we losing?) asked a pudgy, sunburnt bibingka-suman vendor at the Mandaluyong public market yesterday.
The poor fellow, a billiards parlor habitue, was alarmed by claims stating Larios was a lot better than Marco Antonio Barrera and Erik Morales, or both of the two Mexican ring greats combined.
These details about the alleged greatness of Larios were drumbeated during the over-decorated ABS-CBN presscon on Friday, an affair that showed the giant television network is throwing everything behind the super fight.
A big hand to the promoters. The selling of Larios had been colorfully handled.
Peter Musngi must be believed when he said that, just like Pacquiao, ABS-CBN throws everything into any major project.
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Truth is the Pacquiao bout has been sold out this early. Or before his opponent could be named, for that matter.
As the sharp street pollster puts it, Pacquiao would fill the Big Dome even if he boxes a chimp (“Maski tsonggo kontra Pacquiao, papanoorin ‘yan.”)
In fact, ABS-CBN needed not have created a big problem by offering to give away all general admission tickets.
The best they could have done was sell these at prices well within reach of the poor, hungry masa that, no thanks to crippling poverty, could no longer afford anything hereabouts.
ABS-CBN, mainly big boss Gabby Lopez, definitely meant well, but it’s missing the main point.
You bet our poor brothers in the slums would beg and borrow just to be able to watch their super hero fight live and, wow, against a Mexican at that.
Now that the lowest priced passes would no longer be offered at the ticket booths, how do our very poor neighbors get hold of a ticket to the Pacquiao fight?
Risk their lives in another stampede?
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Pardon this, but ABS-CBN has indulged in shallow sweet charity that is expected to complicate matters.
Of course, the problem is not with the poor general admission crowds alone, which form the biggest bulk of fanatics who are still intoxicated with Pacquiao’s sensational triumph in Las Vegas last January.
Ticket prices should be within sane reach of everybody, including members of the middle class and the affluent status gods of suburbia.
OK, poor fans need not worry. They would get their dream tickets free.
But don’t look now. There’s this suggestion that tickets to the Pacquiao bout be raffled off to the public at the Wow Wow Wee program, featuring the unsinkable Willy Revillame.
Explains Mr. Musngi: “Mechanics are still in the works for different ABS-CBN platforms including TV, Radio, Cable, Interactive and Publishing.”
Consult the Palace chief of staff and other crowd control geniuses at Malaca?ang, please.
