ON Sunday, July 2, the Araneta Coliseum will rock ?and roar. Manny Pacquiao, the Filipino boxing icon, is raring to punish Mexico?s Oscar Larios before his adoring countrymen.
Larios, on the other hand, would like nothing but to embarrass the Filipino boxing champion before a huge hometown crowd.
Whatever the motivation, expect the ?Mano-A-Mano? boxing extravaganza to go down in sports history as the most exciting and the most-awaited sports event in the country, with fans from every corner of the archipelago venturing to give their opinion on the upcoming fight.
And both Pacquiao and Larios? handlers express confidence that their ward will be the better boxer come Sunday.
Larios? handler Rafael Mendoza, a former sportswriter, said the Mexican pug is unfazed by the expected huge pro-Pacquiao crowd.
?Come fight day, Oscar knows that only Pacquiao can throw a punch, not the 20,000 spectators. I respect Pacquiao, but we are not afraid of him,? said Mendoza during yesterday?s press conference at the Discovery Suites in Ortigas.
Trainer Freddie Roach said his ward is ready for action. He stuck to his earlier prediction that the fight will be over in six rounds.
?We?re ready to rumble. If Pacquiao follows our game plan, it will be over in six rounds,? said Roach, who stressed that Pacquiao is in tip-top shape.
While saying that the public will be the real winner, Larios vowed to beat Pacquiao.
?It?s not impossible. Beating Pacquiao means big money and financial security,? Larios said.
As the maiden collaboration between MP Promotions and ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corp., Mano A Mano represents the coming of age of Philippine broadcast media just as it is a feather in the cap of Filipino promoters to put up world-class bouts with an exceptional and unique theme.
The bout will be seen all over the world through ABS-CBN?s local stations: The Filipino Channel, iNDemand, DirectTV and the network?s Mexican partner.
