Just three days after carving out a masterful 12-round victory over Oscar Larios to keep his World Boxing Council International super featherweight championship, Manny Pacquiao on Wednesday night said he is raring to go back to training for his anticipated third fight against the Mexican Erik “El Terrible” Morales.
“Most probably in August I?ll be back exercising,” Pacquiao said in Filipino in a victory party at the Mandaluyong head office of San Miguel Corp., which hosted cocktails for their top endorser, the media and the boxer?s friends.
“I will prepare really hard for Morales,” added the boxing icon, also a franchisee of SMC?s various products.
With hardly any marks on him from his encounter with Larios, the former world bantamweight champion also from Mexico, Pacquiao again expressed his gratitude to his countrymen?s support in the “Mano-a-Mano” fight card last Sunday.
“I?m happy that I made our countrymen happy again, much like the way San Miguel gives happiness to the millions who patronize their products like San Miguel Beer, Ginebra San Miguel, Magnolia Fresh Milk, Magnolia Ice Cream and others,” he said.
“You can count on me to be diligent in my training, even as I try to give happiness and inspiration to our countrymen,” Pacquiao added.
Meanwhile, Pacquiao?s trainer, Freddie Roach, came back from the Philippines happy with his ward?s performance against Larios, but took home something extra?a case of the flu, according to the a boxing Web site.
The heat, humidity, sweating and air conditioning played havoc on the down-to-earth trainer?s immune system, so he will not be in Roman Karmazin?s corner come Saturday night when the Russian steps in against Cory Spinks in Saint Louis.
Roach gave Pacquiao high marks for his effort against the game Mexican Larios, especially in the second half of the fight.
“The first five rounds he wasn?t in full gear, he was putting a show on for the people but from the sixth on he opened up,” Roach told thesweetscience.com.
There was a precarious spot in the third when Larios caught PacMan on the ropes and the Filipino came back to the corner chastened, Roach said.
“You can?t be pulling straight back versus a lanky guy, but that was just one punch,” he said. “Overall it was a good show, good for the Philippines.”
