DavidSays

Don't mess with the Pacman

By DAVID CASUCO / Editor-in-Chief, California Examiner
Boxing pound-for-pound superstar Manny Pacquiao could find himself in the august halls of boxing immortals if he is able to do what he does best inside the ring this weekend, June 28, at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas. The deal: pummel the enemy to submission.
This done, Pacquiao, the super featheweight champ who is moving up to the 135-pound weight, will join the ranks of boxing greats Carlos Ortiz, Roberto Duran, and Sugar Ray Robinson in the galaxy of stars in this, the highly competitive lightweight division.

Standing in his way is a cocky Mexican-American from Chicago, David Diaz, a foe that is neither hot nor cold, but who wears the WBC lightweight belt. This belt is what the Pacman needs in his march to immortality. Should he wrest Diaz's belt, he will have the singular distinction as the only Asian boxer to win four titles in four separate divisions.

Back up a little bit now: The first time I heard about the Pacquiao-Diaz tiff was during the Pacquiao-Juan Manuel Marquez post fight press briefing at the Mandalay Bay on March 15. I was sitting inside a room full of sportswriters waiting for the main protagonists to show up. However, both Pacquiao and Marquez were undergoing stitches on their faces after the 12-round bloody fisticuff earlier, which we all know, the Pacman won by a split decision.

So, in the absence of the mainers, this guy Diaz and his trainer and promoter showed up and started calling for Pacquiao. I thought people were not listening to him. I was not listening to him. Why should I listen to a fighter who had just an uneventful, if lackadaisical bout with a Filipino pug, Ramon Montano, in one of the underdcards.

"He was not even impressive in the undercard match... what was he talking about?" I asked the guy next to me.
'Yeah, I know, but I think Bob Arum (Top Rank's top guy) wants it that way," he said.

After Diaz was done with his bravado, Arum and Richard Shaeffer (of the Marquez camp) got into a heated exchange: Shaeffer thought Marquez won and wanted an immediate rematch, Arum was saying it is stupid to question the result in a close contest just like how the Paquiao-Marquez fight was.

Arum, who has Manny under his stable of fighters, was suddenly ambivalent about the Pacquiao-Diaz fight saying, "It depends how quick the cut of Manny will heal." Arum also parried questions from sportswriters saying a third Pacquiao-Marquez is not viable right away, meaning the fight is not gonna sell.

And so, it ended like that. Nothing was definite. No Pacquiao-Marquez or Pacquiao-Diaz title fight seemed likely. When I left Las Vegas and started my four-hour lonely drive back to California, I was thinking more of the Pacman taking care of his politics and showbiz concerns-- another record deal, another movie project; the champ hobnobbing with with the powerful and the corrupted Philippine government officials, who are just as happy basking under the reflected glory of the boxing icon.

But what a difference a couple of months make! Pacquiao and Diaz are now headliners of an action-packed boxing card at the Mandalay Bay. The hype is that this one is gonna be a virtual brawl since both Manny and David are offense minded. And although the Pacman is a clear favorite coming to this fight, Diaz is definitely no pushover. A 1996 Olympian, Diaz is fighting in his normal weight and he is known to be a disciplined fighter. Diaz does not possess a killer punch, but is said to have a very heavy hand. The last press release from his camp in Chicago is that the guy is upbeat and "ready to pulverize Manny."

To which Pinoy boxing bloggers responded: Not so fast, man. Nobody messes with the Pacman.

As for Manny, of course, it is common knowledge the flamboyant Pinoy prizefighter wallops a vicious left that sends his enemy kissing the canvas instantaneously. He wound up his training Tuesday at the Wild Card Gym in Hollywood, and was seen early last week doing the rounds in the Filipino community in L.A. promoting the fight (sure the Pinoy won't mind buying a $50 ppv especially when Manny sings for them "Para Sa Iyo Ang Laban Na'to." Heck, who can resist that!).

To his credit, Manny never predicts he is going to pulverize his foe inside the ring, nor does trash talk during media staredowns (thanks heavens Filipino boxers have not learned that ugly stuff). He just makes his fists do the talking. And when his fists -- especially the wicked left -- start talking trash, they come like "a supertyphoon raging across the Pacific," to borrow the words of an HBO boxing commentator. Yes, Pacman's fists are not just very heavy, they are very lethal, even a ring savvy gladiator like Marquez can get floored three times in a span of three minutes.
Asked what to expect in this fight, Manny said it is up to Diaz to determine how the fight will end. Meaning, if Diaz gets aggressive early on, somebody is going to get hurt, and could lead to an abbreviated match.

This writer thinks that is what's going to happen. Let's see if Pacquiao -- your hero and mine -- can fashion out the proverbial victory that will put his name in the niche of boxing legends.