Pacquiao bloodies sparring partner’s mouth, nose

The Manny Pacquiao engine is really starting to rev up. The Filipino ring icon was all business in sparring Thursday at the Wild Card Gym in Hollywood and bloodied the mouth and nose of Hastings Bwalya in the second round.

Bwalya, who sports a 7-0 record with five knockouts, bore the brunt of the Pacquiao offensive and got peppered with solid body blows and uppercuts.

Pacquiao then sparred with Rey Beltran for four more rounds and did two more rounds with Bwalya.

Pacquiao is in the second phase of his training for his looming bout with Mexican archnemesis Juan Manuel Marquez.

The two will square off November 12 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

Pacquiao had earlier set up camp in Baguio City, where he revealed he is seriously preparing for the third bout against an opponent who gave him a difficult time in their two previous matches.

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Pacman’s vicious counter: Marquez will eat his words

MANILA—Figure of speech or not, Manny Pacquiao’s message revealed his desire to hand Juan Manuel Marquez a vicious beating when they tangle on November 12 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

“I’ll let him (Marquez) eat his words,” Pacquiao said in Filipino during a television interview Thursday.

The normally cautious pound-for-pound king was reacting to Marquez’s insistence that he won their first two showdowns in 2004 and 2008, which ended in a draw and split decision for Pacquiao, respectively.

Marquez, who arrived in Manila early Thursday morning for the launch of the four-city, three-nation press tour of Pacquiao-Marquez III at the Quirino Grandstand Saturday, also warned he is ready to wage another war with the eight-division champion.

As if to back his claim, Marquez jogged and did stretching exercises minutes after checking in at the Manila Hotel, where his team, including the legendary trainer Ignacio “Nacho” Beristain, and promoter Bob Arum of Top Rank are billeted.

Pacquiao said it’s good that Marquez is preparing hard for their World Boxing Organization welterweight title duel as he will also make sure that he’s in 100-percent condition on fight night.

“He’d long been asking for a rematch, let’s give it to him,” said Pacquiao, hinting that Marquez, the World Boxing Council lightweight titlist, will be in for a rude awakening after the Filipino superstar’s victory over bigger fighters (Miguel Cotto, Joshua Clottey, Antonio Margarito and Shane Mosley).

Pacquiao, who knocked down the Mexican three-division champion four times, three in the first bout and once in the second, also started light training earlier than usual on Monday.

Pacquiao’s training camp with the renowned Freddie Roach, however, will span eight weeks, divided equally between Baguio City and the Wild Card Gym in Hollywood.

The 38-year-old Marquez, who’s guaranteed $5 million for the trilogy plus pay-per-view shares in excess of one million PPV buys, paid a courtesy call on the Mexican ambassador to the Philippines yesterday, did some interviews and later had an exclusive dinner with Pacquiao, who will be receiving $20 million plus PPV shares.

Today’s schedule calls for the protagonists to walk together from the Manila Hotel, where a press conference will be held, to the venue where a projected crowd of 50,000 are expected to converge.

As a precautionary measure, a thousand policemen, including a SWAT unit, will be deployed in the area.

The affair will be covered by GMA-7, which will also bring in some of its stars to provide entertainment.

Later on, Marquez, who owns billiard halls back home, is slated to watch the World Pool Championship at SM North.

By Roy Luarca
Philippine Daily Inquirer
Friday, September 2nd, 2011
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Filipino fighters spotlighted in Pacquiao-Marquez III

SACRAMENTO, California—It’s their turn to shine and, optimistically, steal the show in the world’s gambling and entertainment mecca next month.

Three Filipino boxers—including one handpicked by Manny Pacquiao—will fight in the undercard of the pound-for-pound king’s third match with Mexican warrior Juan Manuel Marquez at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas come Nov. 12.

The presence of Pinoy fighters in the supporting matches of a blockbuster like Pacquiao-Marquez III is more than great news. It shows the Filipino sports icon’s vast influence in the world of professional pugilism and recalls Manny’s own path to the big time.

Our wish is for Manny—among the world’s most powerful personalities in the ring and off—to wield his clout each time and help promote Pinoy fighters in all his remaining mega fights and world-class cards assembled by his promoter, boxing’s most influential impressario, Bob Arum.

As for the lucky local fighters—Lorenzo Villanueva, Dennis Laurente and Fernando Lumacad—our fervent hope is for them to shrug off the “deer in the headlights” syndrome in no time and perform to the best of their abilities against their opponents on fight night.

The expression has leaped into the ring many times in the past. Pinoy pugilists, mostly well trained but suddenly thrust into centerstage, behaved like deer caught in the beams of a car’s headlights at night, when they freeze rather than dart safely out of the vehicle’s path.

In any case, it is up to Villanueva, the undefeated WBO Oriental featherweight champion chosen by Pacquiao, Laurente, the Philippine welterweight titlist, and junior bantamweight Fernando Lumacad, to make the most of their time in the Las Vegas ring on Nov. 12.

Villanueva, with an impressive record of 21 wins, 20 of them by knockout, is a North Cotabato native and mainstay of the Braveheart stable of the province’s former governor, Manny Piñol.

The stakes are higher than personal ambition. National pride is on the line.

It is a must for these fighters to draw inspiration from Pacquiao himself, and his blazing undercard performance 11 years ago.

Manny, fighting on two weeks’ notice under a new trainer named Freddie Roach, fought with and seized the junior featherweight title from South Africa’s Lehlo Ledwaba at the MGM Grand on June 24, 2001.

Ignoring the glare of Glitter Gulch—the biggest headlight in the world—Pacquiao zeroed in on the job at hand. He broke Ledwaba’s nose in the first round and pummeled him with a flurry of shots before stopping him in the seventh round.

Ledwaba entered the ring with an impressive title defense on pay-per-view giant HBO two months earlier. Manny came to fight as the 11th-hour replacement for the injured Enrique Sanchez.

The combatants disputed the IBF junior featherweight belt as the main supporting bout on the Oscar De La Hoya-Javier Castillejo main event.

Castillejo lasted the 12-round distance with De La Hoya, but was sent to the canvas seconds before the fight ended and lost a unanimous decision and his world junior middleweight title.

Of course Pacquiao went on to face De La Hoya himself in a dream fight that turned into a nightmare for the Golden Boy in December of 2008. Pacquiao gave De La Hoya his worst beating in his 16-year career and eventually sent him into retirement.

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No training break for fiery Juan Manuel Marquez

MANILA—Jogging and stretching were Juan Manuel Marquez’s antidote to jet lag.

Hardly unaffected by the long, tiring trip from Los Angeles, the Mexican warrior gamely did interviews upon arrival at the Centennial Airport early Thursday morning before proceeding to the Manila Hotel to change clothes and hit the Luneta grounds with his training team  in tow.

It was Marquez’s way to let pound-for-pound king Manny Pacquiao know that he’ll be in tiptop shape when they tangle for the Filipino icon’s World Boxing Organization welterweight crown on Nov. 12 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Marquez, who turned 38 last week, also wants to use every second available to train for his third fight with Pacquiao.

Their first fight in 2004 ended in a controversial draw while their return bout in 2008 ended in a split decision win for Pacquiao.

Though Marquez insists that he won both fights, the WBC lightweight titlist knows that Pacquiao is far better and stronger now, and sows terror in the 147-pound division.

That’s why, the three-division champion feels he needs to train for 12 weeks months to gain speed and strength while packing in more pounds.

In addition, Marquez has enlisted the services of a nutritionist and conditioning expert.

His fighting style, according to Marquez, will still be the same.
“I fought Pacquiao twice, I know him.”

Marquez said he’ll still be counterpunching and firing off combinations to negate Pacquiao’s perceived edge in speed and power.

After a brief rest, Marquez and his team that includes legendary trainer Ignacio “Nacho” Beristain went to the Manila City Hall where Mayor Alfredo Lim honored Marquez as the city’s adopted son.

Venerable promoter Bob Arum of Top Rank, prime mover of the three-nation, four-city press tour for Pacquiao-Marquez III that kicks off tomorrow at the Quirino Grandstand, accompanied Marquez.

While ring pundits and oddsmakers have installed Pacquiao a heavy 8-1 favorite to beat Marquez in their 12-round bout set at a catch weight of 144 pounds, Arum thinks otherwise.

“Juan Manuel Marquez has given Manny challenges on two occasions,” said Arum, who is enshrined in the boxing Hall of Fame. “ The fights were very, very close that’s why this fight is so important.”

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