Hollywood鈥擨t was with a hearty laugh that Manny Pacquiao unveiled the reason for all the extra hard work he鈥檚 been putting into his preparation for his upcoming fight.
鈥淚t鈥檚 an insult to my manhood,鈥� the worldwide ring icon said in Filipino.
Juan Manuel Marquez better take him seriously, though.
The reigning pound-for-pound king said he鈥檚 going to respond to Marquez鈥� insinuations with a solid performance on the ring, adding that he doesn鈥檛 care how big his Mexican rival will be when they square off on Nov. 12 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
鈥淚鈥檓 ready for this fight. I鈥檓 motivated,鈥� Pacquiao told Filipino journalists after an abbreviated workout Friday at the Wild Card Gym.
Trainers Freddie Roach and Buboy Fernandez and conditioning coach Alex Ariza limited Pacquiao鈥檚 workout for the day despite the boxer鈥檚 request to push hard.
鈥淓ven if the fight is nearing, I still want to push hard [during training],鈥� he said.
Roach has marveled at how much work Pacquiao has put into this camp and the Filipino sensation said he was goaded by Marquez鈥� constant proclamations that he won the two fights between the two warriors.
鈥淚 won鈥檛 say much, I鈥檒l speak through my actions on the ring,鈥� said Pacquiao.
Marquez has unveiled a huge physique that triggered talk of performance enhancers, but the sport鈥檚 only eight-division champion said size hardly matters to him anymore.
鈥淗e bulked up,鈥� Pacquiao said. 鈥淏ut we鈥檙e already used to bigger opponents.鈥�
He rattled examples one by one: 鈥淢argarito, Mosley, De La Hoya. I鈥檝e already proven myself against bigger guys.鈥�
Pacquiao was referring to Antonio Margarito, Shane Mosley and Oscar De La Hoya. All three were naturally bigger guys and all three succumbed to his uncanny mix of hand speed and punching power.
Pacquiao plans to climb the ring at 148 pounds, just one pound over the welterweight limit and four over the catch weight of the bout where the Pacman will stake the WBO welter crown he won from Puerto Rican Miguel Cotto in 2009.
鈥淭here鈥檚 no need to worry about [Marquez鈥橾 size,鈥� Pacquiao said. 鈥淚t would have even been tougher if he were smaller because he would be very quick. But since he鈥檚 coming in big, I鈥檓 sure I鈥檒l be faster.鈥�
Pacquiao and Marquez fought to two arguable decisions. Pacquiao knocked Marquez down thrice during their first meeting in 2004, but the Mexican rallied to forge a split draw. The Pacman again felled Marquez in their second in the third round in 2008 and earned a split decision to win the super featherweight title.
The Mexican has kept saying he was robbed of victories both times.
But Pacquiao has a legitimate beef in their first meeting, when his three knockdowns should have earned him 10-6 scores from all three judges. Instead, one of them logged a 10-7 and that proved crucial in the end.
Now that their paths have crossed a third time, those bouts will be put in the backburner and focus will be on this one, which has been tagged as the definitive bout of their rivalry. And Roach believes this will end emphatically in favor of Pacquiao and that Marquez won鈥檛 survive to hear the final bell.
But Pacquiao did not bite into calls for a prediction.
鈥淚t鈥檚 hard to tell,鈥� said the Filipino. 鈥淎ll I can say is I鈥檓 ready for this fight.鈥� /francis ochoa of inquirer