Manny Paquiao is PSA Athlete of the Year!

The Philippine Sportswritters Association, the country’s oldest media organization, chose Manny Pacquiao as Athlete of the Year for 2008. After winning and fighting thrice in different weight classes last year.This will be Pacquiao’s fifth PSA AOY award after earning the honor from 2002 to 2004 and in 2006.

The four-time world champion will be elevated to the PSA Hall of Fame and will join the likes of bowlers Paeng Nepomuceno and Bong Coo, basketball greats Caloy Loyzaga and Lauro Mumar, pro boxers Pancho Villa and Gabriel "Flash" Elorde, amateur boxer Mansueto “Onyok" Velasco, track stars Lydia De Vega and Mona Sulaiman, swimmer Teofilo Yldefonso, tennis player Felicisimo Ampon, Asia’s first Grandmaster Eugene Torre, and golfers Ben Arda and Celestino Tugot.

 PSA Annual Awards Night on Feb. 20, Friday, will be held at the Alegria Lounge of the Manila Pavilion Hotel, where Manny Paquiao will be joined by other personalities who are recognized for their contribution to Philippine sports.

Paquiao Begins training in Wild Card Gym!

Monday, September 22, 2008

World Lightweight boxing champion Manny “the Pacman” Pacquiao began his extensive training last Thursday (Friday in Manila) while his opponent Oscar de la Hoya has yet to appoint a trainer for their “Dream Fight” on December 6 in Las Vegas.

Pacquiao arrived in LA Sunday night with his Filipino trainers via Philippine Airlines and was mobbed by adoring fans, most of them Filipinos, at the Los Angeles International Airport.

Pacquiao told newsmen that his training will be closed to the public to allow him to fully focus preparing for what he called the “biggest fight in my boxing career.”

“Closed to the public,” a staff at the famous Wild Card Gym in Hollywood said by phone when asked if fans and the media could watch Pacquiao train.

At the De la Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions headquarters on Wilshire Avenue here, the buzz is still finding a trainer for the Mexican American ring superstar, who was reported to have started light training last week in his Puerto Rico home.

Oscar is married to Puerto Rican pop singer, Millie Corretjer of San Juan, the capital city.

De la Hoya wanted his long-time trainer Floyd Mayweather Sr. to pre-pare him for his Pacquiao bout. But Mayweather has committed to train Britain’s Ricky Hatton for his November 22 welterweight fight with Paulie Malignaggi.

Source

Manny Paquiao starts training for his fight with de la Hoya!

Friday, September 19, 2008

FACING a much taller, a lot bigger, and the best fighter to date in his next ring assignment, Filipino boxing sensation Manny Pacquiao finally hit the Wild Card Gym in Los Angeles Wednesday afternoon and started training for his much-awaited December 6 encounter with Oscar de la Hoya at the fabulous MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Philboxing.com reported that Pacquiao did some light workout, doing the mitts with famed American trainer Freddie Roach and hitting the speed bag. He also did some shadow boxing and was talking to everyone while he did his routine, a typical Pacquiao manner whenever he is inside the gym for practice.

The 29-year-old Pacquiao was initially scheduled to start training a day before, but this was cancelled because he had to meet first with promoter Bob Arum and that the boxer was not feeling well Tuesday.

Also supervising Pacquiao's training regimen aside from Roach are Buboy Fernandez, Nonoy Neri, Roger Fernandez, and Eric Brown.

Roach reportedly hired big sparring partners--two light middleweights and one welterweight--to prepare Pacquiao for De La Hoya, who started his own training for the fight a month ago.

Hired as sparring partners were 154-pounder Yuri Foreman and Arron Robinson and 147-pounder Rashad Holloway of Raleigh, North Carolina. Roach said all of them have "powerful left hooks."

Pacquiao, the punching machine from General Santos City, will be the heavy underdog in the 12-round battle at 147 pounds against De La Hoya, called the "Golden Boy" and boxing's hottest commodity.

De La Hoya, an Olympic gold medallist, holds an awesome advantage in size and he will be entering the ring looking down on his opponent ready to throw his most dangerous weapon--the left hook--which victimized many tough opponents in the past, notable of whom were Fernando Vargas and Ike Quartey.

Meanwhile, Pacquiao has appealed to his fans, especially those contracted with cough and colds, not to pay him a visit during his training.

Pacquiao said he would like to be in great shape the moment he climbs the ring against De La Hoya and does not want to get sick along the way.

Last Tuesday, Pacquiao failed to show up at the Wild Card Gym after suffering from minor colds.

By Charles Raymond A. Maxey


Source

Manny Paquiao now weighs 154 lbs.!

Thursday, September 18, 2008

Manny Paquiao weighs 154 lbs, just days before he flies to the US to promote his December 6 bout with Oscar dela Hoya and start heavy training, Manny is just seven pounds over the agreed 147-pound weight limit of their mega bout.

Pacquiao said he feels comfortable with his current weight although he expects to tip the scales at 143 pounds a day before his megabuck date with Dela Hoya at the MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas.

The Filipino World Boxing Council lightweight champion will be going up in weight against Dela Hoya who has been fighting at the welterweight and middleweight for most of his career.

The southpaw sensation from General Santos City said he expects Dela Hoya to press for the action in the early going of their fight.

The former Pacquiao trainer said Manny could carry his speed and agility even if he climbs the ring at 152 or 153 pounds.

Beyond that, he said, Manny could be in trouble.

Showing his rippling muscles despite ballooning to his current walking weight, Pacquiao said he is confident he could defeat Oscar dela Hoya.

Manny reportedly climbed the ring at 147 pounds on the night he demolished former WBC lightweight king in 10 rounds of masterful display of boxing and punching prowess in June this year for his first and only fight in the said weight class.

A former light flyweight, Manny held titles in the flyweight, super bantamweight, super feather weight and lightweight classes becoming the only Filipino and Asian to achieve that rare feat.

Source

PaquiaoVSHoya tickets gone in 2-3 hours-Bob Arum

Thursday, September 18, 2008

The remaining tickets for the Dec. 6 welterweight war between Manny Pacquiao and Oscar De La Hoya will sell out "in two or three hours," Top Rank president Bob Arum said yesterday from Las Vegas.

Arum had met with Golden Boy Promotions (GBP) Chief Executive Officer Richard Schaefer and officials from MGM Mirage on Thursday (Friday in Manila) and they’ve
already decided on the number of tickets that will go to each party.


Only a fraction will be made available to the public since all three companies have already received bulk orders, while the MGM Mirage will use the tickets to entice high-rollers to stay at the MGM Grand and its chain of hotels.

As usual, "Manny also placed an order for tickets," said Arum, although it is not certain if Pacquiao will give tickets away in huge numbers as in the past when nearly every Tom, Dick and Harry can be given one.

The MGM Grand will be reconfigured to seat more than 15,000 although it can hold up to 17,000 spectators. Due to the magnitude of the event, the press will have an unusual number of requests for credentials with lots of applications coming not only from the US, Mexico and the Philippines but from Europe, South America and elsewhere.

Tickets--to be priced at $ 1,500, $ 1,000, $ 750, $ 500 and $ 250-- will go on sale on Sept. 24 and Arum is not surprised why a premium ringside seat on the Internet this early is being dangled for as high as $ 42,000.

"There won’t be a single ticket left for sale (at face value)."
Thursday, September 18, 2008

In anticipation of a huge turnout of sports fans who will not get tickets for the fight, Arum said at least 30,000 seats will be put up for closed circuit in different MGM-owned hotels on the Strip like The Bellagio and The Mirage.

As in the pay-per-view revenues, Pacquiao will also get a cut in the sale of closed circuit showing.

"Everything goes to the pot," said Arum.

When De La Hoya fought Floyd Mayweather last year, all 5,400 tickets that went on sale for the public were bought in three hours and in the final days leading to the bout Ebay had listings of ,000 for a ringside seat.

Meanwhile, Pacquiao is scheduled to leave for the US tomorrow night to start the pre-training camp program and will go full-blast after a six city-five day press tour that will kick off on Oct. 1 in New York.


source:
By NICK GIONGCO
www.mb.com.ph