Manny Pacquiao’s 12-round annihilation of Miguel Cotto on Saturday (Sunday in Manila) gathered some of Hollywood’s top celebrities along with past and current athletic superstars.
Oscar-nominated actor Mickey Rourke and Mark Wahlberg were among those who watched as Pacquiao dismantled Cotto and completed his mission of winning a record seventh division title. Both actors are known Pacquiao fans with Rourke being a former student of Freddie Roach, the Filipino ring icon’s American trainer.
Manny Pacquiao salutes the crowd that features top Hollywood and sports stars after wresting the WBO welterweight belt from Miguel Cotto Saturday in Las Vegas (Sunday in Manila.) AP
Also at ringside were veteran actor Joe Pesci, socialite Paris Hilton, R&B artist Sean “P. Diddy" Combs, comedian Will Ferrell and Jeremy Piven, star of HBO’s hit series “Entourage".
Some of the finest athletes also dropped by to witness the showdown dubbed “Firepower."
Former boxing champions Roberto Duran and Tommy “The Hitman" Hearns, reigning International Boxing Organization light heavyweight titlist Chad Dawson, undisputed light middleweight king and a current middleweight contender Winky Wright, Shane Mosley, New York Giants running back Brandon Jacobs, Derek Jeter of the World Series champs New York Yankees, and basketball legend Magic Johnson were also seen at ringside.
Philippine Vice President Noli De Castro, Deputy National Security Adviser and former Ilocos Sur Gov. Luis “Chavit" Singson and Mayor Bing Leonardia were among local politicians who trooped to Las Vegas to cheer for Pacquiao.
Kapuso singing group La Divas – Maricris Garcia, Aicelle Santos and Jonalyn Viray – sang the Lupang Hinirang followed by Ednita Nazario who sang Puerto Rico’s National Anthem. Fil-Am Ramiel of the American Idol fame sang the Star Spangled Banner before ring announcer Michael Buffer introduced both fighters.
Pacquiao reportedly earned $13 million (P611,000,000) from the megafight while Cotto pocketed $7 million just to have his face rearranged by the seven-division champion.
Undercard
Eight undercard bouts took place before the Pacquiao-Cotto showdown with two Filipino boxers, a relative of the deposed champion and an aspiring rabbi winning their respective matches.
Abner Cotto, cousin of the former WBO welterweight king, opened up the card with a victory over Lupe Guzman in their lightweight bout while Richie Mepranum, one of the two Filipino boxers in the undercard, won over Ernie Marquez by split decision.
Rodrigo Garcia defeated Martin Guerra by unanimous decision while Eden Sonsona, another boxer from the Philippines, scored a technical knockout victory over Eilon Kedem. Alfonso Gomez needed six rounds to beat Jesus Soto-Krass while Matt Korobov bested James Winchester in their middleweight division match.
Belarus-born Yuri Foreman of Israel, an aspiring rabbi, snatched the World Boxing Association super welterweight championship belt from Daniel Santos when he defeated the Puerto Rican via unanimous decision.
Julio Cesar Chavez outpointed Troy Rowland for the final undercard bout. – GMANews.TV
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Saturday, November 14, 2009
Pacquiao-Cotto Fight Result
Congratulations to
Manny PACMAN Pacquiao
Manny PACMAN Pacquiao
for winning against Miguel Cotto!!!
True enough,
the BEST MAN wins!!!
(12th Round TKO)
the BEST MAN wins!!!
(12th Round TKO)
Friday, November 13, 2009
Pacquiao-Cotto Fight: The Official Weigh In
LAS VEGAS (Reuters) – Challenger Manny Pacquiao weighed in just one pound lighter than Miguel Cotto as the Filipino was greeted by deafening cheers from his supporters on the eve of Saturday's WBO welterweight title fight.
Pacquiao, 49-3-2 (37 knockouts), tipped the scales at 144 pounds in front of a boisterous crowd of about 6,500 at the MGM Grand Hotel's Garden Arena.
Puerto Rican Cotto, 34-1 (27 KOs), was right on the limit for the scheduled 12-round bout which will be fought at a contracted weight of 145 pounds.
Although Cotto has won a world title every year since 2004 and will be competing in his natural division, Pacquiao is widely viewed as the favorite.
The Filipino southpaw, who has never previously fought above light-welterweight, will be bidding to win a seventh world title in an unprecedented seventh weight class.
The atmosphere was electric as the two fighters made their way on to a raised stage for Friday's televised weigh-in where former boxing great Roberto Duran and undefeated WBO super bantamweight Juan Manuel Lopez were among those attending.
Shouts of "Manny, Manny" and "Cotto, Cotto" echoed before the tracksuit-clad boxers finally emerged and Pacquiao lived up to his billing as the people's champion by blowing kisses to the fans before he stepped on to the scales.
Cotto, who also wore headphones over a balaclava, then followed. A natural 147-pounder, he told the crowd he had no problem making the weight limit.
"I'm pretty healthy and my strength is too much for tomorrow," the 29-year-old said.
The Puerto Rican will be fighting for the first time since he retained his WBO title with a split decision win over Ghana's Joshua Clottey in June.
Pacquiao, 30, last fought in May when he delivered a stunning second round knockout of Britain's Ricky Hatton at the MGM Grand to claim the IBO light welterweight crown.
(Editing by Julian Linden)
This article is from news.yahoo.com
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
WATCH PACQUIAO - COTTO FIGHT ONLINE LIVE!!!
Pacquiao, 49-3-2 (37 knockouts), tipped the scales at 144 pounds in front of a boisterous crowd of about 6,500 at the MGM Grand Hotel's Garden Arena.
Puerto Rican Cotto, 34-1 (27 KOs), was right on the limit for the scheduled 12-round bout which will be fought at a contracted weight of 145 pounds.
Although Cotto has won a world title every year since 2004 and will be competing in his natural division, Pacquiao is widely viewed as the favorite.
The Filipino southpaw, who has never previously fought above light-welterweight, will be bidding to win a seventh world title in an unprecedented seventh weight class.
The atmosphere was electric as the two fighters made their way on to a raised stage for Friday's televised weigh-in where former boxing great Roberto Duran and undefeated WBO super bantamweight Juan Manuel Lopez were among those attending.
Shouts of "Manny, Manny" and "Cotto, Cotto" echoed before the tracksuit-clad boxers finally emerged and Pacquiao lived up to his billing as the people's champion by blowing kisses to the fans before he stepped on to the scales.
Cotto, who also wore headphones over a balaclava, then followed. A natural 147-pounder, he told the crowd he had no problem making the weight limit.
"I'm pretty healthy and my strength is too much for tomorrow," the 29-year-old said.
The Puerto Rican will be fighting for the first time since he retained his WBO title with a split decision win over Ghana's Joshua Clottey in June.
Pacquiao, 30, last fought in May when he delivered a stunning second round knockout of Britain's Ricky Hatton at the MGM Grand to claim the IBO light welterweight crown.
(Editing by Julian Linden)
This article is from news.yahoo.com
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
WATCH PACQUIAO - COTTO FIGHT ONLINE LIVE!!!
Thursday, November 12, 2009
The Yummy Manny "PACMAN" Pacquiao
Suddenly, Manila’s fashionable gay men were asking each other: ‘Would you do Manny?’ The answer: ‘Yes’
WHEN ERIC PINEDA first sat down with Manny Pacquiao in 2004, just when the boxer was about to make it big, he did not find it easy to spot the diamond in the GenSan boy’s rough coating.
“He was just wearing jogging pants, a jacket and a beanie cap,” recalls Pineda, a veteran publicist, political and marketing consultant, who is white-haired and speaks with the husky, imposing voice of a longtime sports commentator.
He is now the business manager of Pacquiao, after the boxer and Rod Nazario, the man who hired Pineda to sell Manny as a product endorser, had a falling out a few years back. He told Manny in those early days, “You win your fight with Morales and your whole world will change, 360 degrees.”
And that was what happened. After Pacquiao won his second bout with Morales with a TKO in Las Vegas in 2006, there was no stopping the fast and furious pace of the Pacquiao phenomenon. He was fighting in the biggest boxing venues in the world, knocking out Oscar dela Hoya in 2008, declared the number one “pound-for-pound” boxer in the world by boxing bible Ring Magazine, stopping for photo ops with the likes of Mark Wahlberg, and being followed by TMZ.
New and improved
Clearly, the “’siyano hip-hop” look Manny sported in ’94 is now but a blurry memory tucked in the farthest nook of his walk-in closet. These days he is making the rounds of parties and press appearances either in a bold colored argyle sweater and a matching painter’s cap ala Pharell Williams, or speaking to fans in England in a windowpane-patterned gray Giorgio Armani suit paired with spanking new leather shoes in tan.
Observers say people began seeing a new and improved Manny when he moved the parting of his hair from the Palito-style middle to the more proper and gentlemanly left.
Suddenly, Manila’s fashionable gay men were asking each other: “Would you do Manny?” The answer: “Yes.”
After all, while he obviously doesn’t look like a fashion model, one could say he embodies the modern GQ archetype: A successful man in a well-made suit, an athletic body underneath, supple skin thanks to years of training and discipline, and for that bit of edge, a neatly trimmed mustache and goatee perfectly framing a smile that is pleasant, naughty and aware of where he is in the world order.
Pacquiao was recently named by Time Magazine as one of the world’s most influential people of 2009. He also joins the likes of Tiger Woods and Kobe Bryant in this year’s Celebrity 100 List in Forbes Magazine, which reports that he earned $40 million from the second half of 2008 to the first half of 2009 alone, making him the sixth highest paid athlete in the world.
Just recently, he appeared in the latest Nike TVC where he shared screen time with Bryant, Roger Federer and Maria Sharapova. You can’t get any bigger than that.
On Philippine shores, his name these days is only associated with the top brands: McDonalds, San Miguel Beer, Ginebra and Smart. Other major endorsements run the gamut from flavored energy drinks to pain relief tablets.
Snazzy style
He is our very own Million-Dollar Man, and he is playing it to the hilt. But the snazzy personal style didn’t happen overnight, or because a stylist was made to join his entourage.
Eric and his wife Macy, a publicist in Manila, began by giving Manny clothes as gifts, stuff he could wear to appearances and functions.
“We tried to convince him that if you look at your contemporaries in his category, all of them wear suits. So dahan-dahan nasanay naman, simula sa jeans muna, then long sleeves; slowly the suit came into the picture.”
The suit has another layer of attraction for Manny: He had recently seen “The Godfather 2” and thought Al Pacino’s wardrobe was something he could adopt. Hence, the grey windowpane prints, the occasional vests over a crisp white shirt, finished off with a derby hat. He sometimes shops with his entourage or with family, going to stores like Banana Republic for casuals and relaxed suits, Salvatore Ferragamo and Armani for the more formal outfits.
Shopping haunts
He likes going to the Metro Park Mall in LA and scouring the Ed Hardy stores there, also True Religion, Rock and Republic and Seven for All Mankind. For shoes, he prefers the ones with narrow square tips, from Louis Vuitton or Ferragamo.
But the Pacman’s accessory-of-the-moment are clearly the hats. He recently bought $2,000 worth of hats in LA, from the fedoras made popular by Justin Timberlake to painter’s caps and the raffia styles that reminds Manny of home.
“Buri ’yan,” he would say. “Gumagawa kami niyan sa GenSan.”
If there is anything left from what the Pinedas call Manny’s “hip-hopper” days, it’s his fascination for bling.
“As most Asians and Filipinos, you associate your success with the watch you wear, so when he won the Barrera fight, he bought his first Rolex watch, a Daytona with a mother-of-pearl face,” says Pineda.
This was followed by another Rolex after the last Morales match, a bezel diamond-studded piece. Recently, Pineda reports, Manny has taken to wearing a Patek Philippe for more formal occasions. Manny also has an 18k gold necklace with a pendant shaped like two boxing gloves, also diamond-studded, a gift from one of his sponsors.
These days, when in the Philippines, Manny shuttles between his palatial home in General Santos and the family home in Brentville in Santa Rosa, Laguna, a property the Pacquiaos acquired because of its proximity to the Brent International School where Manny’s two sons are enrolled.
When work demands that he be mostly in Manila, for tapings of his show “Pinoy Records,” for example, and the Robin Padilla-headlined teleserye “Totoy Bato,” he mostly stays at the Renaissance Hotel where he and his entourage of 10 to 15 people (which includes his lawyer, bodyguards, personal masseur) occupy top-money suites.
Bullet-proof cars
Team Pacquiao drives around the city in a couple of bullet-proof vehicles: A Hummer 2 and an Escalade. Pineda says his ward is really not a diehard car fan, anyway.
“For him it’s just a way to get him from point A to point B,” he says.
Still, the right car is part of the star package. “When we started working, I asked him to buy a new car. ‘Manny Pacquiao ka eh.’ He bought a brand new Pajero which he uses when he’s in Manila. And then he bought a big trailer, a Porsche Cayenne na binili sa US tapos inuwi dito, a Mercedes SL 500 sportscar. He wanted to buy a Lamborghini but I advised him not to. ’Di mo kailangan yan, baka maaksidente ka pa.’”
Clearly, he is more keen on acquiring real estate property. Apart from the Gensan and Brentville homes, the Pacquiaos, says the Pinedas, have several other properties: A townhouse near Medical City in Ortigas, a house in BF Homes Parañaque and another in Davao, all bought within the past four years.
The house in LA is already in its finishing touches, with wife Jinkee being very hands-on when it comes to the choice in furniture, in consultation with an American interior designer. The house, a 4,500-sq m property located in an upscale neighborhood dotted with celebrity homes, is reported to have cost $2.17 million and was bought in March this year.
While the Pacquiaos are clearly learning the ropes of living big, Pineda insists his ward’s character hasn’t changed much. His idea of a party is still a big celebration with all of his friends where everything is happening all at once: Drinking, darts, billiards, singing, dancing, card games.
“He is still as grounded as when I first met him,” says Pineda.
Giving back
And the guy knows how to give back. He has consistently partnered with the PCSO and Pagcor for charity projects. He is building a village called Pacquiao Heights in General Santos which will have factories that will give jobs and benefit the people of Saranggani.
Indeed, the poor boy from Gensan who dropped out of school at a very young age to help his mother sell bread has done very well for himself. He hangs out with Hollywood stars, shakes hands with state leaders and tycoons, shops in the best stores, and dines in the best restaurants.
How does Manny Pacquiao order in a place like, say, the upscale Nuvo at Manila’s Greenbelt restaurant row?
“I would usually order for him,” says Pineda. “Alam ko naman ang gusto niya eh, basta may beef, chicken, fish. No pork.”
Pacquiao may not be the best person to peruse a fine dining menu, but the guy certainly knows how to reward excellent service. The last time Team Pacquiao checked out of the Renaissance Hotel in Makati, the staff bid their very important guest goodbye with bigger smiles than usual.
The tip Manny left them: P100,000. In style parlance, that’s what you call a flourish.
Reprinted from Filipino Style, California-based magazine for Fil-Americans.
This article is from lifestyle.inquirer.net
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
WATCH PACQUIAO - COTTO FIGHT ONLINE LIVE!!!
WHEN ERIC PINEDA first sat down with Manny Pacquiao in 2004, just when the boxer was about to make it big, he did not find it easy to spot the diamond in the GenSan boy’s rough coating.
“He was just wearing jogging pants, a jacket and a beanie cap,” recalls Pineda, a veteran publicist, political and marketing consultant, who is white-haired and speaks with the husky, imposing voice of a longtime sports commentator.
He is now the business manager of Pacquiao, after the boxer and Rod Nazario, the man who hired Pineda to sell Manny as a product endorser, had a falling out a few years back. He told Manny in those early days, “You win your fight with Morales and your whole world will change, 360 degrees.”
And that was what happened. After Pacquiao won his second bout with Morales with a TKO in Las Vegas in 2006, there was no stopping the fast and furious pace of the Pacquiao phenomenon. He was fighting in the biggest boxing venues in the world, knocking out Oscar dela Hoya in 2008, declared the number one “pound-for-pound” boxer in the world by boxing bible Ring Magazine, stopping for photo ops with the likes of Mark Wahlberg, and being followed by TMZ.
New and improved
Clearly, the “’siyano hip-hop” look Manny sported in ’94 is now but a blurry memory tucked in the farthest nook of his walk-in closet. These days he is making the rounds of parties and press appearances either in a bold colored argyle sweater and a matching painter’s cap ala Pharell Williams, or speaking to fans in England in a windowpane-patterned gray Giorgio Armani suit paired with spanking new leather shoes in tan.
Observers say people began seeing a new and improved Manny when he moved the parting of his hair from the Palito-style middle to the more proper and gentlemanly left.
Suddenly, Manila’s fashionable gay men were asking each other: “Would you do Manny?” The answer: “Yes.”
After all, while he obviously doesn’t look like a fashion model, one could say he embodies the modern GQ archetype: A successful man in a well-made suit, an athletic body underneath, supple skin thanks to years of training and discipline, and for that bit of edge, a neatly trimmed mustache and goatee perfectly framing a smile that is pleasant, naughty and aware of where he is in the world order.
Pacquiao was recently named by Time Magazine as one of the world’s most influential people of 2009. He also joins the likes of Tiger Woods and Kobe Bryant in this year’s Celebrity 100 List in Forbes Magazine, which reports that he earned $40 million from the second half of 2008 to the first half of 2009 alone, making him the sixth highest paid athlete in the world.
Just recently, he appeared in the latest Nike TVC where he shared screen time with Bryant, Roger Federer and Maria Sharapova. You can’t get any bigger than that.
On Philippine shores, his name these days is only associated with the top brands: McDonalds, San Miguel Beer, Ginebra and Smart. Other major endorsements run the gamut from flavored energy drinks to pain relief tablets.
Snazzy style
He is our very own Million-Dollar Man, and he is playing it to the hilt. But the snazzy personal style didn’t happen overnight, or because a stylist was made to join his entourage.
Eric and his wife Macy, a publicist in Manila, began by giving Manny clothes as gifts, stuff he could wear to appearances and functions.
“We tried to convince him that if you look at your contemporaries in his category, all of them wear suits. So dahan-dahan nasanay naman, simula sa jeans muna, then long sleeves; slowly the suit came into the picture.”
The suit has another layer of attraction for Manny: He had recently seen “The Godfather 2” and thought Al Pacino’s wardrobe was something he could adopt. Hence, the grey windowpane prints, the occasional vests over a crisp white shirt, finished off with a derby hat. He sometimes shops with his entourage or with family, going to stores like Banana Republic for casuals and relaxed suits, Salvatore Ferragamo and Armani for the more formal outfits.
Shopping haunts
He likes going to the Metro Park Mall in LA and scouring the Ed Hardy stores there, also True Religion, Rock and Republic and Seven for All Mankind. For shoes, he prefers the ones with narrow square tips, from Louis Vuitton or Ferragamo.
But the Pacman’s accessory-of-the-moment are clearly the hats. He recently bought $2,000 worth of hats in LA, from the fedoras made popular by Justin Timberlake to painter’s caps and the raffia styles that reminds Manny of home.
“Buri ’yan,” he would say. “Gumagawa kami niyan sa GenSan.”
If there is anything left from what the Pinedas call Manny’s “hip-hopper” days, it’s his fascination for bling.
“As most Asians and Filipinos, you associate your success with the watch you wear, so when he won the Barrera fight, he bought his first Rolex watch, a Daytona with a mother-of-pearl face,” says Pineda.
This was followed by another Rolex after the last Morales match, a bezel diamond-studded piece. Recently, Pineda reports, Manny has taken to wearing a Patek Philippe for more formal occasions. Manny also has an 18k gold necklace with a pendant shaped like two boxing gloves, also diamond-studded, a gift from one of his sponsors.
These days, when in the Philippines, Manny shuttles between his palatial home in General Santos and the family home in Brentville in Santa Rosa, Laguna, a property the Pacquiaos acquired because of its proximity to the Brent International School where Manny’s two sons are enrolled.
When work demands that he be mostly in Manila, for tapings of his show “Pinoy Records,” for example, and the Robin Padilla-headlined teleserye “Totoy Bato,” he mostly stays at the Renaissance Hotel where he and his entourage of 10 to 15 people (which includes his lawyer, bodyguards, personal masseur) occupy top-money suites.
Bullet-proof cars
Team Pacquiao drives around the city in a couple of bullet-proof vehicles: A Hummer 2 and an Escalade. Pineda says his ward is really not a diehard car fan, anyway.
“For him it’s just a way to get him from point A to point B,” he says.
Still, the right car is part of the star package. “When we started working, I asked him to buy a new car. ‘Manny Pacquiao ka eh.’ He bought a brand new Pajero which he uses when he’s in Manila. And then he bought a big trailer, a Porsche Cayenne na binili sa US tapos inuwi dito, a Mercedes SL 500 sportscar. He wanted to buy a Lamborghini but I advised him not to. ’Di mo kailangan yan, baka maaksidente ka pa.’”
Clearly, he is more keen on acquiring real estate property. Apart from the Gensan and Brentville homes, the Pacquiaos, says the Pinedas, have several other properties: A townhouse near Medical City in Ortigas, a house in BF Homes Parañaque and another in Davao, all bought within the past four years.
The house in LA is already in its finishing touches, with wife Jinkee being very hands-on when it comes to the choice in furniture, in consultation with an American interior designer. The house, a 4,500-sq m property located in an upscale neighborhood dotted with celebrity homes, is reported to have cost $2.17 million and was bought in March this year.
While the Pacquiaos are clearly learning the ropes of living big, Pineda insists his ward’s character hasn’t changed much. His idea of a party is still a big celebration with all of his friends where everything is happening all at once: Drinking, darts, billiards, singing, dancing, card games.
“He is still as grounded as when I first met him,” says Pineda.
Giving back
And the guy knows how to give back. He has consistently partnered with the PCSO and Pagcor for charity projects. He is building a village called Pacquiao Heights in General Santos which will have factories that will give jobs and benefit the people of Saranggani.
Indeed, the poor boy from Gensan who dropped out of school at a very young age to help his mother sell bread has done very well for himself. He hangs out with Hollywood stars, shakes hands with state leaders and tycoons, shops in the best stores, and dines in the best restaurants.
How does Manny Pacquiao order in a place like, say, the upscale Nuvo at Manila’s Greenbelt restaurant row?
“I would usually order for him,” says Pineda. “Alam ko naman ang gusto niya eh, basta may beef, chicken, fish. No pork.”
Pacquiao may not be the best person to peruse a fine dining menu, but the guy certainly knows how to reward excellent service. The last time Team Pacquiao checked out of the Renaissance Hotel in Makati, the staff bid their very important guest goodbye with bigger smiles than usual.
The tip Manny left them: P100,000. In style parlance, that’s what you call a flourish.
Reprinted from Filipino Style, California-based magazine for Fil-Americans.
This article is from lifestyle.inquirer.net
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
WATCH PACQUIAO - COTTO FIGHT ONLINE LIVE!!!
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Pacquiao-Cotto Fight: "I respect Cotto's team," says Manny Pacquiao
MANILA, Philippines – Las Vegas, the world-famous US city known for its bright lights and a plethora of gambling and entertainment venues, and universally regarded as the capital of big-time boxing in the planet, has long been a home for Manny Pacquiao.
In fact, “Sin City” has played host to Pacquiao’s last five fights — all of them high-magnitude bouts. The Filipino won them all, decisioning Marco Antonio Barrera and Juan Manuel Marquez, and brutally knocking out David Diaz, Oscar De La Hoya and Ricky Hatton.
And now for the sixth-straight time, the bustling city will once again be Pacquiao’s battleground as he chases boxing immortality against WBO welterweight champion Miguel Cotto this Saturday (Sunday in Manila).
Pacquiao, who is gunning for a record seventh world title in as many weight divisions, set foot on the main lobby of the MGM Grand Hotel & Casino yesterday and was welcomed with chants of “Manny, Manny!” from a packed crowd.
The Filipino spitfire has been installed as a -350 favorite as of this posting, meaning one must wager $350 to win a hundred bucks.
Cotto, the burly Puerto Rican banger who’s out to derail the Pacquiao freight train, arrived about an hour later with his own following. He enters Las Vegas as the underdog — albeit a heavy one — with those rooting for him needing to bet just $100 to net a cool $270.
But unlike Pacquiao, Cotto will be seeing action in a high-profile Las Vegas bout for only the second time since figuring in a brutal affair against Antonio Margarito two years ago. That fight, also staged at the MGM Grand, saw Margarito beat Cotto to a pulp for a merciless 11th round technical-knockout victory.
At the final press conference for Pacquiao-Cotto today, Las Vegas feted both fighters whose face-off at the end of the week is expected to assemble an audience composed of high-rollers, politicians and Hollywood personalities.
Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman graced the event and, in a simple ceremony, presented to Pacquiao and Cotto their “Keys to the City.”
“This is the most important fight in my career. It will make history in Philippine boxing. And it will be a big honor for my family, country and myself,” said Pacquiao, who also wished his foe luck as he had done in his previous fights.
“I respect Cotto’s team. They are nice and friendly. On Saturday, may the best man win,” he added.
Cotto, for his part, assured a great night of boxing for fans
“I am pretty happy and comfortable to be here. I trained a lot for this fight. It will be a great night not only for the Latinos but to the Puerto Ricans too.”
With Las Vegas showing its appreciation for two great warriors, one can expect Pacquiao and Cotto to willingly return the favor when they meet in the ring.
This article is from philstar.com
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
WATCH PACQUIAO - COTTO FIGHT ONLINE LIVE!!!
In fact, “Sin City” has played host to Pacquiao’s last five fights — all of them high-magnitude bouts. The Filipino won them all, decisioning Marco Antonio Barrera and Juan Manuel Marquez, and brutally knocking out David Diaz, Oscar De La Hoya and Ricky Hatton.
And now for the sixth-straight time, the bustling city will once again be Pacquiao’s battleground as he chases boxing immortality against WBO welterweight champion Miguel Cotto this Saturday (Sunday in Manila).
Pacquiao, who is gunning for a record seventh world title in as many weight divisions, set foot on the main lobby of the MGM Grand Hotel & Casino yesterday and was welcomed with chants of “Manny, Manny!” from a packed crowd.
The Filipino spitfire has been installed as a -350 favorite as of this posting, meaning one must wager $350 to win a hundred bucks.
Cotto, the burly Puerto Rican banger who’s out to derail the Pacquiao freight train, arrived about an hour later with his own following. He enters Las Vegas as the underdog — albeit a heavy one — with those rooting for him needing to bet just $100 to net a cool $270.
But unlike Pacquiao, Cotto will be seeing action in a high-profile Las Vegas bout for only the second time since figuring in a brutal affair against Antonio Margarito two years ago. That fight, also staged at the MGM Grand, saw Margarito beat Cotto to a pulp for a merciless 11th round technical-knockout victory.
At the final press conference for Pacquiao-Cotto today, Las Vegas feted both fighters whose face-off at the end of the week is expected to assemble an audience composed of high-rollers, politicians and Hollywood personalities.
Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman graced the event and, in a simple ceremony, presented to Pacquiao and Cotto their “Keys to the City.”
“This is the most important fight in my career. It will make history in Philippine boxing. And it will be a big honor for my family, country and myself,” said Pacquiao, who also wished his foe luck as he had done in his previous fights.
“I respect Cotto’s team. They are nice and friendly. On Saturday, may the best man win,” he added.
Cotto, for his part, assured a great night of boxing for fans
“I am pretty happy and comfortable to be here. I trained a lot for this fight. It will be a great night not only for the Latinos but to the Puerto Ricans too.”
With Las Vegas showing its appreciation for two great warriors, one can expect Pacquiao and Cotto to willingly return the favor when they meet in the ring.
This article is from philstar.com
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
WATCH PACQUIAO - COTTO FIGHT ONLINE LIVE!!!
Pacquiao-Cotto Fight: “I’m not worried about my weight,” says Cotto
LAS VEGAS— The lull in between the official welcome laid out by the MGM Grand for the two boxers facing off on Nov. 14 spoke volumes about how this was going to be more Manny Pacquiao’s show than it will be Miguel Cotto’s.
But it’s not like Miguel Cotto has no plans of ruining the storyline.
Pacquiao walked the red carpet of the MGM Grand lobby to deafening cheers and exploding flashbulbs and made his way up a makeshift ring adorned with a centerpiece golden lion statue to a reception fit for a king, a reception that surprised even the boxer-celebrity who is accustomed to crowds mobbing his every public move.
“I am surprised and happy that a lot of people came [to welcome me],” Pacquiao told reporters from both print and broadcast that tried to squirm their way in front of him to capture a sound bite or two even as photographers and cameramen jostled for prime shots at the world’s reigning pound-for-pound king.
After answers to a couple of questions, Pacquiao would turn his back and face the throng that had gathered at the hotel lobby as early as an hour or two before his late arrival to wave at fans, who would respond by shrieking “Manny! Manny!” with fervor.
Pacquiao faces Cotto on Nov. 14 at the MGM Grand’s garden Arena, where the Filipino ring icon will attempt to become the first boxer to win world titles in seven different weight classes. And while Pacquiao has spoken several times about trying to win one for the victims of a string of violent storms that hit the Philippines, or writing about a page in boxing history, he insists he has nothing against the man who will be out to stop him.
“It’s nothing personal, I’m just doing my job to try and make people happy,” he explained.
And then, after a whirlwind of quickie interviews, Pacquiao left—and almost simultaneously, so did the air inside the hotel lobby. The moment the Filipino ring icon hit the exit, life was sucked out of the event organized by the promoting Top Rank, with the crowd—which had swelled to a couple of hundred—thinning to less than a third of its original size.
This was the audience Cotto was left to work with.
Although there was still boisterous cheering the moment Cotto arrived about half an hour later for his public appearance, the noise was seemingly amplified only by the echoes of a few rabid supporters in a relatively emptied lobby.
Not that Cotto minded.
“Everything Manny has, everything he gets, he has earned,” Cotto told reporters with the stoic nonchalance of a person who is familiar with the throng his opponent can attract, the ones that went off looking for the nearest lunch venue after Pacquiao had left the scene.
“He has earned the right to enjoy it all.”
While Cotto has accepted that he cannot do anything about the gulf in popularity between him and his upcoming foe, he knows he is in control of the most important aspect of this whole event—fight night.
And for all the adoring worshippers that collect at his feet with every step, Manny Pacquiao, Cotto said, will be left to fend for himself once the two boxers are let loose in the middle of the ring on Nov. 14.
“Nobody can come in there to help Manny,” Cotto told reporters present. “Once the fight starts, there is only going to be me, Manny and the referee. No one else will be there in the ring. Nobody can help Manny or give him something to hit me with.”
Pacquiao arrived at the venue wearing a brown coat over a green shirt. And although he came late for the event, there was a palpable sense of excitement in the air, one that caught fire each time television cameras panned to groups carrying Philippine flags or fight-related shirts and souvenirs.
He waltzed through interviews with his usual canned responses of doing his best for his countrymen and fighting hard enough to cement his legacy.
“If I win a seventh title in another weight, it will be history,” said Pacquiao. “This is a very important fight for me and I am very focused for this fight.”
For his part, Cotto said he wasn’t worried about Pacquiao’s speed, the overwhelming factor that has placed the General Santos City native as the odds-on favorite in possibly every proposition cooked up by sports bookies, because his camp has come up with solutions to negate that.
“We’ve studied him and we’re prepared for his speed,” said Cotto. “I have hand speed like Manny.”
“But can Manny's power equal Miguel Cotto's on Saturday night? I am very calm. I have been doing this for many years,” Cotto said in an interview with Reuters.
Cotto also dismissed claims that he was struggling to make the weight. Although the Puerto Rican’s cheeks looked more hollowed out than usual, there was none of the signs, indeed, of a person crash-dieting to make a certain weight limit.
He had a light spring in his step and he wasn’t cranky at all. “I’m not worried about my weight,” he said. “I’m eating well.”
This article is from sports.inquirer.net
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
WATCH PACQUIAO - COTTO FIGHT ONLINE LIVE!!!
But it’s not like Miguel Cotto has no plans of ruining the storyline.
Pacquiao walked the red carpet of the MGM Grand lobby to deafening cheers and exploding flashbulbs and made his way up a makeshift ring adorned with a centerpiece golden lion statue to a reception fit for a king, a reception that surprised even the boxer-celebrity who is accustomed to crowds mobbing his every public move.
“I am surprised and happy that a lot of people came [to welcome me],” Pacquiao told reporters from both print and broadcast that tried to squirm their way in front of him to capture a sound bite or two even as photographers and cameramen jostled for prime shots at the world’s reigning pound-for-pound king.
After answers to a couple of questions, Pacquiao would turn his back and face the throng that had gathered at the hotel lobby as early as an hour or two before his late arrival to wave at fans, who would respond by shrieking “Manny! Manny!” with fervor.
Pacquiao faces Cotto on Nov. 14 at the MGM Grand’s garden Arena, where the Filipino ring icon will attempt to become the first boxer to win world titles in seven different weight classes. And while Pacquiao has spoken several times about trying to win one for the victims of a string of violent storms that hit the Philippines, or writing about a page in boxing history, he insists he has nothing against the man who will be out to stop him.
“It’s nothing personal, I’m just doing my job to try and make people happy,” he explained.
And then, after a whirlwind of quickie interviews, Pacquiao left—and almost simultaneously, so did the air inside the hotel lobby. The moment the Filipino ring icon hit the exit, life was sucked out of the event organized by the promoting Top Rank, with the crowd—which had swelled to a couple of hundred—thinning to less than a third of its original size.
This was the audience Cotto was left to work with.
Although there was still boisterous cheering the moment Cotto arrived about half an hour later for his public appearance, the noise was seemingly amplified only by the echoes of a few rabid supporters in a relatively emptied lobby.
Not that Cotto minded.
“Everything Manny has, everything he gets, he has earned,” Cotto told reporters with the stoic nonchalance of a person who is familiar with the throng his opponent can attract, the ones that went off looking for the nearest lunch venue after Pacquiao had left the scene.
“He has earned the right to enjoy it all.”
While Cotto has accepted that he cannot do anything about the gulf in popularity between him and his upcoming foe, he knows he is in control of the most important aspect of this whole event—fight night.
And for all the adoring worshippers that collect at his feet with every step, Manny Pacquiao, Cotto said, will be left to fend for himself once the two boxers are let loose in the middle of the ring on Nov. 14.
“Nobody can come in there to help Manny,” Cotto told reporters present. “Once the fight starts, there is only going to be me, Manny and the referee. No one else will be there in the ring. Nobody can help Manny or give him something to hit me with.”
Pacquiao arrived at the venue wearing a brown coat over a green shirt. And although he came late for the event, there was a palpable sense of excitement in the air, one that caught fire each time television cameras panned to groups carrying Philippine flags or fight-related shirts and souvenirs.
He waltzed through interviews with his usual canned responses of doing his best for his countrymen and fighting hard enough to cement his legacy.
“If I win a seventh title in another weight, it will be history,” said Pacquiao. “This is a very important fight for me and I am very focused for this fight.”
For his part, Cotto said he wasn’t worried about Pacquiao’s speed, the overwhelming factor that has placed the General Santos City native as the odds-on favorite in possibly every proposition cooked up by sports bookies, because his camp has come up with solutions to negate that.
“We’ve studied him and we’re prepared for his speed,” said Cotto. “I have hand speed like Manny.”
“But can Manny's power equal Miguel Cotto's on Saturday night? I am very calm. I have been doing this for many years,” Cotto said in an interview with Reuters.
Cotto also dismissed claims that he was struggling to make the weight. Although the Puerto Rican’s cheeks looked more hollowed out than usual, there was none of the signs, indeed, of a person crash-dieting to make a certain weight limit.
He had a light spring in his step and he wasn’t cranky at all. “I’m not worried about my weight,” he said. “I’m eating well.”
This article is from sports.inquirer.net
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
WATCH PACQUIAO - COTTO FIGHT ONLINE LIVE!!!
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Can Pacquiao make a Boxing History?
Manny Pacquiao will be looking to make history Saturday night when he takes on Miguel Cotto in a welterweight title fight at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
The 29-year-old Filipino superstar, who made a grand entrance along with his opponent at the scene of the fight Tuesday afternoon to begin final preparations, hopes to become the first boxer to win titles in seven weight divisions. He has held title belts from 112 pounds to 140 pounds.
Saturday's bout (HBO pay-per-view, 9:30 p.m. ET) is considered a welterweight fight, even though it will be fought at a catch weight of 145 pounds, 2 pounds below the welterweight limit.
Cotto, however, has no intention of allowing himself to become Pacquiao's seventh victim. It is Cotto's WBO belt they're fighting for, and the three-time champion, known for his powerful body punching, has held a title every year since 2004.
"If he thinks he is going to win seven titles in seven weight divisions now, he has picked the wrong moment, the wrong fighter and the wrong opponent," Cotto said in a recent conference call. "If he thinks he is going to win the seventh title against Miguel Cotto, he is very wrong."
Yet despite the fact that Cotto, also 29, from Puerto Rico, is a natural welterweight, and Pacquiao started his career in 1995 at 108 pounds, Pacquiao comes in as a heavy favorite. He's listed at -350, meaning you need to place $350 to win $100.
Pacquiao (49-3-2, 37 KOs) is coming off a spectacular second-round knockout of Briton Ricky Hatton last May, while Cotto (34-1, 27 KOs) fought through a bad cut over his eye to win a split decision against African Joshua Clottey a month later.
The only loss of Cotto's career came in a brutal beating at the hands of Antonio Margarito in July 2008. But there's a cloud over Margarito's victory since he was discovered before his next fight to have hardened plaster in his gloves, was subsequently KO'd by Shane Mosley, and then suspended from fighting in the USA for at least a year.
Cotto is undeterred by the odds against him.
"I don't know anything about the betting business," he said. "I am just here to try and bring my best every day … and I am working to beat Manny. If the people bet for Manny, it's all right with me. All the people that are betting for Manny Pacquiao are not going to change the result of this fight."
Pacquiao's success against Mexican fighters has been well-documented. He was tagged as "The Mexican Assassin" after beating the best Mexican fighters of his era, including legends Erik Morales, Marco Antonio Berrera and Juan Manuel Marquez.
Cotto, however, says all that success means nothing against a fighter from Puerto Rico, which has its own proud boxing history, from world champions Wilfredo Benitez, Esteban DeJesus and Wilfredo Gomez to Carlos Ortiz and Felix "Tito" Trinidad.
"Different fighters and different styles, they had their moments with him," Cotto said of Pacquiao's Mexican opponents.
"It is going to be totally different with me. I have prepared myself for anything and everything that he brings. No matter who talks, or whoever says he is going to win, I know I am very confident that I am going to come out with a victory that night."
SOURCE
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
WATCH PACQUIAO - COTTO FIGHT ONLINE LIVE!!!
The 29-year-old Filipino superstar, who made a grand entrance along with his opponent at the scene of the fight Tuesday afternoon to begin final preparations, hopes to become the first boxer to win titles in seven weight divisions. He has held title belts from 112 pounds to 140 pounds.
Saturday's bout (HBO pay-per-view, 9:30 p.m. ET) is considered a welterweight fight, even though it will be fought at a catch weight of 145 pounds, 2 pounds below the welterweight limit.
Cotto, however, has no intention of allowing himself to become Pacquiao's seventh victim. It is Cotto's WBO belt they're fighting for, and the three-time champion, known for his powerful body punching, has held a title every year since 2004.
"If he thinks he is going to win seven titles in seven weight divisions now, he has picked the wrong moment, the wrong fighter and the wrong opponent," Cotto said in a recent conference call. "If he thinks he is going to win the seventh title against Miguel Cotto, he is very wrong."
Yet despite the fact that Cotto, also 29, from Puerto Rico, is a natural welterweight, and Pacquiao started his career in 1995 at 108 pounds, Pacquiao comes in as a heavy favorite. He's listed at -350, meaning you need to place $350 to win $100.
Pacquiao (49-3-2, 37 KOs) is coming off a spectacular second-round knockout of Briton Ricky Hatton last May, while Cotto (34-1, 27 KOs) fought through a bad cut over his eye to win a split decision against African Joshua Clottey a month later.
The only loss of Cotto's career came in a brutal beating at the hands of Antonio Margarito in July 2008. But there's a cloud over Margarito's victory since he was discovered before his next fight to have hardened plaster in his gloves, was subsequently KO'd by Shane Mosley, and then suspended from fighting in the USA for at least a year.
Cotto is undeterred by the odds against him.
"I don't know anything about the betting business," he said. "I am just here to try and bring my best every day … and I am working to beat Manny. If the people bet for Manny, it's all right with me. All the people that are betting for Manny Pacquiao are not going to change the result of this fight."
Pacquiao's success against Mexican fighters has been well-documented. He was tagged as "The Mexican Assassin" after beating the best Mexican fighters of his era, including legends Erik Morales, Marco Antonio Berrera and Juan Manuel Marquez.
Cotto, however, says all that success means nothing against a fighter from Puerto Rico, which has its own proud boxing history, from world champions Wilfredo Benitez, Esteban DeJesus and Wilfredo Gomez to Carlos Ortiz and Felix "Tito" Trinidad.
"Different fighters and different styles, they had their moments with him," Cotto said of Pacquiao's Mexican opponents.
"It is going to be totally different with me. I have prepared myself for anything and everything that he brings. No matter who talks, or whoever says he is going to win, I know I am very confident that I am going to come out with a victory that night."
SOURCE
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
WATCH PACQUIAO - COTTO FIGHT ONLINE LIVE!!!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
