Saturday, November 7, 2009

Manny Pacquiao wants to fight the best fighters

MANILA - People's Champ and the world's pound for pound king Manny Pacquiao on Saturday (Sunday in Manila) said he wants to ensure his boxing legacy by fighting the best boxers in the world.

In a livestreaming event sponsored by Nike, Pacquiao said his family and the Filipino people continue to inspire him to excel in the boxing ring.

"When I started boxing I was young. I was 12. But then I kept winning and winning. I love boxing and I started fighting," he said during the "Under The Hood" livestream event sponsored by Nike.

Asked which fighter past or present that he still wants to take on in the ring, he said: "I want to fight the best fighters."

One person asked Pacquiao how he would fare against former heavyweight champ Mike Tyson if the latter was still in his prime. He replied: "Maybe I can fight Tyson in a video game."

Pacquiao said he spends about two months to prepare and condition himself everytime he goes into a fight. Manny is set to take on Puerto Rican pugilist and World Boxing Organization (WBO) welterweight king Miguel Cotto on November 14.

Pacquiao has won six world titles in six different divisions, a distinction he shares with no less than the "Golden Boy" Oscar De La Hoya whom he defeated last year. A win over Cotto will make the General Santos native the only boxer in the world to win seven titles in seven weight divisions.

During the chat, Team Pacquiao members Freddie Roach, Alex Ariza and Buboy Fernandez praised Pacquiao for his work ethic and dedication to the sport.

"The best part [about working with Manny] is the fact that I don't have to motivate him...Wherever he is, he's 100 percent," Ariza said.

Roach said Pacquiao's now legendary bouts with Mexican Erik Morales remains memorable to the team.

"The rematch with Erik Morales. Of course we just devastated him. It was the first time we started using the right hand. We started working it and now it's as good [as the left]," he said.

US actors Emile Hirsch, Mario Lopez and Mark Wahlberg also wished Pacquiao luck in his upcoming fight with Cotto.

"You're humble, you love God and you love your people and that's why people love you," Wahlberg said in a video greeting. He also asked Pacquiao to send him more shoes "because everyone is asking about the shoes."

At the end of the chat, Melissa R., a Filipina who won 1st runner-up in the reality TV search 'Pussycat Dolls Present: The Search for the Next Doll', serenaded Pacquiao with her own rendition of Manny's song "Lahing Pinoy" before eventually being joined by the People's Champ. - David Dizon, abs-cbnNEWS.com

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