Is it Personal for Pacquiao?

By Steve Kim

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Well, it's finally here, as Oscar De La Hoya faces the diminutive Manny Pacquiao this Saturday night at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas in what will be the most anticipated event (note, I didn't say fight) of 2008. And in listening to some of the comments of 'The Golden Boy' and GBP CEO Richard Schaefer, it's clear that this matchup is personal.

Remember, it wasn't that long ago when Manny was being whisked away from airports to steakhouses, lured to signing a contract with Golden Boy Promotions as he had a working deal with Top Rank. Soon, the tug-of-war for his services turned into a full-blown cold war between the two promotional titans that saw fighting everywhere between the two companies - except in the actual boxing ring.

Finally, as a settlement was brokered last summer, Pacquiao would basically state his preference to fight for Top Rank, with Golden Boy as a secondary partner in his promotions. To Oscar and his company it was the ultimate act of betrayal to choose Bob Arum's company. They just don't give money to anyone in a suitcase.

De La Hoya, who can be as genial and vanilla in his pre-fight rhetoric as any marquee fighter in the history of the sport, has made it quite clear that he'd like to make 'the Pac Man' pay for his indiscretion. For him, this isn't just another fight, but an ongoing battle for the control of boxing and its chess board versus their arch-rival Top Rank (just listen to Bernard Hopkins' statement after his victory over Kelly Pavlik). And oh yeah, they want to punish Manny. This has become quite personal.

"That's his beliefs, I respect that, but for me, it's nothing personal," he would say a couple of weeks back as he finished up his roadwork at Griffith Park near Hollywood. "I'm going to go in the ring and fight like a man and to give a good fight to make people happy."

When asked if he had any bitter feelings, Pacquiao would tell Maxboxing, "I know he's angry at me, disappointed, but I don't want to bring that business to the fight on December 6th. I want to focus on my fight and don't want to be distracted in the ring."

Which is fair enough. After all, he's got a pretty steep mountain to climb in facing De La Hoya, who long ago made the move up to 147 pounds and has fought as high as middleweight in the past. Pacquiao, who won his first world title as a flyweight, just recently made the move up to 135-pounds this past June when he bludgeoned David Diaz.

"I feel very comfortable and I feel happy, I never expected to fight at this weight," he would say. "I'm very happy because I have a chance to fight at 147 pounds."

The key is simple - to move up while retaining his trademark speed and explosiveness.

"I feel I still have the speed and power and that's what we're focused on in training, speed, because the speed will be the key in this fight," he states. But the question is, just how well with Pacquiao take a good hard shot from De La Hoya, who can still kick with his left hook. He says during his sparring sessions against the likes of Rashad Holloway, "I feel them harder but I can handle their power because I'm big too. So I believe that I can handle Oscar's power."

You don't have to be Chappie Blackburn - or even Angelo Dundee - to figure out that Pacquiao and his trainer Freddie Roach (who has some issues with De La Hoya himself) have worked extensively on neutralizing Oscar's left hook.

"During our training we always focus on Oscar's left hook, his left hand and that's what we're studying everyday. So we're ready on that. We applied a lot of techniques for this fight," he admits. But you go back to that size difference. The reality is that while De La Hoya can get touched up a bit and still win the fight handily, the whirlwind southpaw will have to pitch not just a no-hitter, but perhaps a perfect game.

But he insists, "The size is not bothering me and I think the speed will be my advantage. The speed will be the key in this fight. And of the difference in stature, "Well, he's not that much bigger than me but a lot of people say Oscar is too big for me. But I don't think so."

So two guys that were once friends and business partners now duke it out in boxing's latest un-civil war.

"I know both of us, there's pressure on each other. Especially for me, it's a big pressure because a lot of people are saying I'm small and I took this fight because of money. But I want to show the people that I accepted this fight because I have a big chance to win and I want to show the people - especially the Filipino people - that I'll win in this fight and bring honor to the country."

A NIGHTMARE

As you felt the buzz and electricity on Saturday night at the Citizens Business Bank Arena in Ontario, California after Chris Arreola had dusted himself off the canvas to stop Travis Walker in three exciting frames, everybody got the sense that they have something in Arreola.

An exciting, hard-nosed vato that is fun to watch.

There's no doubt that he's also on the verge of being a bona-fide ticket seller locally. The announced attendance was around 5,400, and there's no question in my mind that those who were there and those who watched on HBO will fork over their hard-earned dollars to see this guy the next time out.

He certainly is a lot of things to many people in the boxing business.

But realistically, he's not a guy anywhere near ready to face either Klitschko (as his bout with Walker was an IBF eliminator). Bottom line, it's a bad style matchup for him and until he gets down to 240, he's just a slow moving target for Wladimir Klitschko. Guys who aren't gifted with great athleticism don't have the luxury of coming out of shape at the world class level. At 250-pounds plus, he looks like he has a piano on his back.

What would I do if I was running Arreola's career in a perfect world? I'd sit on the ranking through all of 2009 and just keep building the fan-base at the CBBA and take on the likes of Sam Peter, Tye Fields, Lamon Brewster and Oleg Maskaev. Keep him active and out there, and keep him in the gym, as he works his way down to 240.

But then, this is far from a perfect world, isn't it?

FINAL FLURRIES

So what's the name of Pacquiao's little Jack Russell Terrier? 'Pac Man', of course....Are the New York Giants actually better than they were last year?......Jesus Soto-Karass did what he was supposed to in blowing out Hicklet Lau in two rounds....Paul Williams is an absolute windmill in the ring....Remember when USC-Notre Dame was a rivalry?.....