Philippine Asian News Today Vol 20 No 08 | Page 29

April 16 - 30, 2018
PHILIPPINE ASIAN NEWS TODAY
KUALA LUMPUR – If the atten-
dance in the second and final leg of
the twin-city press tour to promote
the coming Manny Pacquiao-Lucas
Matthysse title showdown held Friday
at the luxurious Le Meridien Hotel for
the latter’s World Boxing Association
welterweight crown will be the gauge,
there’ no way the card won’t be a big
success.
The12-round bout, the first in-
ternational extravaganza the Manny
Pacquiao Promotion, in coordination
with Oscar De La Hoya’s Golden Boy
outfit, is set to happen July 14 (July
15in Manila and Malaysia) at the Axi-
ata Arena.
No less than 500 journalists main-
ly from Asia and a sprinkling from
Europe and other guests were on
hand primarily to see in person, Pac-
quiao, in particular, and the defending
champ, and hear them spell out their
chances.
And the protagonists didn’t fail
them. The Argentine belt-owner, for
29
No way the Pacquio-
Matthyse title fight
won’ be a success
one, declared
he didn’t trav-
el this far only
to go back
home
not
bringing back
the plum he
just won last
January.
The Fili-
pino
ring
great, for his
part, retorted it’s not his intention
to lose this fight, especially because
this, definitely, is one of the only few
remaining assignments he is commit-
ted to meet before finally hanging up
his fighting trunks.
Pacquiao assured everybody he
doesn’t want to fail his loyal country-
men, who like in his many encoun-
ters in the past would again be watch-
ing to see him win. And Asians, too,
who, he learned, favored him by the
way the questioning from the region’s
scribes went.
Like in the first stop held in Manila
a day before Thursday, the 35-year-old
divorcee reiterated Pacquiao’s time is
now over and it’s now his time to be at
the top of the 147-pound division and
enjoy the big money attached to it.
Pacquiao answered back, saying
Matthysse is just four years younger
than his 39-yeear-old body and that
won’t make any difference, especially
in a sport like boxing. And so on and
so forth.
This early
though, this
writer is in-
clined to be-
lieve that the
promoters,
the event or-
ganizers, and
all the people
involved in the
preparations
and
actual
staging of the fight are already win-
ners.
Doubted initially for their capacity
to supervise and manage an event of
this magnitude, those people, to me,
had passed the test with flying colors.
Except from a minor fiasco in
transporting the protagonists, their
respective teams, media men and
guests when they arrived at the KL In-
ternational Airport to their hotels upon
arrival, everything went on smoothly
from there.
Accommodation at Le Meridien
Hotel, especially the foods were su-
perb. Teams Pacquiao and Matthysse,
I should say, cannot ask for more.
Everybody wore their most beautiful
smile, every time they visit the res-
taurant were an array of international
delicacies were served.
o0o
NOTES: Tragedy struck the San
Antonio Spurs and the entire NBA
community on Wednesday. Erin
Popovich, the wife of Spurs coach
Gregg Popovich, passed away. The
Spurs released an official statement,
which was posted by Rob Thompson
of ESPN.
From the San Antonio Spurs:
“With deep regret the San Antonio
Spurs announce that Erin Popovich,
wife of Spurs Head Coach Gregg
Popovich, passed away earlier today.
Erin and Gregg were married for four
decades and were blessed with two
children and two grandchildren.
Members of Team Pacquiao and
guests set foot in this city close to
4 a.m. Friday from a four-hour trip
from Manila on board the Philippine
Airlines chartered flight 8525 safe.
Thanks to the expert handling of
chief pilot, Capt. Martin Ahyesa and
his crew composed of FOs Benjamin
Umali and Ylysse Delkva; flight purser
Guerico Mariano and flight attendants
‘Zeenat Malino, Karen Pacheco, An-
ton dela Paz and Edelberto Almonte.
Photos by Wendell Alinea/OSMP
Finals bound Pacquiao Cup standouts emerge
The Association of Boxing Alli-
ances of the Philippines (ABAP) need
not look elsewhere to recruit fresh
talent, the Philippine Sports Com-
mission (PSC) said yesterday.
With the PSC-Manny Pacquiao
Boxing Cup entering the crucial
phase, the PSC said standouts from
the slugfest being staged by the PSC
in coordination with the fighting sen-
ator have started to emerge.
From 290 boxers, the number
wil