By NICK GIONGCO
Based on what Manny Pacquiao and David Diaz are saying on their respective recent newspaper writeups, it’s going to be a blast on June 28 in Las Vegas.
Pacquiao, the reigning World Boxing Council (WBC) super-featherweight king, writes a twice-a-week column in a local tabloid, while Diaz, the current WBC lightweight ruler, does something like it for the Chicago Sun Times as part of his buildup for the bigest fight of his life that takes place at Mandalay Bay.
"I know from watching DVD copies of his previous fights that he never gives up and never lets up even if he is behind or ahead in the scorecards," said Pacquiao, who will be attempting to win a fourth world title in a fourth weight class.
"Diaz is a left-hander like me and based on my assessment of his style, we will be able to come up with a great show for boxing fans since he is the type of fighter who is always in front of you and is the kind of guy who doesn’t take a backward step and is always on the go," added Pacquiao, who leaves for Los Angeles tonight via Philippines Airlines to start training camp at the Wild Card.
Before reuniting with Roach, the 29-year-old Pacquiao will grace the formal turnover ceremonies of Lt. Gen. Alexander Yano, who will take over as Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines at Camp Aguinaldo this morning.
Diaz, who went on a promotional tours of San Antonio, Texas, and Phoenix, Arizona, last week, said he was nearly overwhelmed by the tremendous response of the media to the fight.
"In the afternoon (in Phoenix), we had a press roundtable at a downtown Mexican restaurant," wrote the 31-year-old Diaz. "The media had a lot of questions about how I intend to beat Pacquiao, my training and about me being the underdog. The underdog role is nothing new to me — it’s been that way in many of my fights."
Despite his hectic schedule during the whirlwind press tour, Diaz managed to squeeze in some time training as in one time after a luncheon when he worked out after returning to his hotel room at around 4 p.m.
And when Diaz arrived home in Chicago shortly after lunch last Thursday, he did not waste time and proceeded to the JABB Gym to sweat it out so his preparation doesn’t miss even a single beat.
"I got back home at 2 p.m. and went straight to the gym to workout. Thursday night was a few more phone interviews and some quiet time with the family."
"Today (Friday), it’s back on schedule at the gym and then tonight I’m going to a boxing show at Cicero Stadium. I love going to the local shows here, it’s where I made my bones before winning the title and it’s always terrific to see my friends fight," said Diaz, a former Golden Gloves champion and member of the US squad to the 1996 Atlanta Olympics.
Pacquiao and Diaz, meanwhile, are going to see each other face-to-face at Tuesday noon (Wednesday morning in Manila) at the Catalina Ballrom of the Bonaventure
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