CHICAGO, Illinois – Boxing writers have started wondering if home court crowd would be an advantage for Manny Pacquiao over David Diaz. Manny Pacquiao has won so many fights before so many Filipinos in Las Vegas.
"I am now very comfortable fighting in Las Vegas. I like the place," Pacquiao said. "I just don’t know if the place is factor against David Diaz."
The question was posed by Roman Modrowski of the Chicago Sun Times during a teleconference call with boxing writers last Wednesday (Thursday in Manila).
A day before, Raoul Faez asked Manny Pacquiao if he would be ready for the "humongous Filipino crowd" at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino.
Faez noted that the place on fight night, June 28 (June 28 in the Philippines), would once again become "Manila Bay."
Diaz gamely conceded that Manny might have the majority of about 18,000 spectators at fight time behind him against his 100 supporters coming from Chicago.
But he's ready to face Pacquiao, invoking a popular Spanish expression, "Pocos pero locos." That means, "We may few but we're mad."
Filipino-American fans from Los Angeles and San Francisco in California, which is home to the largest Fil-Ame population in the US, usually drive to Las Vegas in record numbers to watch their boxing Filipino idol fight.
Aside from having "a home court advantage" in Las Vegas, Pacquiao also feels at ease in moving up to the 135-pound lightweight division.
"Although it is not easy to move up the division, so far, I am comfortable in the 135-pound division," he said. "I feel stronger. What I need in my training is to maintain speed."
The 29-year-old Filipino boxing sensation said he now enjoys eating, loading up on rice and vegetables for his 135-pound weight.
Asked how he assumes a split personality – by being soft-spoken outside the ring and by having a nasty demeanor inside – Pacquiao said: "In the ring, I am like a warrior and I fight as if there is no tomorrow. Outside the ring, I'm a friendly man. A good guy."
After two months of training in Los Angeles, Pacquiao is now ready to fight.
Has the deep cut in the eyebrow that he got in his last bout with Juan Manuel Marquez already healed?
"It already healed a month ago," Pacquiao said.
So what does he expect when he faces a fellow southpaw?
"Because my style and his style are similar, this coming fight should be a good fight," he said.
Diaz is staking his WBC lightweight championship belt on the line.
