PACQUIAO UNITES COMPETING TV NETWORKS
By Eddie Alinea
PhilBoxing.com
Sun, 29 Mar 2015
LOS ANGELES -- For continuously pursuing and succeeding in forcing American Floyd Mayweather to finally face him in what is billed the biggest and richest fight in the history of prizefighting, Filipino ring icon Manny Pacquiao helped unite television network rivals Showtime and HBO bring the welterweight unification encounter to as many viewers worldwide.
Not content with that, the 36-year-old eight-division world champion, likewise, single-handedly, sought and succeeded. too, in making all major Philippine networks work jointly in bringing the 12-round showdown set on May 2 in Las Vegas seen in as many households as possible in the country where every time and everywhere he fights, everything stops.
Pacquiao, the fighting Congressman for the lone district of Sarangani Province, in short, showed that if there is one person capable to uniting this country, which has been divided in almost major national issues, political and otherwise, since everyone can remember.
Top executives of the country's biggest networks -- the giants GMA 7 and ABS-CBN, TV5, Solar Sports, and SM Lifestyle Entertainment all gathered Thursday this week to announce their unprecedented decision to air the much-awaited sporting event on free TV, cable TV, pay-per-view, cinemas, radio, mobile and on line streams, the winner of which will be crowned the
And, as usual, the devout Christian and reigning World welterweight belt-owner, who ended his first month of a two-month training camp here Saturday (Sunday in Manila), invoked the Holy Scripture in succeeding where others before him failed.
Going into the final month of his preparedness program for his showdown with the 47-0 win-loss card owner World Boxing Council/World Boxing Association 147-pound champion, Pacquiao went into the motion of ending the week by doing mitts with for 10 rounds with chief trainer Freddie Roach at the latter?s Wild Gym.
He also punished himself doing his routine agility-improving exercises in the 82-step bleacher section of the University of California-Los Angeles track and field stadium aimed also of increasing his foot speed.
?God wants us all people in the world to unite as one, it is what the bible is saying,? the world?s, one-time or another, kingpin in super-welterweight, junior welterweight, lightweight, super-featherweight, featherweight, super-bantamweight and flyweight divisions told this writer as what inspired him in urging those concerned to join efforts for the benefit of all Filipinos.
?HBO and Showtime have already taken the lead, so I asked myself, why can?t we in our own country do it also?? Pacquiao, who also holds four world lineal championships, asked.
?I just wanted to prove, even to myself, that with the help of the Lord, we can stop wars, unite all people and make the world a pleasant and ideal place to live, again,? Pacquiao declared.
?So there. And, if I may add, gusto ko ring ipakita sa buong mundo, lalong lalo na sa ating mga kababayan na seryoso ako sa labang ito na manalo at bigyang muli ng karangalan ang Pilipinas at ang katagang Pilipino,? he assured.
?Why would I insist on all our countrymen watch the fight, kung matatalo din lamang ako? Pacquiao quipped. ?What other assurance can I show them that I am again carrying our country?s colors in my shoulder than urge them to see the fight.?
With all Philippine networks combining efforts in the coverage, the Pacquiao-Mayweather mega-bout has been assured of reaching virtually every sala in the Filipino household.
"It was Congressman Manny who pushed this," Solar Sports head Wilson Tieng said dyring the press conference held to announce the project.
"We can only take part of the credit."
"Thank you very much to GMA 7, ABS-CBN, TV5 and Solar Sports. Because of this union, the fight will be shown to all of our countrymen," Pacquiao, for his part, said in Tagalog via Skype aired at almost 3 a.m. in L. A.
The live airing of the presscon infuriated no end chief trainer Freddie Roach and conditioning coach Justin Fortune as their favorite pupil had to skip workout scheduled that day, but Pacquiao though not denying, said it was ?worth it.?
"I'm so happy that they now showed unity and love towards each other with the goals of serving the nation, he added. "They really made an effort to make this happen. Thank you."
If the Philippines has been paralyzed every time Pacman fights, imagine how this Mayweather bout with bigger interest that may define both of the protagonists? future career would do.
Photo (L-R): SM's Edgar Tejero, GMA7's Mike Enriquez, GMA7's Felipe Yalong, Solar Sports' Wilson Tieng, Cignal TV's Oscar Reyes, TV5's Chot Reyes and ABS-CBN's Dino Laurena during last Wednesday's press conference announcing the unprecedented tie up of the Philippines' network giants. Photo by Dong Secuya.
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