WAKEE SALUD AGREES SOTO WON’T LAST AGAINST PACMAN
By Ronnie Nathanielsz
PhilBoxing.com
Wed, 13 Jun 2007
Rex “Wakee” Salud who is regarded at times as a close friend and confidant of Filipino ring idol Manny Pacquiao says he agrees with the boxing experts who predicted that Pacquiao will knock out Humberto Soto who mauled Pacquiao’s brother Bobby in Madison Square Garden last Sunday.
Although some American and even Filipino journalists have been trying to hype the vengeance angle in a Pacquiao-Soto showdown which Golden Boy Promotions CEO Richard Schaefer predicted months ago was the publicity ploy of promoter Bob Arum, Salud said Soto couldn’t stand up to the power and the speed of Pacquiao who is a far more devastating puncher than his young brother and is an almost complete fighter.
However, the boxing promoter/manager conceded that while Soto, the No. 2 WBC super featherweight contender who defeated Ivan Valle in a title eliminator last year “is the best super featherweight in Mexico”, Pacquiao “can’t get big money” fighting him. Salud said that Arum has “no fighters” who could bring in a lucrative purse for Pacquiao.
In an overseas telephone conversation with Viva Sports/Manila Standard Today, Salud said that “the best fight for Manny right now” in terms of money would be a rematch with legendary Mexican Marco Antonio Barrera who has repeatedly said he wants to avenge his November 2003 demolition in San Antonio, Texas. Salud also said it would be “an easy fight” for Pacquiao.
Golden Boy CEO Richard Schaefer disclosed “it is true that Barrera has elected to do an easy fight” even as he hinted he didn’t know Barrera’s motives. Schaefer said they know for a fact that Top Rank and his Mexican representative Fernando Beltran “have had extensive contact with Barrera” which he added was “another attempt to steal a fighter from Golden Boy.”
Schaefer said that Golden Boy “will not tolerate that kind of behavior and put both parties on notice that we will sue them swiftly if this does not stop.” The Golden Boy CEO also accused Beltran who has long been identified with Arum of “interfering with other Golden Boy fighters and he would be well advised to stop these activities.” Schaefer insisted that contrary to claims by Arum, Barrera has “more than one fight keft with Golden Boy.”
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