TICKETS GO ON SALE FOR PACQUIAO-DIAZ
By Ronnie Nathanielsz
PhilBoxing.com
Fri, 18 Apr 2008
Tickets for the ?Lethal Combination? WBC lightweight championship between Filipino boxing icon Manny Pacquiao and reigning champion David Diaz will go on sale on Saturday in the US.
Pacquiao, the newly crowned WBC super featherweight champion will seek a record-setting fourth world title for an Asian when he engages the southpaw Diaz in what is expected to be a twelve round rumble at the Mandalay Bay Resort Hotel and Casino on June 28.
Pacquiao has been dubbed ?Republica Enemy No.1? by the Mexicans after he smashed through a long line of Mexicans including legends Marco Antonio Barrera and Erik ?El Terrible" Morales and last March 15 scored a close, split decision victory over the last man standing, Juan Manuel Marquez.
Among the lesser known Mexicans hammered into submission by the devastating southpaw puncher from General Santos City were Gabriel Mira, Emmanuel Lucero, Hector Velasquez, Jorge Solis and Oscar Larios who went the distance against Pacquiao in a WBC International super featherweight title fight staged in Manila by the pre-eminent Philippine broadcast network ABS-CBN.
Pacquiao has won 22 of his last 23 fights as he prepares to face Diaz who is himself a southpaw and according to Pacquiao?s trainer Freddie Roach may cause problems for the hard-hitting Filipino.
Diaz who has an impressive record of 34-1-1 with 17 knockouts will be making the second defense of his 135 pound crown. In his last defense he scored a hard-fought unanimous twelve round decision over Morales who dropped him early in the fight to post a lead but Diaz rallied behind a noisy Chicago crowd to win a close but fairly comfortable decision, 114-113, 115-113 and 115-112.
Diaz was a member of the 1996 US Olympic team in Atlanta and is reportedly well prepared to handle the pressure likely to be brought into battle by the exciting Pacquiao regarded as a top contender to Floyd Mayweather as boxing?s top pound-for-pound fighter.
Pacquiao is expected to leave for Los Angeles and begin training at Roach?s Wild Card Gym in May which would give him some eight weeks of preparation for the Diaz title fight.
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