MEXICO LOVES PACQUIAO
By Hesiquio Balderas
PhilBoxing.com
Sat, 10 Sep 2011
Everyone thought it was going to be a Juan Manuel Marquez show in Mexico City. The media, promoters and even Marquez felt that this last stop of the PACQUIAO-MARQUEZ III WORLD TOUR was going to be his coming out party, but it wasn?t.
It was the Manny Pacquiao show, as humble as he is, as educated as he is and as ferocious as Pacquiao is inside the ring, 30,000 plus fans were all captivated by the charm of the best fighter in the world. They kept chanting his name and very few chanted for Juan Manuel.
Wow! What a surprise, it must have been a terrible disappointment for Marquez but it was really a day of joy for Manny and his people, the superstar of boxing came, saw and conquered Mexico.
Even Pacquiao was surprised as he said in the press conference "I never expected this reaction from the Mexican fans, I am really shocked in a positive way, I just want to thank the people of Mexico for this warm welcome," said Pacquiao.
The fans were all after the bona fide superstar from the Philippines. They didn?t care too much about Marquez, and yes there were a lot of supporters of Juan, but to be honest, many of the fans were calling the Mexican champion, Rafael, instead of Juan Manuel (Rafael is the younger brother of Juan and a former world champion).
The users of twitter in Mexico would only have Pacquiao as a topic, TV Azteca were calling this mega event as a Pacquiao show. They even taped a singing TV Show that will be aired this Sunday where Pacquiao is due to sing John Lennon?s song Imagine.
Not even Julio Cesar Chavez would be mobbed by a crowd like Manny was yesterday in Mexico, City and what to speak about Marquez? Juan had to be a simple spectator, trying to be nice but was obviously confused by the situation. He only had to watch Pacquiao become the new hero. Pacman is now a worldwide figure. It doesn?t matter how many Mexican fighters he has beaten, the Mexicans love Pacquiao - as simple as that.
In the Philippines, many fighters exhibit the same qualities as Mexican fighters. They too have huge hearts and plenty of determination that make them difficult to beat. When we see Mexicans battle Filipinos, be it a 4 rounder or a 12 round championship fight, we are always sure to see a war. There will blood and guts involved.
But the person that captures the imagination of the Mexican people the most is Manny Pacquiao because he is a brawler, has a huge heart and more importantly he always fights for his country. This is the reason why he is loved by our people.
One would think that Juan Manuel Marquez would be the over-whelming favorite in the press conference in his own country. But the fact is Pacquiao was the people?s choice because he is charismatic and he has the bravado and kindness and that unique combination makes Manny what he is today.
Pacquiao is the choice of not only the fans but also many Mexican boxing experts in our country Mexico who stated that Pacquiao will win!
Comments like these will only increase the Mexican support for Pacquiao and I would not be surprised if a lot of Mexicans will bet for Pacquiao to win his third meeting with "Dinamita" Marquez.
Most of the media were also eager to follow every Manny Pacquiao step in Mexico. Everyone agreed that this was the Filipino?s show, they all wanted a piece of the pound for pound champion who is now the king of Mexico.
"I want to thank the Mexican public, please watch the fight between Many Pacquiao and Juan Manuel Marquez, I didn?t want to fight another Mexican fighter but that?s the way it is," concluded Pacquiao in perfect Spanish.
On November 12, if Pacquiao fights with determination, guts, pride, and honor as he always does, I have no doubt that he will end up not only as a Filipino icon but a Mexican idol as well.
Hesiquio Balderas writes for boxingscene.com, philboxing.com and boxeomundial.com. He is the founder of 12asaltos.com. Balderas is a boxing historian and owns the Balderas Boxing Gym. You can contact him at hesiquio@12asaltos.com and www.twitter.com/KikoBalderas
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Hesiquio Balderas.
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