Betting on Manny

Former World Boxing Council (WBC) secretary-general Rudy Salud was convinced that Manny Pacquiao would knock out hot favorite Marco Antonio Barrera in their featherweight duel in San Antonio last November–if he relentlessly put the pressure on the Mexican from the opening bell.

"Before he fought Pacquiao, I watched Barrera on TV, twice against (Erik) Morales and once against (Johnny Tapia)," said Salud. "I noticed in those fights, Barrera hardly fought back if his opponent was on the attack. So I knew if Manny just kept hitting Barrera, he’d win by knockout. The trick, of course, was to keep punching."

Salud hit the nail on the head. Fight films will show that Barrera has a tendency to fade under fire and waits for his opponent to ease up before launching his counterstrike. In Pacquiao’s case, Barrera never had a chance to retaliate because the Filipino was unforgiving in his attack. Pacquiao was all over Barrera from bell to bell. Besides, Barrera had probably never fought anyone who hit as hard. Salud was so sure of Pacquiao’s victory that he withdrew $10,000 from his bank account to bet on it. He planned to give the money to Pacquiao’s business manager Rod Nazario. As it turned out, Nazario left Manila to join Pacquiao in the US without getting the money from Salud.

"Even if I’d gotten the money from Rudy, I wouldn’t have been able to place the bet," said Nazario in his Medical Center Manila hospital room the other day. "That’s because my son, Boying, wouldn’t allow anyone to bet. My friends call him Fr. Boying because he’s very religious. Boying thinks gambling is a sin. That’s why none of us could bet on Manny. Not even Manny could bet on himself. Boying would gather us around in prayer and he would leave out the gamblers. None of us ended up betting."

Nazario was in the hospital for doctors to take out stones in his right kidney.

Visitors crowded his room as he spoke cheerfully about missing the chance to win easy money on Pacquiao. The visitors included Salud, Moy Lainez, Gerry Garcia, George Alcantara and Pacquiao’s Filipino trainer Buboy Fernandez.

Salud said since Nazario failed to pick up his $10,000 bet, he joined two pals in a friendly wager on Pacquiao and sure enough, won.

Nazario said Pacquiao’s American trainer Freddie Roach managed to slip his son’s religious dragnet and sneaked a $1,000 bet which raked in $8,000. Roach’s friend, lawyer Nick Khan, wagered $2,000 and won $16,000.

Smart money was for Barrera, said Nazario. The odds were 3-1 for the Mexican. Bookmakers paid close to thrice more for a Pacquiao win by knockout–that’s how much of a longshot he was. Khan was the lawyer who was paid a $10,000 fee to arrange a three-year US work permit for Pacquiao. He later drafted a contract in a bid to wrest Pacquiao’s US promotional rights from Murad Muhammad. His bid was rejected.

Salud said despite all the negative talk about Muhammad, he recalled a pleasant experience in dealing with the former Muhammad Ali bodyguard.

It was in Biloxi five years ago when Salud took Gerry Peñalosa to fight Ramon Hurtado for the vacant World Boxing Association (WBA) North American superflyweight title. Peñalosa trained for the bout at Roy Jones’ camp in Pensacola, Florida. Muhammad was then Jones’ promoter.

Salud said Muhammad guaranteed Peñalosa a $10,000 purse for the fight. After Peñalosa stopped Hurtado in the second round, Salud was surprised to receive a check for $25,000 from Muhammad. Salud brought it to Muhammad’s attention, saying Peñalosa was overpaid.

"Murad embraced me, appreciating my honesty," recalled Salud. "He told me what an honorable thing I did but explained Jones added a $15,000 bonus for a job well done."

Incidentally, Nazario said Pacquiao is not relinquishing his International Boxing Federation (IBF) superbantamweight title. Nazario confirmed he will participate in the IBF purse bid for Pacquiao’s mandatory defense against leading available contender Jose Luis Valbuena. The IBF will conduct the purse bidding tomorrow in New Jersey.

Nothing is certain on whom Pacquiao will fight next. It could be Valbuena or Paulie Ayala. Unified IBF and WBA featherweight titlist Juan Manuel Marquez may not be an immediate option.

On Pacquiao’s remarkable stamina, Lainez said what’s more incredible is the fighter’s normal heartbeat. Usually, a fighter can sustain a blistering pace, round after round, if he has a slow heart rate like the late featherweight champion Salvador Sanchez whose beat was about 20 lower than normal a minute. That’s why, explained Lainez, Sanchez always outworked his opponents, particularly in the late rounds because of his superior stamina. Nazario said another unique thing about Pacquiao is he’s a fast learner.

"In Manila, it’s like he trains himself because he probably knows more than any trainer here–he knows what’s good for him," said Nazario. "When he reached the level where there was little more to learn and pick up here, I decided to take Manny to the US so he could learn some more. Then we found Freddie."

While Pacquiao does not consult a nutritionist, Nazario said the fighter is careful of his intake. "In reducing for a fight, he just takes orange juice, a lot of bananas, sabaw, lukewarm water–never cold, and a few apples," noted Nazario. "For meals, he eats rice and fish, not meat."

Salud said former lightweight and junior welterweight champion Carlos Ortiz–who twice stopped the legendary Flash Elorde–used to drain a piece of steak, cooked rare, in a bottle and drink the juice out of it when trimming down for a fight. Former lightheavyweight titlist Archie Moore used to do the same, added Lainez.

Regarding a plan to stage Pacquiao’s next fight here, Salud said he held off talks with American promoter Louie Pearlman because of the raging word war between Roach and Muhammad. Pearlman was ready to deposit $80,000 as earnest money but Salud, who was approached to assist in facilitating the project, decided to freeze the ball until Roach and Muhammad settle their differences.