Pacquiao, Morales drum up rematch

To further boost interest in their much-awaited rematch, boxers Manny Pacquiao of the Philippines and Erik Morales of Mexico will embark on a whirlwind promotional tour next month.

The two fighters who figured in a classic 12-round battle won by the Mexican last March will visit New York, Las Vegas, Mexico City and Texas on the second week of November.

The promo tour that will only last five days will give boxing fans in these chosen areas the chance to catch the world’s finest super-featherweights before they clash anew on Jan. 21.

"Press-con, press-con lang para sa laban," Pacquiao told a bunch of sportswriters whom he met in an authentic Japanese restaurant in Manila recently.

The rematch is set at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas or just a stone’s throw away from the famous MGM Grand Arena where the first fight took place last March 19.

Pacquiao, who is dying to get back at Morales, will leave for the US on Nov. 11. Expected to join him in the trip are his wife Jinkee and probably a couple of his Filipino associates.

His manager Shelly Finkel, promoter Gary Shaw, lawyers Keith Davidson and Nick Khan, trainer Freddie Roach and conditioning coach Justin Fortune will meet Pacquiao in the US.

After the tour, Pacquiao will return home, bringing with him Roach, Fortune and most likely his American manager. He will immediately plunge into training for the Jan. 21 fight.

"Two weeks of training here and that will be the start of my preparations for the rematch" said Pacquiao.

For facing Morales in the rematch, Pacquiao will receive a mind-boggling $2 million or P112 million, a purse which pro golfer Jennifer Rosales a couple of seasons to earn on the LPGA Tour.