MANILA, Philippines - Manny Pacquiao arrived to a very warm welcome Monday evening in Los Angeles and was mobbed by his fans and supporters as if he’d already beaten Antonio Margarito.
Pacquiao emerged from the immigration area of the Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) smiling. He walked briskly, in khaki pants and gray shirt, and escorted by his American bodyguard, Rob Peters.
It almost took Pacquiao a lifetime before he got out of the airport. As he inched his way out, the number of greeters grew, and many of them called out the boxer’s name.
Pacquiao signed a few autographs, on boxing gloves, and waved back to his supporters until he took the front seat of his Lincoln Navigator on his way to his residence.
It was a very typical scene, an organized chaos, each time the world’s greatest boxer flies in and out of Los Angeles, this one for the press tour of the Nov. 13 fight with Margarito.
The tour kicks off Tuesday (today in Manila) at the Beverly Hills Hotel in LA, then takes both boxers and their respective camps to New York on Sept. 1 and the Dallas Cowboys on Sept. 3.
The coming fight is for the vacant WBC super-welterweight crown at 154 lb although both sides have agreed to a catchweight of 151. The World Boxing Council has unanimously voted to sanction the fight.
Pacquiao flew into LA accompanied by his lawyer Franklin Gacal and team member Roger Fernandez.
Elie Seckbach of Fanhouse videotaped Pacquiao’s arrival, and had a very difficult time breaking through the line. Later on he talked to Peters, and sought a comment on the situation.
“How crazy was that?” he asked Peters, who’s gotten so used to Pacquiao being mobbed by his fans.
“That’s nothing. That’s a piece of cake. Not bad. Everybody’s happy. We’re good. We’re safe. That’s all that matters,” said Peters, who handles security at the Wild Card Gym when Pacquiao is in town.
Chris Farina, official photographer of Top Rank, smiled as he came out of the building, as Pacquiao’s convoy of SUV sped away..
Yes, it’s “Pacquiao Time” again in LA.