Filipino boxer and Senator Manny Pacquiao (left) speaks with CEO Bob Arum of Top Rank
At 37, Filipino boxing legend Manny Pacquiao will face one of his biggest challenges when he gets face-to-face with Mexican-American Jessie Vargas for the World Boxing Organization (WBO) world welterweight title to showdown at Las Vegas Thomas & Mack Center on Sunday at noon (Macau time).
For Pacquiao this will the first time being back in the ring since he announced his (temporary) retirement last April after his win against Timothy Bradley. This was in order to dedicate himself to heavyweight Filipino politics, as he was running for the Philippine’s Senate.
Although there are acknowledged difficulties in putting in practice a serious training plan to try for the world title, the odds seem to be on “Pacman” (1/9).
In the opposite corner things seem to be running smoothly with Vargas, 27, entering the bout coming from some comfortable ninth-round TKOs over some serious competition, as the previously unbeaten Sadam Ali gave him the title back in March.
Many doubts were raised over the capacity of Pacquiao to reconcile a full-time job as senator in the Philippines with the training needs of a professional boxer, with some media in the Philippine’s airing the idea that Pacquiao would probably need to leave his senator position uncared for in order to practice; a position immediately refuted by the boxer and politician who said in a press statement said, “there is no truth to media reports that I’m planning to take a leave from my senate duties just to fight again atop the ring.” He added: “I want to make it clear – my priority is my legislative works. My next fight has not yet been discussed. Should there be any, I’ll make sure it will not interfere with my senate duties.” Pacquiao recalled a promise made during the run for the senate that he would be present in all sessions.
In a recent interview, boxing promoter Bob Arum said, “What’s happening here is something that I’ve never seen in fifty years of boxing, Pacquiao was elected for the Senate in the Philippines and there are only 24 senators and 12 get elected every six-years. Before he was elected he promised [the] Philippine’s people that he would make every senate session. So he is now on 15 senate committees and he attends every single session of the senate. That means that from 9 in the morning till 7 at night, he is a Senator in the Philippines and a very respected Senator I may add.”
The legendary promoter stressed that Pacquiao has been “running in [the] morning and going to the gym at night.”
“I don’t know how he can do that. I don’t know if its possible but we will see on November 5 [Las Vegas time],” Arum said, adding: “He loves boxing, he wants to continue as a fighter but I never seen a world class fighter who has a day job that takes all his time while he is competing at the highest level.”
Pacquiao has stated previously “boxing is my only means of livelihood to support my family and to help those who are in need. Politics, to me, is a vocation, not a means to eke out a living. I want to maintain that belief. I want to keep my dignity intact while in public service.”
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