LEGENDARY Mexican trainer Ignacio “Nacho” Beristain vows to send Manny Pacquiao back to the division where he belongs once the Filipino fighter finally enters the ring against Oscar De La Hoya this December.
In an interview with Philippine-based www.sportsnews.ph Monday morning, Beristain scoffed at Pacquiao’s intention to remain in the welterweight division after his brawl with De La Hoya.
“After what will happen on Dec. 6, Manny Pacquiao will be more than willing to move down to 135 or 130 because he is going to get a tremendous beating,” Beristain said in an overseas telephone interview thru translator and Mexican promoter Jaime Quintana.
As his camp consistently declared their plan to celebrate an impending victory against De La Hoya, Pacquiao was quoted as saying that he is open at giving Beristain’s ward Juan Manuel Marquez a third fight if the current lightweight champion would be willing to move up at 147.
In May 2004 Pacquiao, despite flooring Marquez three times in the opening round, settled for a split draw against the Mexican in a 12-round featherweight title fight.
March of this year, Pacquiao floored Marquez once in the second enroute to a 12-round split decision win that netted the Filipino boxing sensation the Mexican’s World Boxing Council (WBC) super featherweight crown.
Marquez has since recovered from that bitter loss by snatching the WBO interim lightweight crown via a sensational 11th round TKO win over Cuban Joel Casamayor.
Pacquiao, meanwhile, added the WBC lightweight title to his collection of alphabet titles with an equally impressive ninth-
round destruction of dethroned champion David Diaz last June at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas.
Insinuation
In a previous interview Beristain told sportsnews.ph that all he is focusing right now is to do his job in preparing De La Hoya in one of the most intriguing match-ups of the sport.
“No we don’t need Oscar to do that revenge or anything. We beat Pacquiao twice and Pacquiao was only lucky he had Bob Arum as his promoter,” Beristain told sportsnews.ph, insinuating that Arum had a hand in the judges’ scorecards.
Arum himself announced a victory party for Pacquiao in the Philippines on Dec. 12.
Beristain, however, is unfazed at any attempts of Team Pacquiao to gain more confidence for this bout where the Filipino will give up a huge physical advantage. (PR)
