Manny
PACQUIAO
vs.
Erik MORALES
III
"THE
GRAND FINALE!" / "LA GRAN FINAL!"
November 18,
2006 at Thomas & Mack Center
LIVE ON HBO PAY-PER-VIEW
MANNY PACQUIAO VOWS TO DRAW
THE CURTAIN
ON MORALES' GRAND FINALE!
------------------------------
PACQUIAO MEDIA WORKOUT
KICKS-OFF
FIGHT
WEEK IN LAS VEGAS
NEXT TUESDAY!
Back-to-back
media events concluded a busy week for boxing's
pound-for-pound most exciting fighter,
MANNY "PACMAN" PACQUIAO, as he prepares
for "The Grand Finale!" -- the rubber match between
Pacquiao, the pride of the Philippines, and fellow
three-division world champion and national icon
ERIK "EL TERRIBLE" MORALES of
Mexico.
Pacquiao
and Morales, each with a victory over the other,
have fought before two sellout crowds in Las Vegas
and a combined pay-per-view audience of over
700,000. This time it's for keeps. The deciding
fight of their amazing trilogy -- a 12-round WBC
International super featherweight championship --
takes place
next week!
Promoted by Top Rank,
in association with Wynn Las Vegas, the
Pacquiao-Morales rumble will be Saturday,
November 18 at the Thomas &
Mack Center, broadcast live on
HBO Pay-Per-View, beginning at
9 P.M. ET / 6 P.M. PT. With
another sellout already projected, promoter
Bob Arum is trying to line up
closed-circuit venues throughout Las Vegas to
accommodate the fans.
At
yesterday's non-stop two-hour media workout at
Freddie Roach's Wild Card Boxing Club in Hollywood,
CA and on today's media conference call, Pacquiao
was adamant that this would not be HIS
grand finale, but the next step in his Hall of Fame
career:
"I must win," stated
Pacquiao "Our fight is bigger than the two of us
because we carry more into the ring than most other
fighters. We carry the heart and soul of
our people, and the pride and honor of our nations.
The pressure on us is enormous which is why I will
be on the attack the second I hear the bell for
round one. But there can only be one winner and
that winner must be me and it will be me."
Roach
was no shrinking violet when asked his opinion:
"Velocity,
Velocity. Velocity. That's all I hear when Morales
and his team talk," said Roach. "All I know is
this, Velocity cannot go in the ring with Morales
when he faces Manny on November 18. Erik is an old
school fighter. What could Velocity possibly teach
him that he didn't already know?" There are only two
questions in this fight. 'Does Morales have one
more fight left in him? and What's he got left?' I
know he has guts and I know he is going to go all
out. I just don't think that will be enough to keep
Manny off of him. Manny is now a true 130-pounder.
Manny is still developing... evolving... and
improving. As dominant as he was in the second
fight, he will be twice as dangerous this
fight. Morales has no idea what's in store for him
next week. Manny Pacquiao is boxing's new No.1
pound-for-pound fighter."
Team Pacquiao and Team
Morales are scheduled to arrive in Las Vegas on
Sunday and Monday, respectively.
11-11-2006
