Bettors advised: 'Pacquiao will make you a nice Christmas gift'

MANILA, Philippines - A bad economy has surfaced as a prime opponent to The Dream Match. With the megabuck fight just around the corner, the promoters are making sure that the focus returns to the superstar protagonists. Manny Pacquiao and Oscar de la Hoya gear up for the final prebout media conference scheduled on Wednesday (Thursday, Manila time) at the Hollywood Theater of the MGM Grand Hotel. A day before facing the press one last time, executives from each of the two sides emphasized the magnitude of the Pacquiao-de la Hoya face-off. Richard Schaefer, the Golden Boy Promotions chief executive, was bold. "This is going to be the second highest-grossing gate in Las Vegas for a boxing event. And that's remarkable for the global recession and economic turmoil we are experiencing." Bob Arum, big boss of Top Rank Inc., rooted for his ward. "Manny's worked harder than he did for the (David) Diaz fight. If you want to make a quick buck and the odds stay the same, bet Manny Pacquiao because he'll make a nice Christmas for you." Recent betting lines in Las Vegas showed that de la Hoya was still favored to win against Pacquiao, but only slightly. De la Hoya was at minus-185 and Pacquiao at plus-155 when Filipino sportswriters checked the spreads late Monday. That means a bet of $1.85 on de la Hoya will rake in $1.00, and a $1.00 on Pacquiao will net $1.55. The odds have remained that way for the last seven days. On Tuesday, Pacquiao and de la Hoya arrived to throngs of fans in their respective hotels. Clad in a dark-blue suit and tie and flashing his child-like smile, Pacquiao set foot at the Mandalay Bay lobby after alighting the custom-painted bus provided by Arum's Top Rank Inc. Pacquiao waved, shook hands, posed for photos and granted interviews after his entourage that included chief trainer Freddie Roach, assistant Buboy Fernandez and fitness and conditioning coach Alex Arissa, were welcomed by Arum. "This promotion is very big compared to the others," Pacquiao said. "Again, it's the biggest fight of my career." At the nearby MGM Grand, de la Hoya was mobbed as he made his way through the welcoming area where a six-member mariachi group serenaded him. With chief trainer Nacho Beristain and legendary cornerman Angelo Dundee walking behind him, de la Hoya climbed the makeshift ring built at the MGM Grand lobby and then posed with the gold-plated, man-sized lion statue, the symbol of the hotel that will host their weekend match. "Every fight is special. It's not the opponent but the event that makes it special, although I have every respect for Manny Pacquiao," said de la Hoya, lean and looking fit in his long-sleeved, button-down shirt and jeans. Schaefer said de la Hoya was weighing 143.8lbs with four days left before the big fight. "He's very light. He said, 'I've never felt like this before. I feel so much quicker, I feel stronger,'" Schaefer quoted de la Hoya as saying. Schaefer added that with de la Hoya basking in his newfound strength, he doesn't see his business associate fading away in the second half of the fight, a tendency most people noticed about de la Hoya in his previous bouts. "When everybody tells you, you're going to be tired after six rounds, you actually start to believe it. So now you say, 'Oh, it's the sixth round so I must get tired now,'" Schaefer said. "I really don't think Oscar's going to tire after the sixth round. And if Oscar's not going to knock Manny in the fifth round, then he's going to knock him in the sixth round." - GMANews.TV