by Nick Giongco
Manny Pacquiao assured everyone who is worried about his pre-fight buildup that all is well and that he will be at his best when he defends the World Boxing Organization welterweight crown against Jeff Horn on July 2 in Brisbane.
“Don’t you all worry,” Pacquiao told his Canadian adviser Mike Koncz when told about calls by trainer Freddie Roach and promoter Bob Arum to travel to Australia at least two weeks before the fight at Suncorp Stadium.
Roach and Arum shared the belief that while there is only a two-hour time difference between Manila and Brisbane, the lengthy air travel will have an effect on the 38-year-old Filipino fighter.
Besides, the weather is going to be like night and day when Pacquiao arrives Down Under where it is winter time from June to August.
“Manny knows,” said Koncz yesterday, shrugging of fears that Pacquiao might not be at his best when he stakes the WBO 147-lb crown for the first time since beating Mexican-American Jessie Vargas for the title last year in Las Vegas.
Koncz said he will know in the next few days if Team Pacquiao will lease a private plane or take commercial instead and that his boss prefers to fly to Australia a week before July 2.
The easiest way to travel to Brisbane from Manila is via Philippine Airlines although it requires a brief layover in Darwin.
Another option is to take Singapore Airlines and that also requires a stopover at Changi from Manila before proceeding to Brisbane.
