Pacquiao vs Diaz

Hey everyone, quite an odd time to write my next entry, just after the Ateneo -La Salle game. There's just so many things i want to write about from the time i wrote my last entry until now. I guess I'll start with the events that happened this past week before I share my thoughts about the game.

Pacquiao vs Diaz - This is the one fight I really wish I could experience LIVE. I've been to Manny's last two fights in Vegas (thanks of course to GMA7 and Manny for the tickets) and it was real crazy! Very similar to Ateneo, La Salle games except that the Filipinos and Mexicanos are not divided into two sides. Beer is also allowed in the arena so don't be surprised to see a lot of first fights in the stance between drunkies. I was lucky enough to get close up seats so i could clearly see and 'feel' the blows being taken by Manny, especially in the fight against Marquez. I remember getting leg cramps just while standing and sitting because of the excitement and the nervousness I guess.

Pinoy Records actually asked me to do some features in LA after supposedly watching Manny's fight this time around against Diaz but my schedule did not permit me to leave. It was just a week before the opening of the UAAP and I would have to miss practices and battle jetlag. I would have loved to go this time around! Imagine you get to watch a fight and at the same time, you get to see almost the entire Boston Celtics who just won the NBA championship! PLUS, the entire US Olympic Basketball team was also in town and checked in at the Wynn in preparation for the Beijing games.I'm so jealous because my friend Joanna was actually able to see, take photos and get autographs of the different NBA stars like Kobe, Lebron, CP3, Dwight Howard, etc. AND this is actually a historical victory for Manny being the first Asian to win 4 weight class divisions. Oh well, priorities first :)

What's sad is that I wasn't even able to watch the match on TV live. We were in the middle of our team building session in Subic that weekend and MVP (Sir Manny Pangilinan) just received a text and announced to us that "Pacquiao knocks out Diaz in 9th round" and everyone started cheering! Luckily, my mom taped the match so i was able to watch it when i got home. The fight was too one sided though. Manny was just too explosive and fast for Diaz. He controlled the entire fight. He attacked whenever he wanted without having to worry about counter punches. Diaz just stood his ground and took the hit.

One of the very rare occasions were we can cheer for our country. I mean we don't have anything like the World Cup where in the entire nation stops just to watch a match. The closest thing we have is probably the Olympics but then again it is not very accessible to all. When there's a Pacquiao fight, everything just seems to stop! Everyone's just glued to their TV sets or radios. You can really feel the people coming together, cheering for a common cause and celebrating a joint victory for all! How often do we feel that sense of pride for our country?! I think that's exactly what we lack. Everybody is trying to bring each other down for one's own ambition. I have to say... Manny is truly a national hero!