MANILA, Philippines — Bilang patunay na wala nang problema sa laban nina Manny Pacquiao at Lucas Matthysse ay bibiyahe si Golden Boy Promotions CEO Oscar De La Hoya sa Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia sa Hulyo 10 para suportahan ang nasabing boxing event.
Gagawin ito ni De La Hoya sa kabila ng hindi pa rin tumitigil na ugung-ugong na makakansela ang upakan ng 39-anyos na si Pacquiao at ng 35-anyos na si Matthysse dahil sa problema sa pondo ng MP Promotions ng Filipino world eight-division champion.
“I’m going to Malaysia on July 10 to be with Matthysse and Pacquiao, that fight is going to happen without any problem,” wika ni De La Hoya sa pa-nayam ng ESPN Deportes.
Kamakailan ay sinabi ni Pacquiao na naibigay na niya ang kulang na $2 milyon sa grupo nina De La Hoya at Matthysse, tumanggap na ng paunang bayad na $500,000.
Nauna nang ipinagkalat ni Bob Arum ng Top Rank Promotions na may posibilidad na hindi matuloy ang naturang laban.
“Matthysse is going to fight Pacquiao period, there is no other option. I don’t know why Bob Arum is saying (the event could fall out), I don’t know if he just doesn’t have confidence in the work that Pacquiao is doing in Malaysia or maybe he thinks that Pacquiao is not going to carry it out because he does not have things in order, but the truth is that I know (the event will happen),” ani De La Hoya.
Nakatakdang hamunin ni Pacquiao (59-7-2, 38 KOs) ang World Boxing Association welterweight titlist na si Matthysse (39-4-0, 36 KOs) sa Hulyo 15 sa Axiata Arena sa Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Naniniwala si De La Hoya na si Matthysse ang tatapos sa makulay na boxing career ni Pacquiao.
“For me, every legend has his end and I think that this fight with Matthysse may be the end of Pacquiao,” wika ni De La Hoya, pinagretiro ni ‘Pacman’ noong 2008 via eight-round TKO.