Morales rubber duel nearly a done deal

Even as Manny Pacquiao is deep in training for his July 2 appointment with Oscar Larios, negotiations are underway to finalize his rubber match against Erik Morales on Oct. 7 at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas.

Pacquiao’s lead manager Shelly Finkel and lawyer Nick Khan are conferring with Top Rank boss Bob Arum this week to seal the deal.

"We are almost set," said Khan in an e-mail to The STAR from Los Angeles yesterday. "Shelly and I have received the paperwork from Arum. We are reviewing the contract and will speak with Top Rank this week."

ABS-CBN sports reporter Dyan Castillejo-Garcia spoke to Morales in a San Diego mall last week and the Mexican fighter promised to be in shape at 130 pounds to whip Pacquiao in their third meeting. Castillejo-Garcia said Morales looked well-rested and appeared to have put on weight.

"I am determined to regain my reputation as the best fighter in the superfeatherweight division," said Morales. "Pacquiao became famous because of me. I will take away his fame and humiliate him. I lost to Pacquiao not because of his power but because I ran out of gas. I got tired. I had difficulty making the weight. That won’t happen again. My father (Jose) is back as my trainer and we’ve hired a nutritionist to take care of my weight."

Morales said he would’ve easily beaten Pacquiao in their rematch last January if only he had more stamina.

"I went down because of exhaustion," continued Morales. "He was backing up in the early rounds. He was hurt. He showed no power. I was winning the fight until I got tired. It’s not true he broke my cheekbone and my ribs. I just got very tired. That’s why I didn’t go to the press conference after the fight. The next night, I even threw a party at my house (in San Diego) for my relatives and friends."

Since losing to Pacquiao, Morales has been busy attending to his boxing stable and taking care of his three-month-old baby with second wife Sandra Mora.

Pacquiao will reportedly earn at least $3 Million for the third Morales fight and 60 percent of the net pay-per-view sales.

Khan said the hype about a third fight against Morales is not a distraction for Pacquiao in getting ready for Larios.

"Manny does his talking in the ring and he spoke quite loudly last January when he knocked Morales out," noted Khan.

As for Larios, Khan said there is no doubt in his mind that Pacquiao will win convincingly.

"I predict a victory for Manny and the entire Filipino nation," said Khan. "Six weeks of training is enough time. Manny’s body responds to training in an unbelievable way. Freddie (Roach) has never seen a fighter get in shape so quickly. Manny should continue to do what he did in the Morales fight—heavy pressure and punches while using the jab to frustrate Larios."

Khan cautioned Pacquiao not to take Larios lightly.

"Larios is a former world champion who has nothing to lose in this fight and everything to gain," continued Khan. "Whether it’s Buster Douglas upsetting Mike Tyson, Marco Antonio Barrera upsetting Prince Naseem Hamed or Manny upsetting Barrera, this type of situation can prove dangerous and perhaps disastrous for the favorite."

Khan said every athlete has room for continual improvement and in the last Morales fight, Pacquiao showed improvement in his jab and in cutting off the ring.

On Pacquiao’s reputation as a "Mexican Killer," Khan said boxing has always been a nationalistic sport.

"Italian vs. Irish, Mexican vs. Puerto Rican or Filipino vs. Mexican, the fans take tremendous pride in their country’s fighters winning a man to man fight," said Khan. "Hence, the mano-a-mano name to the Larios fight. Manny has crossed over into the US marketplace. He is the most exciting fighter in the business and a pound-for-pound great."

The Pacquiao-Larios fight will be shown live on US pay-per-view through In-Demand at 9 p.m., July 1, for $39.95 a subscription.