IS PAC-MAN THE BEST AROUND?

Byline: ROBERT MORALES BOXING

LAS VEGAS - Take a look at any reputable pound-for-pound poll and chances are Manny Pacquiao is in the top 5. However, if Pacquiao again defeats Erik Morales convincingly tonight, like he did when he stopped Morales in the 10th round in their second fight in January, Pacquiao could take over the top spot.

For some time, Floyd Mayweather Jr. has been the consensus pound-for-

pound king. But there are some who believe Mayweather hurt that status when he boxed his way to a 12-round decision over Carlos Baldomir in a welterweight championship fight Nov. 4.

Pacquiao and Morales will square off in a super featherweight rubber match at Thomas & Mack Center. The event, promoted by Top Rank Inc., will be available on HBO pay-per-view.

``I do,'' said Pacquiao's trainer, Freddie Roach, when asked if Pacquiao should be crowned pound-for-pound honcho with a big win tonight. ``I just feel that Manny is more of a complete fighter because he can box and punch.

``Mayweather's a great boxer, but he's not a finisher. Especially at his new (welterweight) division; he hasn't knocked anyone out. Floyd's a great boxer and a tough guy to beat for anybody in the world, but I just think Manny's a more complete fighter.''

Pacquiao played host to a media workout last week at Roach's Wild Card Gym in Hollywood. He opened a lot of eyes with his vicious punching on the hand mitts held by Roach.

Making quite an impression were the incredible bulging calves of Pacquiao, which look like they belong on a man twice his size. Alas, they are attached to a 5-foot-6 1/2, 130-pounder.

``My calves are naturally like that; it's a very difficult thing to develop the calves,'' said Pacquiao, 27, of the Philippines. ``And that's where my power comes from. They are God's gift to me.''

Roach has trained a lot of fighters during his Hall of Fame career. To him, Pacquiao is easily the most impressive puncher, pound-for-pound, he has trained.

``By far, yes,'' Roach said. ``The power and speed are unbelievable. He has huge legs. He conditions very well and I think he was born with speed. You can improve speed, but you can't make it.''

Bob Arum is Morales' longtime promoter. The chairman of the board of Top Rank was on hand at the workout, as were several members of his staff. They looked worried for Morales as Pacquiao ripped sharp, heavy punhces into the mitts. Some began to wonder how Roach, not a big man, could handle them.

``Manny always looks terrific to me,'' Arum said. ``I call him the Energizer bunny. He just keeps coming and coming and it's phenomenal because he never gets tired. In other words, if you're going to fight Manny Pacquiao successfully, you have to be in top, top condition because otherwise he's going to out-work you.''

Arum is challenging the contract Pacquiao recently signed with Golden Boy Promotions. He claims it violated the contract Pacquiao signed with him to fight Morales. He is hopeful Pacquiao will end up with him after tonight, and it's easy to see why.

The look in Pacquiao's eyes, and the ferocity with which he trained, all point to a fighter who is bent on being considered the best fighter in the world. It's a heavy burden to carry, as Mayweather can no doubt attest. When you're supposed to be the best, the scrutiny under which a fighter operates increases tremendously.

And for Pacquiao, he carries an ever bigger load on his mind because he is ``it'' in the Philippines. To say he is a national hero might be an understatement.

``When I am in the ring I am also fighting for my people,'' Pacquiao said. ``I want to make my country proud and make my fans happy. It is very important to me because my country is important to me. That is why I must win. Our fight is bigger than the two of us because we carry more into the ring than most other fighters.

``We carry the heart and soul of our people, and the pride and honor of our nations. The pressure on us is enormous, which is why I will be on the attack the second I hear the bell for round one. There can only be one winner and that winner must be me, and it will be me.''

Pacquiao is 42-3-2 with 33 knockouts. Morales, 30, of Tijuana, Mexico, is 48-4 with 34 knockouts. Both fighters weighed in at 129 pounds Friday, one pound under the limit.

Morales quickly discovers his flaw

Erik Morales, up until two years ago, was sailing along in fine fashion. He was 47-1 with 34 knockouts, winner of world titles in three weight classes and a resident in everyone's top 10 pound-for-pound poll. In some, he was in the top 5.

He has gone 1-3 since and no longer is considered a top 10 pound-for- pound fighter. The decline started with a decision loss to his hated rival Marco Antonio Barrera in their rubber match two years ago this month. Morales rebounded from that and won a decision over Manny Pacquiao, but then Morales moved up to lightweight for one fight and lost a decision to solid, yet unheralded, Zahir Raheem.

And in Morales' last fight, in January, he was taken apart by Pacquiao and stopped in the 10thround in January at Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas.

Morales and Pacquiao will get it on a thirdtime tonight in the super featherweight main event at Thomas & Mack. Morales, of Tijuana, is fully aware that another loss will make it nearly impossible for him to regain his status as a top-level fighter.

``It's the biggest fight of my career for a lot of reasons,'' said Morales, 30. ``I have not done well my last few fights and I need to prove to a lot of people that I still belong at the elite level of the sport.''

Morales believes he will be able to accomplish his goal for two reasons: He has undergone personal velocity training the past two months, and he brought his father Jose back into his corner as trainer. He fired Jose Morales after his lackluster performance against Raheem in September 2005 at Staples Center.

Although Morales always has made weight in every division in which he has fought, he always has had difficulty doing so. Making the 130-pound super featherweight limit for his rematch with Pacquiao 10 months ago was a more arduous task than usual.

And it showed in the fight.

``I was doing fine in the first five rounds, but then I got tired and my legs were gone,'' Morales said recently from his training camp in the Otomi Mountains north of Mexico City.

``If you see the fight, you see that my legs were gone after six rounds and that I fought the last four rounds on heart alone, looking to land one big punch.

``But I never did.''

Enter personal velocity training, which is designed to boost muscle and joint strength as well as speed and stamina. It's also supposed to improve one's balance, agility, flexibility and power.

``It has been a real eye-opener for me,'' Morales said. ``They have done some things that have really rejuvenated my body, from healing some old injuries to getting me in the shape that I need be in to get ready for a fight and not worry about the weight.

``When I won my first title at 21 all I needed was six weeks to get ready. But now at 30 I know that it takes more time for me to get ready and it (personal velocity) is something that I need to do to stay at the top level of competition.''

Bob Arum, who promotes Morales, raves about personal velocity. He has put two of his other fighters -- Jose Luis Castillo and Miguel Cotto -- on it. He said that it helps a fighter lose weight properly instead of losing it in a way that causes loss of muscle, which is what happens when one starves oneself.

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With a victory over Erik Morales tonight, Manny Pacquiao could stake his claim as the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world.

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