Pacquiao focused on toppling Mayweather

HOLLYWOOD—Everytime he runs, trains and spars, Manny Pacquiao has Floyd Mayweather Jr. on his mind.

It’s the reason why Pacquiao ignores pain and fatigue and draws from his inner reserves whenever he feels like giving up on his quest for the unified world welterweight crown.

“What I always do is focus on Mayweather,” said Pacquiao in Filipino Saturday. “I must beat him.”

And it certainly helps that the image of the unbeaten American is embossed on the speedball Pacquiao has been pounding daily at Wild Card Gym here.

Pacquiao reached the height of preparations for Mayweather when he sparred for 12 rounds at Wild Card Gym for the first time in the course of his training for the May 2 showdown at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

“It (sparring) went well,” Pacquiao told Manila-based sportswriters before heading to Nat’s Thai Food, a few steps away from Freddie Roach’s famed gym. “It was beautiful.”

He said Roach was very happy with the 12-round sparring session against two spar mates.

“From the first round to the 12th, there was no slowdown,” said Pacquiao. “What I did in the first and second rounds, I also did in the 11th and 12th.

“I went all-out,” added Pacquiao, who displayed his readiness to tangle with Mayweather by flexing the muscles on his left arm.

“It’s like steel,” one sportswriter said after touching and measuring Pacquiao’s flexed biceps.

Pacquiao smiled, posed for pictures and proceeded to join his father, Rosalio, brothers Roel and Bobby, and other relatives at the reserved tables for a late lunch at past 4 p.m. here.

The arrival of his mother, Dionisia, and Rosalio is expected to further boost Pacquiao’s morale. His wife, Jinkee, and their five children arrived earlier in this glitzy hub of the film industry to lend support.

After Pacquiao ran up and down Griffith Park through the steeper Bronson Canyon Friday morning, assistant trainer Buboy Fernandez declared that the eight-division world champion has reached peak form.

Fernandez cited as proof the nearly identical times (54 minutes) Pacquiao posted in circling Griffith by way of the observatory and Dante’s Peak and the circuitous Bronson route.

With two weeks to go before the megabuck bout, however, Pacquiao must slow down a bit to avoid overtraining.

To this end, Roach has instructed strength and conditioning coach Justin Fortune to closely monitor Pacquiao’s activities outside the gym.

Pacquiao will take his usual break from training Sunday by attending service and spending time with his family and siblings. He will also graced the weight-loss contest he sponsored for Team Pacquiao members and supporters in the evening.

He’ll enter the final phase of training on Monday and, on Tuesday, he’ll undergo another 12-round sparring session before tapering down for the colossal battle projected to generate revenues between $300 and 400 million.

For more updates on Pacquiao-Mayweather “Fight of the Century,” visit The Pacquiao Files.