Manny’s my guy, says Kobe Bryant

Photo by AP

MANILA—Still, Kobe Bryant answered it, to the delight of an obviously biased crowd of journalists.

In a fight between Manny Pacquiao and undefeated American Floyd Mayweather, the Black Mamba will root for the Pacman.

“Manny’s my guy,” said Bryant during a press conference for the Nike Kobe Manila Tour 2011 at the Manila Peninsula.

“I love his tenacity, I love everything about him. Manny’s a friend.”

When Kobe also picked Pacquiao during the Saranggani congressman’s bout with Miguel Cotto in 2009, he said: “[T]hat’s not even a question. Manny Pacquiao all the way.”

Pacquiao, who won that bout to annex a historic seventh weight crown, is slated to face Mexican Juan Manuel Marquez in November.

Mayweather, on the other hand, is set to fight Victor Ortiz in September.

Negotiations for a Pacquiao-Mayweather bout—possibly the highest-grossing match in boxing history—collapsed several times before due to differences in drug-testing protocols.

Pacquiao adheres to the system already in place in boxing while Mayweather wants strict Olympic-style tests.

Pacquiao and Bryant are both Nike endorsers and have appeared in a commercial together.