Philippine Sports News and Updates

Manny Pacquiao will have some very special guests at ringside when he holds a media workout on Saturday at the Rex Wakee Salud Gym in Cebu City.

They are the 43 children from the Fun and Learn Achievers Academy in Cebu. Aged from nine to 10 years old, the children have long wanted to see Pacquiao in person.

They collected signatures on their request to be allowed in the gym on Saturday. Freddie Roach and Pacquiao said yes, said Jake Joson of Team Pacquiao.

This means that Pacquiao, probably for the first time in his career, will hold a workout with a big group of children, all die-hard fans of the boxer, watching, cheering him on.

They also want their pictures taken with Pacquiao. And this will take place after the workout. On Saturday, it's the media and these children who will be in there, said Joson.

Pacquiao holds closed-door workouts from Monday to Friday, and opens the door to fans on Saturdays. However, it's still a no-pass-no-entry status upon Roach's instructions.

Pacquiao, who went down with the flu over the weekend, was on the road and at the gym Tuesday. Last Sunday, he sparred six rounds, bringing the total to 31 rounds.

Pacquiao has been training for three weeks in Cebu while his Oct. 6 rival, Marco Antonio Barrera, is on his fifth week of high-altitude training in Guadalajara.

Barrera told eastsideboxing.com that his coming rematch with Pacquiao is more than just a personal battle.

I'm not just fighting for personal revenge, said the Mexican, who was knocked out by Pacquiao inside 11 rounds of their 2003 showdown in Texas.

I'm fighting for my country. I am training harder than I ever have. I want to beat Manny so badly I can taste it. This goes beyond being personal. For me, this fight is about restoring national pride, he vowed.

While Barrera is training in seclusion, Pacquiao, the People's Champion, is generous enough to have school kids, as young as his own, all over him.

Source: ABS-CBN News