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Pacquiao vs Clottey
By Roy Luarca
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 03:03:00 03/11/2010
GRAPEVINE, TEXAS—For billionaire Jerry Jones, Manny Pacquiao is the money man of boxing.
This is the reason why the owner of the Dallas Cowboys and the $1.2 billion Cowboys Stadium is co-promoting The Event between Pacquiao and Joshua Clottey on March 13.
The 67-year-old Jones, who struck it rich in oil and gas exploration, is on target in his belief that any fight featuring the Fighter of the Decade will be saleable.
Bob Arum of Top Rank, which is co-promoting Pacquiao-Clottey, said that only 4,000 out of 45,000 tickets are left for Saturday’s fight.
Arum and Jones remained confident of a sellout due to the interest the fight has generated, not only among Filipino-Americans but Hispanics, Mexicans and Americans as well.
“It’s like a Super Bowl,” said Jones of his first major boxing promotion.
Jones, who drew 2,500 fans in his first fight promotion in 1984 in Little Rock, Arkansas, said he admires Pacquiao as a great athlete and a great person.
“The main reason that I wanted the Pacquiao-(Floyd) Mayweather (Jr.) fight was Manny,” said Jones of the botched negotiations between the current and former pound-for-pound kings. “He (Pacquiao) is the draw.
“And so certainly when that didn’t work I still had the interest of getting him here at all cost and whoever he fights,” added Jones.
This early, Pacquiao-Clottey is certain to break attendance records in Pacquiao’s previous fights in the United States, way over the 18,276 paying fans who watched Pacquiao-Erik Morales III in Las Vegas in 2006.
Source: sports.inquirer.net
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