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| Behind the Scenes with Ivy Visitacion |
We watched the coverage of the “Fight of the Century” inside the posh and elegant grand ballroom of Marco Polo Hotel in Davao City Sunday. Our entire group was composed of the Visitacion family of Bacolod, who attended the wedding of a family member at the same venue the night before, and the four tall Australian ‘ninongs' (godfathers), who came from Perth, Australia, to be principal sponsors of John Paul and Chloe Visitacion's wedding Saturday.
Everyone was a bit woozy from staying up late the previous night, but early the next morning, we all were present at the hotel dining room to feast on the sumptuous breakfast buffet which was so delicious.
At eight o'clock, people began arriving at the venue to make sure they had the best seats. Soon, the entire ballroom was fully packed, wall to wall, with Davao's sports enthusiasts, eager to see their champion, Manny, clobber Floyd Mayweather Jr. The newlyweds received a lot of ribbing for joining us that early in the morning, but both said nothing could keep them from watching the fight.
After watching the undercards slug it out, we were eager and ready for the main event. Thunderous applause and ear-splitting cheers could be heard as soon as Manny made his entrance, and boos and hisses filled the hall when Mayweather appeared. The noise grew even louder as the fight began until you could see some people jump up and down whenever Manny landed a blow on his opponent while the crowd went wild.
It was a great fight no matter what some critics said. Manny fought valiantly and he gave it his all. Floyd was the “running and hugging man” all throughout. (Is this man a champion?). When the result was announced, the boos were so loud you could hear it outside the hotel. What a disappointing outcome. We really thought Manny had won.
That evening, the entire group went to Jack's Ridge for dinner under the stars. Our Aussie guest, Paul Beacham, said he was really disgusted with HBO host Max Kellerman, who was so biased and patronizing while interviewing Manny after the fight. Paul said this type of interview would never happen in Australia.
How proud we are of our hero, Manny Pacquiao. He is truly admired for being the champion and the gentleman that he is.*
