Usap-usapan ngayon ang naging mga rebelasyon ni retired boxing referee Carlos Padilla tungkol umano sa ginawa niyang “pandaraya” noon sa isang boxing match ni Pambansang Kamao at dating Senador Manny Pacquiao, taong 2000.
Sa isinagawang panayam sa kaniya, inamin ni Padilla na tinulungan niya si Pacquiao upang matalo ang kalaban nitong si Australian fighter Nadal Hussein sa laban nito noon sa Antipolo City upang makarating si Manny sa World Boxing Championship.
Aniya, nanaig daw ang pagka-Pilipino niya nang mga sandaling iyon. Inilarawan din niya si Hussein bilang “dirty fighter”.
“So, you know the opponent, Hussein, or whatever his name was. He is taller, younger, stronger and a dirty fighter, managed by Jeff Fenech. So in the (4th round), Manny got knocked down, I thought he was going to get up, but his eyes were cross-eyed.”
“I am Filipino, and everybody watching the fight is Filipino, so I prolonged the count. I know how to do it,” buking ni Padilla.
“When he got up, I told him, ‘Hey, are you okay?’ Still prolonging the fight. ‘Are you okay?’ ‘Okay, fight.’”
Nang mga panahon na iyon ay hindi pa sikat at kinikilala si Manny bilang Pambansang Kamao.
“Because Manny was not like Manny is now, he wasn’t trained by Freddie Roach yet, he holds on for his dear life, and (Hussein) throws him, and he went down again. I said to the opponent, ‘Hey, you don’t do this.’ You know, I was prolonging the fight. ‘You don’t do that. Okay, judges, (point) deduction,’”
Nanalo si PacMan sa laban na iyon sa pamamagitan ng TKO o “Technical Knock Out”. Sa pagkakataong ito ay may inamin ulit si Padilla.
“Because he is shorter he headbutted the other guy and there is a cut, but I declared it a punch. If there is a headbutt you have to stop the fight and declare to the judges a point deduction, but I didn’t do that, meaning the fight could continue. (The cut) is not really big—but I never got the doctor to check it (because) I want to see it seriously.”
Umani naman ito ng iba’t ibang reaksiyon at komento mula sa mga netizen, na karamihan ay hindi nagustuhan ang mga sinabi nito.
“What a disgrace, if you say Manny was lost to Hussein via TKO, WBC should also change the winning of PacMan vs. Marquez in their first fight… lol…”
“Boxing Hall of Shame dapat sayo Lolo sir. Dapat alam mo po repercussions ng pinagsasabi mo. Ugaliin kasi inumin ang maintenance jusmiyo marimar.”
“Sinira mo lang sarili mo hahahaha.”
Si PacMan ay eight-division world boxing champion at isa sa mga itinuturing na greatest fighter sa kasaysayan ng boksing sa buong mundo. Wala pang tugon, reaksiyon, o pahayag si Manny tungkol dito.
Mapapanood ang panayam kay Padilla sa opisyal na YouTube channel ng World Boxing Council.
