There won’t be any holding back when two Filipinos clash for the vacant WBO superflyweight title at the Forum in Inglewood, California, on Sunday morning (Manila time) as Donnie Nietes bids for his fourth crown in four divisions and Aston Palicte attempts to join the elite cast of reigning countrymen led by WBA welterweight ruler Sen. Manny Pacquiao.

Sen. Manny Pacquiao made his much-awaited stint in the seventh UNTV Cup as the Senate Defenders opened their title-retention bid with a 73-70 thriller over Philippine International Trading Corp. Global at the Smart Araneta Coliseum last Monday.

The Senate will conduct its own inquiry into the continued smuggling of billions of pesos worth of illegal drugs through the Bureau of Customs (BOC), which also prompted Sen. Manny Pacquiao to renew his call for the imposition of the death penalty on high-level drug traffickers.

On my way from a family reunion in Calgary to Kuala Lumpur to work the recent WBA welterweight title fight between defending champion Lucas Matthysse and Sen. Manny Pacquiao, I had a stopover in Vancouver to pick up the Philippine Airlines flight to Manila leading to another PAL flight to Malaysia.

Bob Arum’s visit to General Santos City last Friday was “brief and cordial” with nothing concrete coming out of a two-hour closed-door meeting at Manny Pacquiao’s sprawling mansion.