The City of Baguio, which is located in the country of the Philippines, is a highly urbanized city located in northern Luzon. It sits at an altitude of approximately 1500 meters (5100 ft) in the Luzon tropical pine forests, which are conducive to the growth of mossy plants and orchids. Baguio City has become the center of business and commerce as well as the center of education in the entire Northern Luzon. Prior to October of 2009, that is how Baguio was known to the world. Now, it is best known as the training area for the best fighter in the world, Manny Pacquiao.
Baguio City was established by Americans in 1900 at the site of an Ibaloi village known as Kafagway. It was designated by the Philippine Commission as the Summer Capital of the Philippines on June 1, 1903. The name of the city is derived from the word bagiw, meaning 'moss', referring to the plants that grow in the vicinity. Team Pacquiao made it's first stamp on Baguio back in October of 2009, when Pacquiao and the rest of the team set up camp there to train for hist fight against Miguel Cotto. It was there when Team Pacquiao became known as one of the most controversial and yet exciting teams in all of boxing after a series of events occurred during the camp.
During preparation for that Cotto fight, there was the devastating hurricane that the team had to deal with. If that wasn't enough, Manny's butler...oops...I mean advisor, Michael Koncz, got bitch-slapped for trying to act like he was the boss. There were also a few other minor distractions, including swimming and basketball, despite the strict order from coach Roach, who proclaimed, "No more basketball!" Of course, that order was naturally followed with...what else...more basketball. There was chaos amongst chaos, but somehow, the Champ just did his thing. He listened to the best and real advisors around him, namely Freddie Roach (except for the basketball), Buboy Fernandez, Alex Ariza and other key members that have been there since the beginning. Despite the challenges of Baguio City, Manny Pacquiao showed up to the MGM in November 2009 and literally destroyed the much bigger and stronger fighter, which was a shock to most of the newer fans that started to follow him after the dismantling of Oscar Dela Hoya and the knockout heard around the world against Ricky Hatton.
So what the heck will happen in Baguio this year?
We are expecting nothing but the best possible training for Manny Pacquiao. I personally expect him to come in even better shape for Sugar Shane Mosley than he did against Antonio Margarito. What I do not know is what to expect from the craziness that will come out of the camp this year. I can tell you this, mpboxing.com will be bringing you all the exclusive behind the scenes action captured on video, and we will be sharing this video with one of the best boxing and mma sites out there, fighthype.com. Stay tuned and check out the video already posted on mpboxing.com and watch as some of the team members make their journey to Baguio.