Days before Manny Pacquiao tastes the mysterious menu named Jorge Solis, some concerned parties cannot help to air their apprehensions.

They are wary of Solis’ record and Manny’s abbreviated training regimen.  The numbers of Solis are impressive however you criticize his opponents.  Even a level-headed boxing guru knows that it is not easy to dispose of more than 30 mediocre opponents.  To see a boxer with that record, in all honesty, it’s not very hard to be impressed.

The fighter in Solis is apparently tough, learned and strong.  With no loss to blemish his record, one would understand why some Pacquiao fans are worried.

Their worry is even aggravated by the kind of seriousness that Manny seems to show over the coming bout.  They see a Manny Pacquiao who seems to take Solis lightly.

It should be noted, however, that Pacquiao knows the stakes heavily lined for this fight.  He knows that if he doesn’t perform to the people’s expectations, he might lose important votes for his congressional bid in General Santos City. 

He knows that if he loses to Solis, he will have to suffer the ignominy of losing to a lesser known boxer, much like what Barrera went through when he defeated the Baby-faced Assasin in the same place where he will meet Solis. 

He knows that history will repeat itself and this time, he might be the agonizing victim, not the glorified victor. 

He knows that a bad ending in the Solis fight will decrease his stock as a fighter and will probably lose not just glory but also money in his potential fights in the future.

With these things clearly etched in his mind, do you think Manny Pacquiao will prepare in the level of mediocrity and give Jorge Solis all that he painstakingly earned over a long period of time?