FanHouse BobArum

Elie Seckbach, the Embedded Correspondent, brings his exclusive video reporting to FanHouse. Check back regularly for more videos.

Manny Pacquiao and Ricky Hatton are two of the biggest names in boxing, and both are getting ready for their May 2 title bout. In this video we hang out on the red carpet in Hollywood, where the two boxings stars met to promote their upcoming clash. In this exclusive video hear from Manny (a Scotsman at heart) and Ricky, trainers Freddie Roach and Floyd Mayweather (who has more ryhming skills than 50 Cent), as well as Freddie's celebrity friends, including Oscar nominee Mickey Rourke (above) and action hero Mark Wahlberg.

Check out the video after the jump.

In news that should come as a surprise to absolutely no one, the Manny Pacquiao vs. Ricky Hatton fight is back on, with two of the best and most popular boxers in the world ready to meet in the ring on May 2 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

Hatton and Pacquiao had both indicated this week that the fight was off because they couldn't agree on a split of the revenue, but as we noted on Wednesday, Pacquiao vs. Hatton was just too big to fail.

The most popular fighter in America, Oscar De La Hoya, will step into the ring on Saturday night in Las Vegas. But he'll be taking on an opponent who is far more popular in his own country than De La Hoya is in the United States.

That opponent, Manny Pacquiao, is so popular in the Philippines that the country will practically shut down to watch the fight on Saturday night. Today I asked Pacquiao's promoter, Bob Arum, to put Pacquiao's popularity in his own country in context.

"When you promote Manny Pacquiao, it comes with a tremendous responsibility because an entire nation -- a nation of 90 million people -- is focusing on his every move, and anything that happens to him," Arum said. "It is the most important topic of conversation in the Philippines. The highest elected officials are fixated on Manny and on this fight."

Manny Pacquiao is the world's best boxer, but from the looks of the crowd at his fight Saturday night, the American public hasn't fully embraced him. The Mandalay Bay failed to sell out, with a rather paltry crowd of 8,362.

So what was the problem? Pacquiao's promoter, Bob Arum, says he knows who's to blame:

"There's one guy you can blame, and that's George Bush," Arum said. "With gasoline prices the way they are, people just can't afford to come in from California."

Arum wasn't done there; he's also quoted as saying, "I don't care if it's Obama or McCain. We want a change and we're going to get a change. These eight years have been the worst eight years that I can remember in the United States."

So if President Bush has now lost the support of rich white men like Arum, who exactly makes up the 25% or so of the country who still like him?