
When Manny Pacquiao looked down at the crowd from Jerry Jones’s personal suite at Cowboys Stadium, it looked strangely reminiscent of a Roman Emperor in the ancient Coliseum.
The comparisons to the Roman Coliseum continued throughout Tuesday’s news conference to formally announce Pacquiao’s March 13 welterweight title bout against Joshua Clottey.
“It was always in my mind that right here on the star we could put a ring,” Jones said. “And the best fighters in the world could come out and fight and their fans support them.”
Deep-voiced ring announcer Michael Buffer likened Cowboys Stadium to the Roman Coliseum and compared the fighters to gladiators of a different era.
During the news conference that resembled a football pregame show, Pacquiao’s promoter Bob Arum suggested Cowboys Stadium could replace Madison Square Garden or Caesar’s Palace as the “new mecca of boxing.”