BRISBANE, Australia -- Manny Pacquiao has been urged not to make any more public appearances ahead of Sunday's WBO World Welterweight title fight amid rising safety fears.
The 38-year-old Filipino boxing superstar -- who is fighting Australian Jeff Horn at Suncorp Stadium -- landed in Brisbane on Saturday with a 150 person strong entourage. Pacquiao was scheduled to make an appearance Thursday in the CBD, but pulled out late after Queensland Police had instructed him not to attend.
Dean Lonergan of Duco Events, Horn's promoter, says that while his safety has not been compromised, police are preferring to err on the side of caution during his time in Australia.
"We have had concerns from Queensland Police all week about Manny doing any major promotional appearances," said Lonergan. "The last time we had Manny here was a couple of months ago. A couple of tweets went out and a couple of thousand people turned up which was quite hairy.
"For safety purposes, Manny won't be here today. We've taken that advice from Queensland Police."
Pacquiao was ambushed during a Brisbane promotional photo shoot which took place in April earlier this year, after many fans had discovered his whereabouts.
In 2016, Philippines President Benigno Aqunio III claimed Abu Sayyaf, an Islamist terrorist group, had designs on kidnapping and possibly assassinating Pacquiao.
With terror concerns rising throughout the world, Queensland Police will not take any chances over the coming days.
