PACQUIAO IN THE FIGHT OF HIS LIFE
By Ronnie Nathanielsz
PhilBoxing.com
Sat, 06 Dec 2008
Filipino ring idol and national treasure Manny Pacquiao knows he is in the fight of his life against the bigger, taller ?Golden Boy? Oscar De La Hoya. But the young man who broke away from the bondage of his childhood poverty to carve a name for himself and to redeem a country?s reputation internationally isn?t awed by the odds.
Backed by the continuing confidence of his celebrated trainer, two-time ?Trainer of the Year? Freddie Roach and by far the most astute promoter in the fight business, Top Rank?s Bob Arum, Pacquiao steps into the ring at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas knowing he has beaten the odds before and is perfectly capable of doing it again.
With a nation united behind him out of gratitude for the respect he has earned for himself, his country and people through his incredible achievements in the ring and mindful of the power of prayer, Pacquiao is eager to prove that his fight against De La Hoya is not a mismatch as some critics have labeled it neither does a good big man beat a good little man, always.
He need not go as far back as David and Goliath to prove his point. All he has to do is listen to De La Hoya?s business partner, Bernard ?The Executioner? Hopkins who, despite picking De La Hoya to win for obvious reasons, referred to his own career in which he moved up 15 pounds to fight light heavyweight champion Antonio Tarver who was at his peak, but was still mauled by the much smaller Hopkins.
To Roach and Arum the axiom that ?speed kills? will come into play because Pacquiao?s blazing fists and his remarkable footwork give him an undoubted edge. Roach also claims that De La Hoya is ?weak-minded? while Pacquiao has a strong will.
But the telling factor which Roach intimated was a secret he discovered in the De La Hoya ?World Awaits? megabuck fight against Floyd Mayweather Jr concerned De La Hoya?s inability to throw his stinging left jab after the sixth round which in the end cost him the fight.
It seems that De La Hoya has problems with his rotator cuff in the left shoulder which he publicly mentioned after battering Ricardo Mayorga in six rounds. The use of acupuncture during training at his Big Bear camp nestled in the mountains of California and constant massage of his left shoulder provided an inkling of what may well be a problem.
Our review of some of De La Hoya?s fights through the years have shown occasions when he has, in between rounds, rested his left hand on the shoulder of his trainer Floyd Mayweather Sr. He clearly did that after the eighth round of the Hopkins fight and got knocked out in the ninth.
Pacquiao?s conditioning expert Alex Ariza said he watched De La Hoya run four or five laps around the UNLV campus oval and felt ?he didn?t look right? whatever that meant. On the other hand Pacquiao went thirteen laps and wasn?t even breathing heavily at the end of it. Ariza also points out that when a fighter loses weight like De La Hoya did coming down from 160 to 147, there is a danger of injury because of vascular dehydration which may well be the case..
Pacquiao has trained like never before for this fight because he knows what?s at stake? another megabuck fight against Britain ?s Ricky ?The Hitman? Hatton in England which could draw, according to Hatton?s father Ray Hatton, 100,000 fans who won?t need seats because they will be standing all throughout to watch what he predicted would be an explosive fight.
While Pacquiao is explosive, the sensible fight-plan according to Roach would be to keep his focus and execute what they have worked on as a team. Roach has not just peeved De La Hoya with his comments, he is also seeking to mislead him by saying that Pacquiao will go after him from the opening bell which, by all accounts he may not do if the idea is to tire out and frustrate the ageing ?Golden Boy? who is rusty and regarded as a part-time fighter with four fights in four years compared to Pacquiao?s four fights this year alone.
Roach wants Pacquiao to dart in and out, throw flurries to the body and get to De La Hoya from all angles. Wear him down and take him out. That may well be harder to do since Pacquiao has never fought someone as big as De La Hoya.
The use of eight ounce Cleto Reyes ?puncher?s gloves? may work both ways It could well give Pacquiao a sense of comfort and quickness while also turning the bigger De La Hoya?s shots into more telling blows.
Whatever the outcome, the fervent wish of an entire nation to whom Pacquiao is the only shining star in an environment of disappointment and deceit, is that even if he should lose he won?t get hurt. Pacquiao is indeed our only national treasure and over 80 million Filipinos, minus a handful of non-believers and skeptics in congress whose credibility is at the very least questionable, pray that he will triumph because his glory is shared by a grateful nation and people.
Top photo: Pacquiao flexes his muscles after making weight Friday at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. Photo by Dr Ed de la Vega.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Ronnie Nathanielsz.
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