DavidSays

photo credit: joe cobilla

Pacquiao supreme test

By DAVID CASUCO

Editor, California Examiner

When Manny Pacquiao climb up the ring on December 6 to face Oscar dela Hoya in a welterweight non-title fight, he will need the whole Filipino nation to pray for his safety. The reason, of course, is that he will be up against somebody who could seriously hurt him. Even the staunch supporters of Pacquiao agree this fight could be an acid test for the pound-for-pound king. (photo credit: joe cobilla)

If the oddsmakers are right, the Golden Boy is expected to demolish the Pacman in no farther beyond the 7th round. Last week, the Vegas betting odds were pegged at -200 for Dela Hoya and +180 for Pacquiao. Meaning if you wager a dollar for Pacquiao and he wins, your bet will earn $1.80. That is the oddsmakers' realistic assessment of the fight -- a mismatch with the Pacman at the short end of the stick. Between the two boxers, there is a glaring disparity in height and in reach, in bulk and in weight. They are saying the wisdom of weight divisions in boxing has been set aside in this particular match.

Boxing purists are also saying the Dela Hoya-Pacquiao megabuck fight is more of a money grab. Dela Hoya and Pacquiao are expected to pocket fat purses, over and above a handsome share of the pay-per-view sales revenue.

Do the boxing aficionados care? Not at all. Even the cynics among us are sold to what the hype says -- a dream match. They see it as a once-in-a lifetime phenomenon, a collision between boxing's number one box office draw and a pound-for-pound hero, and a megabout pitting two iconic ring gladiators of our generation.

Even as the heavy favorite, the Golden Boy acknowledges the risk fighting the pesky Pacquiao. "There is a risk," he said, "his (Pacquiao) youth, and speed but I am ready for it." He said the playing field is just about even now with him coming down (in weight) and the Pacman going up. The fight, he said, now becomes mental. He was saying mental toughness will determine the result of the fight.

The great odds notwithstanding, the Pacman is definitely no pushover. According to Freddie Roach, Manny will beat Oscar because speed, and not size, will decide the outcome of this match. Roach said Manny's chances get better if the fight goes the distance because Oscar has the tendency to tire out in the latter rounds. Morevover, he said, Pacquiao handled his bigger sparring partners well at the Wild Card Gym. And that goes without saying, the Pacman can handle Dela Hoya as well.

Pacquiao definitely understands the magnitude of this fight. And he is determined to pull off this victory for legacy's sake. "This is my chance to have the name Manny Pacquiao known not only in the Philippines, but in all boxing," he said.

Another thing going for the Pacman -- and this is a big deal -- is that whenever he fights he fights for his country and his people. This gives him the extra motivation to do well inside the ring if only because over 91 million people back home want him to win again. So that there will be another feel-good victory parade in the streets of Manila again; so that his biggest fans in Malacanang will be happy again; so that the charitable institutions that he supports will have money again. With these over his shoulders, Pacquiao will surely do whatever it takes to win.
To the Pinoy boxing fans, their idol may be the underdog this time, but they are counting on what Pacquiao's big fighting heart can do in situations where the odds are against him. "We still believe Manny can win. He is young, he has power, he has speed, and he has a big fighting heart," said Alan Rayver Cruz, a big Pacquiao fan from of Rowland Heights, California.

And so the mantra of Pacquiao for this particular fight has been, "Speed makes a difference. I can handle his power. He cannot hurt me." This is what he always tells everybody in all his pre-fight interviews. It is easy enough for sportswriters to comprehend. They have seen how David Diaz turned out a bloody mess because he couldn't contain the quickness of the Pacman. They have seen how Pacquiao disposed of the Mexican boxing stars one after another by way of his vaunted speed.

The truth, however, is speed does not make Pacquiao an elusive target. If De la Hoya failed to land his vicious jabs in his match with Floyd Mayweather, it is because Mayweather was too talented and elusive a target. Pacquiao's fists are fast, but his swarming stance makes him an easy target for someone who is a ring savvy like the Golden Boy.

As the countdown to the Dela Hoya-Pacquiao tiff comes down to the last few days, some self-proclaimed boxing pundits are still whining about mismatch and money grab. What they fail to see and understand that this is a megabout, and this is what Vegas boxing is all about.

And for those are still not sure of what this boxing card really amounts to, they could be left in a lurch by now because the tickets to the fight set at the MGM Grand Garden Arena were sold out a couple of hours after it went on sale in September. Of course, there are tickets available in the Internet by some brokers trying to make some quick bucks. Check them out and be ready to be shocked by the princely sum they are asking. (davidlvnow@aol.com)