By 

H. Bala “Me Too Can Read” (Carson – hey, we have an IKEA store! – CA USA) –

  

  

There’s a sort of revisionist history being invoked regarding the December 6, 2008 de la Hoya-Pacquiao fight. I remember that the prevailing pre-fight notion was that Oscar, the naturally bigger man, would simply walk down the smaller Pacquiao and overpower him. No one figured that de la Hoya would enter the ring so weight-drained, thereby costing him his biggest edge. Every casual boxing fan knows what happened next, how the Pacman dismantled the Golden Boy and did so effortlessly, highlighted by an unbelievable drubbing he gave Oscar in the seventh round. The ultimate humiliation came when Oscar’s corner retired him in between rounds eight and nine. Three memorable quotes come out of this whitewash of a bout: Pacquiao’s trainer Freddie Roach’s “He can’t handle your speed, son!”; HBO commentator Jim Lampley’s “Manny Pacquiao looks largely untouched… and he is gradually reconfiguring de la Hoya’s beautiful face!”; and commentator Larry Merchant’s “Death by a thousand left hands.”

So, today, critics and analysts tend to pooh-pooh Manny’s win over Oscar, labeling the Golden Boy as already “shopworn” at the time of this fight. Later, these cats would also degrade Manny’s 2nd round knockout of Ricky Hatton, saying that Hatton was past his prime and wasn’t really that good to begin with. What this suggests to me, instead, is that maybe, just maybe, Pacquaio is so spectacularly good that he makes his opponents look bad. The only two exceptions, really, have been Marquez and, in their first contest, Morales. Now that Manny’s beaten up powerhouse welterweight Miguel Cotto, the word circulating is that Cotto was already damaged goods, thanks to his earlier fight with Antonio Margarito. Whatever.

The de la Hoya-Pacquiao fight was one-sided from the get-go. Pacquiao’s speed is just unreal, and Oscar simply couldn’t catch up or time him. Oscar also couldn’t deal with Manny’s unorthodox in-and-out movement or the power in both hands. Manny made him look old and the rounds soon began to resemble a sparring session. As someone said, it was like “a mean little bully beating up a big bully.” There were times when only Oscar’s pride kept him from going down. This fight wasn’t as gripping or competitive as Manny’s earlier run-ins with Barrera, Morales, and Marquez, but this was the one which I believe vaulted Manny to superstar status and gave him an even broader crossover appeal. I take one thing back: Manny’s rumbles with Barrera were pretty much one-sided as well.

He’s such a remarkable fighter, Manny Pacquiao. And I say “fighter,” and not “boxer” – even though he’s developed into a very good boxer – because this guy simply loves to fight. He’s relentless, a two-fisted whirling dervish in the squared circle. And he’s always, always looking for the knockout. It blows my mind away when I think of his starting out fighting at 106 pounds and now he’s competing and crunching the best fighters at the junior-welter and welterweight divisions. Blame Erik Morales who, after outpointing the Filipino slugger, dismissed him as someone who, if not for his dynamite left hand, would only be an ordinary fighter. This apparently motivated trainer Freddie Roach to remake his guy into a complete pugilist, along the way converting his ordinary right hand into a powerful weapon almost as potent as his vaunted left. The right hand is so good now that it even has a nickname (“The Manila Ice”). Pacquiao then went on to beat the crapcakes out of Morales, not once but two times. Sometimes, you just got to keep your mouth shut.

Another thing that’s mind-boggling is how well the guy handles distractions. If you’ve checked out HBO’s 24/7 shows, then you know just how crazy Pacquiao’s life is, in and out of the ring. And he holds up so well to pressure. In fact, he seems to thrive in it and seems to really relish representing his country. When he’s not boxing, he’s either starring in movies, recording CDs, or running for office in his native Philippines, where he is revered as an icon. And it doesn’t hurt his Q-rating that Manny Pacquiao is also humble, unassuming, and soft-spoken.

Oscar de la Hoya, who was already in the twilight of his very good career, later admitted that he didn’t have it anymore. But the Golden Boy is already a shoe-in for Canastota, even though he’s fallen short of beating the likes of Shane Mosley, Bernard Hopkins, and, now, Pacquiao. You have to appreciate Oscar for not having ducked anyone. So is his fight with the Pacman worth watching? It depends. If you’re a fan of Manny, then you’re in for eight breathtaking rounds and a reaffirmation of his greatness. If you’re a fan of de la Hoya, this is really bittersweet stuff. Me, I’m a fan of both guys, so I saw this thing with mixed feelings. But it’s time for Oscar to hang up his gloves.

For Manny Pacquiao, though, the sky’s still the limit. After embarrassing Oscar, he would later demolish Hatton and…

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