Here in New Orleans, there is a little ditty by an old favorite band, the Meters, called ?They All Asked For You.? (this, at least, is the proper English title).
I went on down to the Audubon Zoo, and they all asked for you. The monkeys asked, the tigers asked, hey they even inquired about ya.
And while I?m paraphrasing lyrics here, there is no doubt that in the zoo that is professional boxing, there?s not a fighter this side of Oscar de la Hoya more in demand than one Manny Pacquiao. Pacquiao is in such demand that even de la Hoya himself is allowing the rumor of Oscar vs. Manny to circulate without much contradiction.
The idea of Oscar fighting Pacquiao is one of the silliest I?ve heard lately. The Golden Boy should pick on someone his own size, and besides, as Manny?s ?co-promoter? along with Top Rank, would it be in his client?s best interest to put the super featherweight in the ring with a Jr middleweight?
People line up to fight Oscar for the payday. An Oscar fight these days isn?t about winning championships, it is about cashing in on the spectacle. Not that there is anything wrong with that, but with Pacquiao, it?s about money, glory, and yes, championships.
How many champions would like to defend their titles against Manny Pacquiao? Let?s count them.
There is the current WBC super featherweight champion, Juan Manual Marquez. This fight makes sense, with the unfinished business of the draw these two fought. Their first encounter should have ended as a TKO 1 with Marquez going down three times in the round and getting his nose busted up in the process. For whatever reason, referee Joe Cortez allowed it to continue, and Marquez valiantly got himself back in the fight. They called it a draw, which I thought was generous to the Mexican boxer.
Pacquiao vs. Marquez II. Makes sense to me.
Not so fast, says Chicago?s David Diaz. ?What about me??
And why not? Top Rank seems to like this matchup. D. Diaz is the WBC lightweight champion, and the fight would be a competitive stepping-stone for Pacquiao should he decide to move up five pounds. One Diaz could help build up a superfight with another Diaz.
The other Diaz is Juan Diaz, the multi-belt lightweight champ from Houston, Texas. What a great fight this would be. I?m not sure who I?d pick to win. Manny has expressed an interest in this fight, but I wonder if he should let the buildup to this one marinate for a year or so. What?s the rush?
But wait. Before moving up to 135, there are plenty of champs at 130 wanting to challenge the challenger Pacquiao. Take Joan Guzman, for example, who is defending against Humberto Soto this Saturday night.
Guzman is an impressive undefeated boxer- 27-0 with 17 inside the distance- who has the hand speed and ring generalship to give Pacquiao some trouble. Nobody knows if the Pacman?s punch can dent Guzman?s whiskers or not. It would be an intriguing match.
Whereas Jorge Barrios gave Guzman all he could handle, Pacman has the stuff to take this one.
Another champ who?d love to challenge Pacquiao is the lesser-known Edwin Valero. Valero is one of the most impressive up and coming fighters in the game today. The 25 year old is undefeated in 22 fights and has knocked them all out. Valero vs. Pacquiao would be another impressive matchup of two excellent fighters.
Many a South American puncher has been punched out when stepping up to the A-list. I?d expect the same thing here. Pacquiao would knock Valero out.
The obstacle to Pacquiao vs. Guzman or Valero, of course, is cash. Even though the matchups would make great theatre for boxing fans, the paydays for Pacman would be less than he?d get for fighting Marquez or moving on up to lightweight.
My personal wish list for Pacman in Demand goes like this:
1. Let?s finish business against J.M. Marquez at 130. Marquez is no longer fighting in the shadows of Barrera or Morales and is the top Mexican fighter in the sport today. His aggressiveness against Marco Antonio Barrera has been rewarded with a stronger fan base. Marquez is one of the best pure boxers around and the rematch with Pacquiao would probably set a record for a PPV event for fighters under 135 pounds.
In a very exciting fight, I think Pacquiao would be the first man to defeat Marquez inside the distance.
2. After defeating Marquez, and if David D. is still one of the lightweight champs, MP vs. DD should be next. This would be a good fight because David is a brave warrior and it would be a slugfest. I?d pick Pacquiao by unanimous decision, or late round stoppage on cuts.
3. Last but not least in my little trilogy of picks, of course, would be Juan Diaz vs. Manny Pacquiao for the unified, universal, galactic lightweight championship of the world. (sorry, Ring Mag). This would be the 2008 Fight of the Year, taking place next fall. And what a tussle it would be!
My prediction for this fight?
Pain.
