HBO is ready to start the hype machine for the upcoming superfight between Filipino sensation Manny Pacquiao and British superstar Ricky ?Hitman? Hatton. Both fighters are very popular in their homelands and this fight will be a bout that the entire world will be watching.
After a victory over ?The Golden Boy? Oscar De La Hoya, Pacquiao has risen to another level and is seen as the heavy favorite to beat Hatton, and that might just be the best thing for ?The Hitman.? He was seen as a mediocrity before he beat the great fighter, Kostya Tszyu, and his only defeat came when he moved away from the 140 pound division to take on a bigger man in Floyd Mayweather, JR. The close shave with Luis Collazo should have been a message to Team Hatton that he did not belong above his comfortable weight.
So, he?s back at 140 and in his last fight stopped Paulie Malignaggi, a feat that Miguel Cotto failed to do. With Floyd Mayweather, SR., in his corner, he has a new confidence and did look good in his last showing. There are some things that have been so ingrained in him and are part of his natural character that will probably never change like his propensity to foolishly brawl at times, but there are slight changes that Mayweather, SR., has added to the Hatton game that should come into play in this superfight.
Manny Pacquiao has looked tremendous in his last several outings. He comes into the fight in superb condition, has very quick hands and very powerful punches and probably hasn?t been any more confident then he is now. He did the unthinkable and stopped Oscar De La Hoya. Although De La Hoya was a shell of himself, the point still remains. He sent a message to the boxing world and ended the charade. De La Hoya?s manipulative promotional ways and selective matchmaking ended on that night when he misjudged the situation. He paid dearly for underestimating his opponent and for overestimating his remaining abilities.
What is also in the favor of Pacquiao is that the majority of the casual fans know Oscar De La Hoya and now know him and they could care less of the specifics of that match, only concerned with the outcome, a TKO win for the Pacman.
What you have to respect about Manny is his choice of opponents. He doesn?t back down and fights whomever is placed in front of him. He fought Juan Manuel Marquez and Marco Antonio Barrera twice, fought Erik Morales three times, and has cut through David Diaz and De La Hoya. He takes the toughest route and now signs on for what may just be his toughest opponent yet in Hatton.
What makes this fight so intriguing, outside of the styles seeming to mingle so well on paper, is that there are so many variables going into this one. Will Manny overlook Hatton or have a let down after the De La Hoya win? Will Hatton?s skin hold up against the ferocious punches of Pacquiao? Was the De La Hoya fight misleading and will Manny be exposed as a blown up super featherweight? Not only that, how will Manny cope with the power of Hatton? He is an underrated puncher.
Although I slightly favor Pacquiao to win this war, probably on cuts, I do not discount a shocking knockout win for Hatton. He is a rough and tumble boxer with power in both hands. This is a legitimate super fight.
Chris Arreola Soon to Be Exposed?
I was rather surprised to see Chris Arreola agree to step into the ring with 4-Time Heavyweight Title challenger, Jameel ?Big Time? McCline. Although others have dismissed McCline as a journeyman or a top 15 guy at best, I don?t necessarily agree. He has come within inches of heavyweight gold on two separate occasions, arguably beating both Chris Byrd (IBF Champ at the time) and Sam Peter (Interim WBC Champ). He may have defeated WBA Kingpin, Nikolay Valuev had his knee not given out, forcing a TKO loss. It just seems that this dark cloud hangs over the career of McCline, but sunny days are likely ahead.
Arreola has some of the elements that make a heavyweight champion but he also has some of the liabilities that make his chances of a title limited. The good is obviously the aggression and power. He is a fighter and likes to mix it up. With the caution that the Klitschko brothers exhibit, it?s nice to see a guy go in there and make things happen. Unfortunately, it looks like he has taken up the Riddick Bowe fitness plan and comes into his bouts flabby and out of shape. It nearly cost him his undefeated record against Travis Walker in his last outing.
Some have compared him to David Tua and Samuel Peter, two men that have had issues with weight but have done well due to durability and fighting spirit, but I find the two above mentioned heavyweights to be superior to Arreola. He is not the new David Tua or the new Sam Peter, he is the first Chris Arreola, and he is now taking on his biggest challenge on the undercard of Paul Williams? bout with Winky Wright on HBO?a great double header.
If you look at the losses on McCline?s record, you will see that his focus isn?t always there and he has stamina problems. In his first title shot, he lost to then WBO Title holder Wladimir Klitschko by TKO. His heart wasn?t in it. He was overwhelmed by the magnitude of the event and he seemed nearly out of gas when the opening bell rang. His defeat to Calvin Brock was debatable but it also showed the stamina problem. It reared its ugly head in the Sam Peter bout as well.
McCline?s stamina problem is Arreola?s best chance for success. They may be banking on taking the early rounds easy and forcing the action late in the fight, but Arreola hasn?t proven to be an effective fighter in the later rounds. He hasn?t had to show that, destroying much of his opposition early. Maybe they are counting on the streak of bad luck that McCline has had. He is right there at the point of victory, only to lose by a smidge.
Although McCline will be the underdog going into this fight, I am picking him by KO. Arreola bends down and has very little defense. The best punch in the arsenal for McCline is the uppercut with either hand and from all indications, Arreola is a sucker for it. The right uppercut put Sam Peter down and the left uppercut sent Calvin Brock to dreamland. He can punch and after watching the Walker fight, he has to be chomping at the bit to get in there before Arreola changes his mind.
With the heavyweight division still in shambles, McCline could maneuver himself into another title shot and although I?m against multiple, undeserved title opportunities such as the ones that Evander Holyfield gets upon demand, I?ll make an exception with McCline. He deserves a break after the road he?s been on. If he should knock Arreola out, and he should, I hope that he gets a crack at one of the Klitschko brothers or perhaps the winner of Nikolay Valuev-Ruslan Chagaev. If he can end this streak of bad luck against Arreola, he may just turn it around for good.
On a side note, another example of McCline?s bad luck will be on display should Wladimir Klitschko elect to face Arreola since a bout with David Haye has not worked out. If McCline?s history is any indication, this might be a safe bet.
The Sport of Boxing Rebounding?
It?s sort of silly to read the newspaper sports section and never see anything regarding boxing anywhere. When Mike Tyson, Muhammad Ali, or Joe Louis did anything of note, it?d be on the front page, but now boxing is all but lost and that lack of coverage has hurt the sport immensely. ABC?s Wide World of Sports isn?t carrying any boxing anymore and the USA Network seems to be content showing men rolling around with each other in speedos rather than a legitimate sport as they once did with Tuesday Night Fights. All is not lost boxing fans.
Recently, we have seen some great fights that have been aired free of charge (well, on HBO mostly, but that?s better than PPV) and there is a bright future. We have seen Shane Mosley return to the top of boxing, James Kirkland prove that he is a man to watch, Andre Berto go to war with Luis Collazo, Juan Manuel Marquez once again prove that he is one of the best in the game, and ESPN pick up some great fights for the fans as well, covering not only a great heavyweight showdown between Eddie Chambers and Sam Peter, but also a WBC Heavyweight Title fight between Vitali Klitschko and Juan Carlos Gomez. There is a steady stream of good boxing being put out there and the networks and promoters need to keep this going.
With the MMA burying boxing as the lead combat sport, pugilism had to come out swinging and it did, but there is still a long way to go. I don?t understand why the networks don?t pick up boxing anymore. I will use Nikolay Valuev as an example. Valuev, slow and plodding may not always be pretty to watch, but he has charisma and if marketed right, could bring in the masses. Even if he should lose, seeing a big guy get the stuffing beaten out of him would entertain the crowds.
I wish that the networks would bring some of these guys to prime time, and maybe that is in the cards judging by the recent output by HBO and ESPN. Let?s hope that ABC, NBC, FOX, and CBS follows suit.
