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THE BOOM WILL RISE AGAIN By Ed de la Vega, DDS PhilBoxing.com Tue, 25 Nov 2008  Los Angeles, CA: Now-a-days, it is not so easy to be a Filipino boxer. Not that it was easy before. Due to tremendous exposure brought about by the world wide media that generated the ?new found interest? in boxing, it?s just a tad more difficult during the past few years or so. And the unjustified expectations and nasty comments particularly from the so-called ?Monday morning quarterbacks? do not help either. The problem, if ever one can consider it as such, is that people took what Manny Pacquiao has done and set it as the bar of excellence. That in a way is bad or good, depending on one?s point of view. Pacquiao?s achievement is now the ?standard or the ultimate goal? if you may. No Filipino or Asian for that matter has reached the pinnacle he attained. For the good part, a goal has now been set for everyone to achieve and Pinoys have something to be proud of. But, the bad part is there is only one Manny Pacquiao. And, I dare say it would be a very long time before another Filipino can duplicate what the GenSan spitfire has done in boxing. One can only look at the past. At the rate the Pinoys are going, it will be 40 years at least. But I hope I am wrong. Gabriel ?Flash? Elorde was world champion in the 60?s and it took 40 years before Pacquiao came along. Before Elorde, the other most recognized worldwide was Pancho Villa. That was in the 20?s. Top photo: Blood flows from the cut under the right eye Bautista suffered during his fight with Heriberto Ruiz Saturday night at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. 
Bautista (R) lands his vaunted left against Ruiz Saturday night at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Now, what has all these things got to do with Rey ?BoomBoom? Bautista? Plenty, if I may say so. Due to Boom Boom?s modest successes in the past, people branded him as the ?next Pacquiao.? The expectations were perhaps too high. Of course the fans, the media and his promoters must share the blame on that. And, is a tremendous load to carry. Particularly for a young slugger like Bautista. Not that the poor guy isn?t trying. On the contrary, he is pouring his heart and soul to achieve what people fairly or unfairly stuck on his shoulders to carry. But as fate has it, he has yet to deliver to the level set by the others in the past. Now, is it fair to call him a ?bum? like some pea-brained critics did just because he was defeated last Saturday at Vegas? Of course not! As everyone saw, even with all the blood pouring down and covering his face, he never backed down. On the contrary, he kept of charging hoping that he can land one of his vaunted hay makers that put many others to the canvas before. For a young gladiator like Bautista, that indeed is enough for everyone to admire. It?s not fair either to ask him to retire after just two losses! Fans have the right to be critical. That for a fact is accepted. But there is a right and a wrong way to criticize. Particularly when it's directed to people who risk their life to entertain everyone, critics included. Certainly, calling Bautista a ?bum? after two losses is the wrong way. Or asking him to retire for even the very best like Pacquiao and de la Hoya have losses in their fight records. Ruthless criticisms will not achieve anything other than add to the misery of the loss. I for one believe that no one has the right to do so even from those who had been on top of the ring and had an experience on how it is to take those blows Bautista absorbed last Saturday night at the MGM. The same goes true of ?fans? who all of a sudden are now ?experts? of the sweet science. Being just a fan, does not qualify one to be a callous critic particularly if one is simply a ?Johnny-come-lately? in boxing. Besides, it is totally uncalled for to say it to a fighter who at age 22 has a still a long to go. So what is now next for Boom Boom? After a rest period to allow his cuts to heal BoomBoom should hit the gym again preferably in the US where he can get additional training to really put him in the class of the top super bantamweights. No offense to his present trainers who are good at their own right, but I feel a long stint with other trainers would probably help a lot. Exposing Bautista to a different setting and training style will undoubtedly he a huge plus for him. He could add the new experience to what he presently knows and that would make things better for him. With that, he could do well the next time around and raise the ?boom? again. Click here to view a list of other articles written by Ed de la Vega, DDS.  |
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