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Philippines, 01 May 2024 |
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PACQUIAO THE GREAT! By Rhony Laigo PhilBoxing.com Thu, 11 Dec 2008  HIS body is frail, his hands shake. He stammers so much that when he speaks, sometimes it?s difficult to understand what he?s saying. Indeed, in the last few months, many scribes didn?t even listen to what he was trying to explain ? this writer among them ? that Manny Pacquiao?s speed and power would beat De La Hoya?s size and experience hands down. But Freddie Roach proved us wrong. As a Filipino, naturally I was rooting for Manny Pacquiao. But the Tale of the Tape was far more convincing that Freddie?s words. We, writers, have that tendency. Actually, as a profession, we rely on facts, figures ? history. Claims have to be verified. In this case, it had to be justified. Of course, there is always what we call an unprecedented feat. In the case of Pacquiao ? it is a first for a Filipino, or an Asian, which he seems to be doing quite often lately. And this is what we, reporters, call news. Oops. Wasn?t this our job in the first place? ?It was a vindication on my part,? Roach told us members of the media at the post-fight conference. Aside from the Team Pacquiao camp, only fans of Pacquiao ? who are at least 90 million the last count ? believed that he could beat De La Hoya. Even his promoter, Bob Arum of Top Rank International, needed some convincing by Roach. To back up this claim ? not that any of us are now trying to make an excuse ? several boxing aficionados questioned why the fight had to take place when it was totally a mismatch. It was a mismatch, alright, and as it turned out it wasn?t Pacquiao who was mismatched. Even the legendary Angelo Dundee, who trained the great Muhammad Ali, admitted afterwards that ?What can I do, but suck it up. I was dead wrong.? Despite all the hype, De La Hoya was just beside himself. The Golden Boy turned purple after only four rounds. Some columnists said he was one step slower. From my vantage point (which by way was in the nosebleed, no thanks to the hundreds of mainstream reporters who came to cover the event and occupied what used to be our ringside seats), I saw a De La Hoya who just stood there and became a punching bag and who needed the ropes to keep him vertical. Boxing is a sport where fighters are matched based on their weight, strength and record. Even same weight categories have different classes ? Class A and B fighters ? because of several factors, among them their marketability, which is why crowd-drawing and big-money non-title fights exist. This is what happened on Saturday, when De La Hoya was expected to receive at least $20 million and Pacquiao earning $11 upwards ? big money compared to several title fights. I probably don?t have anything more to tell you on how Pacquiao humiliated Oscar De La Hoya which probably sent the Golden Boy to his retirement, but this is the challenge scribes face everyday. For all it?s worth, I?ll try. First, to make this a little more entertaining, I?d start with the celebrities that came to the MGM Grand Garden to watch a fellow star. I was referring to De La Hoya, the Olympic Gold medalist representing the U.S., ergo, his name Golden Boy. This is because of all the fights that Pacquiao was in I never heard their presence announced before, except perhaps for Mike Tyson who is, by the way, a big fan of Pacquiao. However, I might add that if not for Pacquiao?s four free tickets he gave to Tyson, the former heavyweight champion may not have been a spectator in the ringside. But then again, Iron Mike always finds a way to be in the limelight, good or bad. Well?mostly bad. The list of celebrities included Academy Award-winner Russell Crowe; ?bootylicious? Jennifer Lopez and husband Marc Anthony; desperate housewife Eva Longoria, rappers Usher and Will.i.am; basketball Hall of Famers Charles Barkley and Earving ?Magic? Johnson and fellow cage star Reggie Miller; boxing legends Sugar Ray Leonard and Thomas Hearns; other fighters Shane Mosley, Bernard Hopkins, Antonio Margarito, Juan Manuel Marquez; and possibly, the next opponent for Pacquaio, Ricky ?The Hitman? Hatton of Manchester, England. By the way, former presidential candidate and New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson was also there, who is a Mexican-American, just like De La Hoya. All of them were witnesses to the 35-year-old Golden Boy?s fall from grace, who might have held on too long to the thought that he still had it. No, wait. It was more personal for De La Hoya, who wanted to punish Pacquiao for ?reneging? on an agreement to fight under Golden Boy Promotions and make money out of the 29-year-old Filipino pride who is today?s pound-for-pound king of boxing. De La Hoya did so ? at his own expense. ?You?re still my idol,? Pacquiao told to De La Hoya right after the latter came to meet him in the middle of the ring after his corner stopped the fight. Though dejected, De La Hoya responded in a humble fashion: ?No, you?re my idol.? The opponent who had an axe to grind against Pacquaio, is Pacman?s newest fan. When he first beat Marco Antonio Barrera in San Antonio, Texas, Pacquiao could only muster three tables of journalists, friends and some consulate staff at a turo-turo Filipino restaurant on Vermont in Los Angeles to celebrate with him. I was one of them. In his first press conference in a downtown Los Angeles hotel to promote his fight with Juan Manuel Marquez, he was so happy when he saw us arrive ? the same faces he dined with at the same restaurant ? because he thought no Filipino reporters would come to interview him and ask questions. That was four years ago. Now, TV, radio, sportscasters and all other mainstream reporters can pronounce his name right. More important, they always include the phrase ?a fighter from the Philippines.? Not only do they know him now, they regard him as one of the best. For us Filipinos, he is the greatest. A national treasure who keeps elevating himself that there are not enough words to describe all the accolades he has accomplished. And he?s not even done yet. Personally, I feel so much more attached to the most personable, affable and likable tiny fighter that is Pacquiao, who has a heart so huge he always carries the whole Filipino nation in all his fights. To those who know me and those who have seen me, they know why I may be very close to Pacquiao ? many say that I look like him, that I look like I?m an old brother, a similarity Pacquiao doesn?t even know even if he sees me all the time when news conferences are held. Top photo: Pacquiao celebrates after Saturday's victory over De La Hoya at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. Photo by Dr Ed de la Vega / PhilBoxing.com. Rhony Laigo writes for Balita News Service. Click here to view a list of other articles written by Rhony Laigo.  |
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