The biggest fight I ever attended was at Mandalay Bay on March 17th of this year. Spending a week in Vegas with my girlfriend and several college friends, I decided to drag the girl along to the Juan Manuel Marquez-Marco Antonio Barrera showdown. What is remembered about that day is a Marquez victory that included a controversial slip and a ruling that Barrera had thrown a punch while Marquez was down.
Even more controversial than anything that happened in that fight, were the fights surrounding it. Demetrius Hopkins was dealt a fast paced boxing lesson by Steve Forbes that day but Forbes found himself at the bottom end seven and eight point score cards. The co-main event involved several fighters that have become even more pertinent to the game today than they were back in March.
Holding the WBO and IBA Super Bantamweight Belts, Champion Daniel Ponce De Leon, took on the legendary Gerry Penalosa. Ponce De Leon was known at the time as a knockout artist with some of the best pure power in the fight game and a little bit of finesse to learn. His only loss at that time (and now) came by decision against the freakishly large WBA Super Bantamweight Champion Celestino Caballero in 2005.
Penalosa’s claim to fame has come from being one of the originally Filipino beasts, a man that has been said to have traded plenty of knockdowns with Manny Pacquiao in sparring sessions. He has plenty of credentials in front of the cameras to back himself up. Penalosa strapped on his gloves 21 times between August of 1992 and August of 1998 without a single loss. Eight fights ago, Penalosa considered retiring and took nearly a two year layoff after losing to Masamori Tokuyama.
When Penalosa and Ponce De Leon got into the ring, it was instantly crystal clear that the fight was a proper mix of styles, albeit one that would make it difficult for the judges to choose a winner. Ponce De Leon threw the third highest number of punches in COMPUBOX history that day, but many of them looked and sounded like volume slaps rather than jarring shots.
Conversely, Penalosa would occasionally step forward and crack Ponce De Leon with a left hook. In fact, if the fight was scored based upon who could gain more “Ooooooohhhs” from those in attendance, Penalosa would have been the champion. This went on for twelve rounds, with Ponce De Leon’s rat tail whipping around like a half alive snake whenever Penalosa’s hook connected.
As a boxing fan, one should never be disappointed when it goes to the score cards because a judge can be pretty much score how they feel in the end. For the same reason, boxing is also not the best sport upon which to bet your mortgage (Note to reader: Don’t bet your mortgage). However, it’s such a tragedy to see a near draw labeled as instead a near shutout, such as the 120-108, 119-109 (twice) score sheet made in favor of Ponce De Leon for his wild punch fest. The fight deserved a second look, and a third look, and perhaps a fourth look.
Even a follow up glance is difficult to ask for in the boxing world, as most commissions are small factions of money men prepared to do whatever it takes to protect their own right to hit small promoters and fighters with sanctioning fees. Because of the nature of the game, both men took their own separate paths against difficult opponents. Ponce De Leon annihilated the formerly undefeated Rey “Boom Boom” Bautista with a crippling left hook with only thirty seconds left in the opening round. It was an impressive performance.
Oddly enough, Penalosa was on the same fight card facing WBO Bantamweight Champion Jhonny Gonzalez. He and his left hand had yet another good night against Gonzalez. While not with quite the same brutal efficiency as Ponce De Leon, Penalosa landed an internally crushing left hook to the body that left Gonzalez on the ground for the count at almost the end of the seventh round. The shot may as well have been heard around the world. Penalosa was behind on two of three score cards and tied on the third one when he won the fight, a minor comeback in major fashion.
Penalosa states that he wants to retire if he cannot get a rematch with Ponce De Leon. He can hardly be blamed for that sentiment after nearly counting himself out during his layoff from the sport. This is one loss on his ledger that can be avenged and would be against a fighter that is truly in his prime. By defeating Ponce De Leon, Penalosa forever ensures his own status as a legend.
Ponce De Leon owes it to himself, Penalosa and all boxing fans that saw the last fight in March to make it happen again. He calls himself “Fearless.” Now we get to know what percentage of that has to do with his actual personality and how much relies on a childish and aggressive nick name that describes very little of the man that stands near it. It is vital to his credibility as a champion and career legacy and would provide for an extremely entertaining fight between two people who many fans might never figure would have gotten this high on the totem pole. The questions that arise for Penalosa from a tactical angle is whether or not Penalosa will be able to land his left hook as effectively as he could in the first fight and whether or not he can take Ponce De Leon’s power. As for Ponce De Leon, he must box rather than trade in order to beat Penalosa. Both men are southpaws, thus neutralizing the advantage of either one from a position of familiarity.
The real bellyacher is whether or not the next set of scorecards will look any better than the first. Vegas has a way of creating and repeating bad decisions. A second chapter of poor scoring would leave a dark mark on what could have been a great modern rivalry in the sport of boxing. This time around, it would do Penalosa great comfort and security to do what has so far remained unaccomplished: Knockout Ponce De Leon. An emphatic victory cuts out the plot line that addresses whether or not he is deserving of victory.
Of course, this is mostly fantasy. The chances of Penalosa hurting Ponce De Leon as he did Gonzalez is about as likely as me stepping into the ring next week against Chris Arreola. One thing that can be done realistically is to make sure the fight is somewhere else, with different judges who have better track records. Chuck Giampa has made enough bad decisions in his career. Penalosa’s team should do everything in its power to make sure the three scoring the fight are different from the night that he likely should have won Super Bantamweight Championship.
That said, it’s time to see yet another great showdown in boxing. Ponce De Leon-Penalosa II is nearly slated, and wouldn’t we be lucky if it was already scheduled.
