LAST week, I finally won one of those in-flight games of Cebu Pacific Air.
And I did it using the trait that will prove to be the telling factor in the Pacquiao-Barrera fight.
Nah, its not Manny?s ballad-belting abilities. I was talking about his hand speed.
My rather opulent seatmate had proceeded to commandeer our common armrest, and so I was feeling particularly covetous. I convinced myself there was no better way to assuage my feelings of loss than to win something. To acquire something.
So when a lovely voice announced that they were starting the ?show-me? game, I tensed up and proceeded to rummage through my stuff, trying to anticipate what they would be looking for.
As luck would have it, it was a boarding pass, which I happened to be clutching at that very moment, and so my right hand flew up in the air like gravity never existed.
Of course, your trusty boxing columnist wouldn?t be your trusty boxing columnist if I didn?t have some spunk in me. And so I also took this opportunity to dislodge my seatmate?s elbow using my left arm, all in one swift, fluid combination.
Oscar de la Hoya would have been proud.
Not only did I win a prize, I also reclaimed my elbow space. Hooray!
My seatmate was unimpressed. He gave me a bored look, stood up and excused himself to go to the john. In the process, he squashed me like a bug. So much for my moral victory.
Of course, in retrospect, I must confess that my so-called hand speed probably had nothing to do to it. Too bad for the other passengers, the pretty flight steward, who had been tasked to judge the winner, was standing just right next to me and saw me first. Hehehe!
NEED FOR SPEED. Despite what has been preached, all men are not created equal. Especially in boxing. Superior hand speed is a trait not all boxers possess, but it is a trait to die for.
It allows you to get away with a lot of things. Roy Jones did many things wrong. He kept his left hand way down low. Hell, he didn?t even bother to cover up.
Didn?t matter. In his prime, he was just too fast that he couldn?t care less if you started punching first, because when he wanted to, he always landed first.
Ditto with Muhammad Ali. He kept his hands below his waist but he was usually much quicker than his opponent and that?s what allowed him to float like a butterfly and sting like a bee.
Manny Pacquiao isn?t the most fundamentally sound fighter out there. But his punches are quick and fast, which forces opponents to be continuously on the defensive end.
Barrera will find out that even if he has the perfect game plan to thwart Manny?s style, he may not be fast enough to execute it properly or prevent Manny from doing what he wants to do. That will be the big difference.
WINNING LEDGER. Score another one for the Last Round, which correctly predicted that Kelly ?The Ghost? Pavlik would be the one to end undefeated Jermain Taylor?s reign as middleweight champion.
Just as I had hoped, Pavlik?s resiliency and ability to take a punch proved to be a huge factor. Scrambling on all fours in the second round, he staged an impressive comeback and his superior power eventually wore down Taylor. I would love to see him fight the winner of Joe Calzaghe?Mikkel Kessler at super-middleweight next.
LAST ROUND. It?s on Councilor Jack Jakosalem who recently celebrated his birthday. Jack loves to pump my liver full of Scotch whisky every time he sees me. He?s the consummate last rounder. Cheers Jack!
