REMEMBER the opening scenes of 1986’s “Top Gun”? An F-14 fighter pilot with the call name “Cougar” gets spooked by a close encounter with a Russian MiG, decides he’s lost the edge and turns in his wings. By doing so, he relinquishes his opportunity for advanced fighter training, which opens the door for “Maverick” (Tom Cruise) to find out whether he really is, as he believes, the best of the best.
A comparable situation cropped up in boxing a couple of weeks ago, when the fighter widely regarded as the finest practitioner of the pugilistic arts, WBC welterweight champion Floyd Mayweather Jr., announced he was retiring at the not-so-advanced age of 31.
With Mayweather’s abdication, the guy who was No. 2 on most people’s pound-for-pound lists, Manny Pacquiao, presumably moves up. The Filipino standout, who holds the WBC super featherweight championship, has become his sport’s Maverick, sliding into the No. 1 slot.
It’s a natural story line, except that Pacquiao (46-3-1, 35 KOs), who challenges WBC lightweight titlist David Diaz (34-1-1, 17 KOs) in the HBO pay-per-view main event Saturday night at Las Vegas’ Mandalay Bay, doesn’t have Maverick’s trademark cockiness.
“I do not want to compare my abilities to other boxers,” Pacquiao said when asked whether he had supplanted Mayweather as boxing’s top gun. “My goal is just to give a good fight, every fight.”
Against Diaz, a 1996 U.S. Olympian from Chicago with a reputation for toughness, an
entertaining scrap almost is guaranteed, for however long the scheduled 12-rounder lasts. But what should be of primary interest to fight fans is whether Pacquiao, 29, who began his professional career as a 107-pounder in 1995, literally is getting too big for his britches, all attempts at modesty aside.
In going after Diaz’ 135-pound crown, the 5-6 1/2 Pacquiao is trying to become the first Asian-born fighter to have held titles in four separate weight classes.
“To put my name in boxing history is something that is very important to me and to my country,” Pacquiao said with justifiable pride.
But even if he gets past Diaz, how much higher can Pacquiao – a brawling southpaw blessed with extraordinary speed and power – go before he tops out? It has been speculated that he could continue to move up to junior welterweight (140 pounds) and possibly even
welterweight (147). He’s been mentioned as a possible opponent for Oscar De La Hoya’s farewell bout on Dec. 6. De La Hoya is a junior middleweight (154) and probably is incapable of going any lower than welterweight.
Hey, as skilled as Pacquiao is, adding 40 pounds to that body isn’t quite the same as a chiseled cruiserweight going through the buffet line a few
too many times on his way to
becoming a love-handled heavyweight.
But Pacquiao, who acknowledges ballooning up to 150 pounds or so when not in training, professes to be confident that his increasing heft won’t prove a hindrance.
“I am very comfortable at this weight,” he said of his impending debut as a lightweight. “I feel stronger. But my focus in training is to maintain my speed.”
Yorgey off the shelf A legal dispute that has kept Harry Joe Yorgey (20-0-1, 9 KOs) on the shelf all of this year has been resolved, opening the door for the popular junior middleweight prospect from Bridgeport to fight Jason Le Houllier (20-0-1, 8 KOs) for the vacant NABA 154-pound title on Aug. 22 in Nashville, Tenn.,
on ESPN2.
Yorgey was to have fought Le Houllier on March 7 in Mashantucket, Conn., but manager Jimmy Deoria and adviser Don
Elbaum objected to his signing a promotional agreement with Banner Promotions president Art Pelullo. They petitioned the Pennsylvania State Athletic Commission to declare that Yorgey be enjoined from fighting for Pelullo.
The PSAC ruled in favor of Yorgey and Pelullo on Friday.
Punch lines Controversy? What controversy? Referee Randy Phillips merely delayed the inevitable when he awarded heavyweight Chris Arreola (24-0, 21 KOs) a disqualification victory over Chazz Witherspoon (23-1, 15 KOs) at the end of the third round Saturday night in Memphis. Sure, ‘Spoon’s corner team entered the ring early, but he went down twice in the third round and was a good bet to be stopped had the bout continued. But don’t be surprised if the second cousin of two-time former heavyweight champ Tim Witherspoon regroups and comes back strong . . . WBC/WBO middleweight champion Kelly Pavlik is the true king of the 160-pounders, but German-based Armenian Arthur Abraham (27-0, 22 KOs), the IBF
titlist, could pose a reasonable threat to “The Ghost” if his fourth-round knockout of
Edison Miranda (30-3, 26 KOs) Saturday in Hollywood, Fla., is any indication . . . Props to Philly heavyweight Eddie Chambers (31-1, 17 KOs) for bouncing back from the first loss of his career with Friday’s sixth-round knockout of Raphael Butler (31-5, 24 KOs) in the Cayman Islands . . . The main event of UFC 86 July 5 in Las Vegas should be a good one, as light-heavyweight champ Quinton “Rampage” Jackson defends his title against the capable Forrest Griffin. *
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