I didn?t want to blurt it out but it?s stuck in my alleged cerebellum since he dazzled us in Houston.
The Juan Manuel Marquez who spanked Juan ?Baby Bull? Diaz, operating at top proficiency on all cylinders, was a fighting machine. On that night, had Manny Pacquiao been in the opposite corner Juan Ma would?ve pounded out his first victory in three tries against the Pinoy Idol.
That?s just my gut feeling because Juan Ma showed remarkable speed and precision with his punches and the fire in his belly was raging. No, that fire wasn?t from jalopeno peppers, it was caused by the mental agita that the loss and the draw to Megamanny have left behind.
So, considering that it?s a short time before the NCAA hoopsters convene for The Final Four, I?ve come up with two sets of my own Final Four, a quartet of fighters who can dethrone P4P Emperor Pacman and as many who cannot.
The names, please:
PACMAN?S FINAL FOUR WHO CAN DEFEAT HIM
1. JUAN MA: The diversionary tactic of calling out Pretty Boy Floyd was amusing but not in the least convincing. Marquez, and this says plenty about his competitive juices, is a man on a mission for the third bout against Pacquiao. I think JMM goes to sleep dreaming of beating Manny and wakes up the next day with the same thoughts. Is is it real or is it fantasy? Based on the Diaz performance, Juan Ma remains the Numero Uno Dnager Man for Da Pacman.
2. JOAN GUZMAN: This is really the fight that Coach Freddie Roach, in his wisdom, least wants to see happen. Coach knows too well that Guzman?s speedy style will be a nightmare for his man. I just don?t see how Megamanny would deal with the Dominican Dasher;?s hand and foot speed. Guzman needs a two or three fight building process to make this one worth Packy?s while. But a survey of the lightweight crop shows only Juan Ma as possibly being favored to beat Gooserun at 135 pounds.
3. RICKY HATTON: Is it possible? Yes it is but it?s also possible that Rush Limbaugh is going to be a dinner guest of the Obamas at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. Have some more strychnine, Loudmouth. He can chatter all he wants but Floyd Mayweather Sr. knows his man will run second to Manny come May 2. No guy who got a gift against slick southpaw Luis Collazo is going to beat the ferocious Force Of Nature from Gensan. Having said that outcome is predetermined, Hatton will be competitive most of the way. His fighting heart is without question.
4. JUAN DIAZ: Go ahead, laugh at me all you want. You can?t put the Houston Kid on the scrap heap based on losses to Soupy Campbell and Juan Ma. The positive spin is they were both learning experiences that, down the road, will make Diaz a tougher, more resilient fighter. Tendency to cut is worrisome, I must admit. Put a renovated ?Baby Bull? down as a longshot to outbox Pacman. More likely, this fight will never take place.
PACMAN?S FINAL FOUR WHO CANNOT BEAT HIM
1. EDWIN VALERO: Dream match for Bob ?All In My Pockets? Arum, in house special even though he does pay ?tax? to Golden Boy on Packy bouts. Valero just changed trainers three weeks before a fight which is never a good sign. New manager says De La Hoya reject Robert Alcazar is going to make windmill puncher into boxing ballerina. I bet vicious Venezuelan would look cute in a tu tu, don?t you tu tu? He fights Pacman and Valero won?t be able to hit Manny in the rear end with a bag of Cebu?s finest rice.
2. JOEL CASAMAYOR: Slickster is too long in the tooth. I ain?t lying when I say Old Cuban Lion will never win Pacman Sweepstakes ticket. Why in hell would Coach Roach want this nightmare matchup?
3. NATE CAMPBELL: That diminutive genius, Terry ?Bathroom Scale? Trekas, is a Greek bearing rifts. He wanted Mississippi to ban Guzman for 10 years to insure that Joan never slaps Soupy into submission in the ring. Put Trekas down as such a tiny tot hater that even Chris Brown would smack him down. Ali Funeka effort showed Soupy no longer ball of fire in ring. Move to 140 pounds is symbolic of another old lion ready to be put out to pasture. Or is that cows they do that to?
4. TIMOTHY BRADLEY: Great respect for ability/potential of ?Desert Storm? but lack of national/international fan base doesn?t help him even get ticket for Megamanny Lottery opportunity. But don?t sleep on California Kid because he?s growing in stature. Plenty riding on how he handles Kendall Holt April 4 in Montreal.
