This weeks bag features Manny Pacquiao, James Toney’s testing positive for an illegal substance, Winky Wright, Hopkins Vs Taylor, Trinidad’s retirement, George’s old school stuff, and pick for Brewster Vs Golota.
Brad,
What can you say about the match-up between Pacman and Peden? Could this be another upset, a tune-up fight or whatever for Pacman? Who do you pick?
Juncay
Juncay,
You are becoming a regular in the email bag with some good questions. Peden is a very strong fighter, but not on the level of your beloved Pacman as this time in his career. I think Manny coming back to possibly face Peden in his first fight since the loss to Erik Morales is a good matchup, but in the end, Pacman stops him via a sixth round knockout.
“Bad” Brad, What do you think of John Ruiz getting his title back when James Toney tested positive for an illegal substance?
Kirk H.
Kirk,
Even thought I am not a huge fan of James Toney because of his antics, I felt he brought some much needed life to the heavyweight division. Ruiz’s style was just boring as can be, but he kept winning. Toney knows the rules of the game and I am of the opinion that a person and even more so an athlete, should always know what he or she is putting in their body. It was the right call by the WBA, but no doubt, Toney will be back.
Brad,
What did you think of Winky’s masterful performance?
Also, what is your call on the upcoming Hopkins -Taylor fight?
Nabate Isles, Harlem
Nabate,
First of all, congratulations on all your success with the Jazz gigs you have been doing in NYC. When you cut your first record, let us know and we will tell the RSR readers about it.
I thought Winky looked fantastic and he made my pick turn to dust. (Late round TKO Tito). Winky did everything right in this fight and looks unbeatable with that defense along with solid jab of his. It’s not the most exciting style, but it gets the win and that is what is most important.
Hopkins vs Taylor is a very solid fight on paper. It reminds me of a fight from my youth that pitted then champion Alexis Arguello vs a young unbeatable Ray “Boom Boom Mancini. Mancini had some good moments, but in the end, Arguello, broke down a young Mancini. I think this happens in the fight as well, but I do feel that even in defeat, Taylor is going to learn a lot and become a champion just like Mancini did.
George,
Do you think really think Trinidad is going to retire like he said in the news?
Andre
In fairness to a disappointed Papa Trinidad’s letdown and feeling of sadness for the whole matter retiring his son, it isn’t proper for me to say one way or another whether he should or shouldn’t retire as of this writing Andre.
As an observer I can tell you that until Tito decides that for wanting it for him; unlike returning back for fanfare sakes, it can be an extremely rare sight to witness again indeed happening.
George,
I read your pound for pound placements in your articles and wondered where you put Michael Spinks?
Tracy
Say Tracy I could hear just about anyone asking about fitting along “Iron Mike” Tyson inside of there too. No beans. The point is that no matter whatever top dozen or ten that anybody undertakes, they’ll be room left for improvement to add another fighter equally to fit the task.
It isn’t quite frankly like making the cut for your school’s varsity team because all of the fighters had proven themselves. Yaqui Lopez, Matthew Saad Muhammad, Victor Galindez, Eddie Mustafa Muhammad, and the Sphinx Jinx were all great Light Heavyweights, but to me, athletically RJJ would have beaten every one of them and you’re talking to a staunch Vicious Victor Galindez fan!
What “Honey Boy” Del Valle did in ’97 to Eddy Smulders was an athletic piece of exhibition, and having the speeds and those athleticisms combined was what enabled Roy Jones, JR. to recover from the Honey Boy knockdown he hit him with in July 1998 in that eighth round. Del Valle, no slouch himself by any stretches of the imagination; was as athletically inclined recovering a round earlier in that fight from a seventh round head butt. That fight was the best athletically matched fight for the light heavyweights in recent memory for the ’90’s.
Compile the comp and you’ll see that we’ve lived the three ’70’s, ’80’s, and ’90’s decades with some athletically gifted Adonis’s. Roy Jones, JR., Wilfred Benitez, Aaron Pryor, and to a lesser degree even Ray Leonard. Benitez-Leonard was a ’70’s tactical and beautiful masterpiece that came around, but once in a lifetime, and there was no reason why they shouldn’t had done a repeat performance again.
Roy surpassed skills improvising athleticism impresario into newer heights and dimensions. And I’ve placed RJJ fourth on my All-time great’s list right next to Carlos Monzon, another superior athlete.
Benitez was a mental giant who like the succubus Time Warp Machine in the mythical Superman adventure when he reversed those three Krypton convicts powers out in the polar caps, Wilfred barley trained averaging only two weeks of uninterrupted training per outing, and had the spare change to go to Disneyland between takes having a good time. Pryor was what basketball’s answer was to Calvin Murphy in the NBA, Murph, actually having been an expert tumbler and baton twirler on his spare time in high school before his college days of Niagara.
Stick around for the completion of my top ten. If you noticed the top three and the number five spots hadn’t been enclosed yet; however unlike Geraldo Rivera who uncovered nothing in the Al Capone vaults with that foreplay, we’ll skip not closure.
George,
Salvador Sanchez vs Manny Pacquiao? Who wins and how?
Jerry
It’s a great question because Sal hadn’t faced that exact caliber presented style before, except with the one fought Gomez. I don’t think the Pac Man’s punching power would be the deciding factor. Manny would have to negate some of Salvador’s foot speed and handiness, and he couldn’t just casually be walking into him bombing away, or it could exceed the purposeful intent to extend him.
You would also have to consider about Sanchez that he had a rock sturdy chin, at times appearing unorthodox for a right handed person. Sanchez could shift his feet in an instant throwing a completely natural punch out of nowhere that wasn’t in the boxing texts. He’d just assume turning punches over better than anybody had ever seen punching off of those movements mystifying millions.
Sanchez had seen the better overall competition matching the two. And if you’d seen him March 22nd 1981 against the Spaniard Roberto Castanon back then, you could draw a similar analogy. Castanon was as diminutive as Pacquiao, compacted, a brilliant boxer. Manny would be cautious and resourceful earlier going. I think by losing some of those earlier rounds that Roach would have him charging somewhere at the halfway point of the fight.
Salvador was a deacon with boxing scripture repertoire enough to thoroughly sense Manny was being urged to perform under extreme circumstances, and would be in no peccary rush to adjust anything that has always worked for him.
Sanchez turns in a left hook and a split-second perfectly timed right uppercut that snaps Manny’s head back, and then moves half a step back. Looking to hold on, Manny leans into Sanchez’s perfectly timed lead right hand placed onto his chin and Pacquiao falls forward sprawled. Blood-spattered everywhere now at center ring as he sits up prone listening to the ten count. Pacquiao wipes his face with his glove and winches. He gets up at the nine count on a pair of starkly stiff legs.
They wave the fight over at 2:19 of the 10th round, winner by TKO victory, Salvador “Chava” Sanchez.
George,
Read your piece today on Carlos Monzon. Do you think he could have beat Winky Wright and how do you see the fight playing out?
Jose F.
We’ll assume Wright and Monzon meet in their latter days for this matchup to be fair Jose, right? In each of their primes neither matched the same divisionary criteria being at two diverse weights.
I’m assuming Winky would be challenging for Monzon’s 160 LBS middleweight world championship, and so it would be fifteen rounds, not what Wright would be accustomed to in going through the duration of twelve. Those last three, the thirteenth, fourteenth, and fifteenth rounds would be to the advantage of CM.
Monzon, having the kind of explosive firing pin on his trigger finger that wasn’t gun shy, was not limited to be fighting one handed by any means, certainly not against slick southpaws.
Monzon had a snappiness, and having had the assassin venomous credo carried like in the one at Monte Carlo for Rodrigo Valdez I, I believe he’d had devastated Wright from the eleventh round on; with plenty left in his reserved tank thereafter to soundly beat him by the official scorecards of a majority decision rendered. And gone completely audacious on how press row would’ve viewed the fight, going unanimously for Monzon.
George,
Who do you pick in tonight’s fight between Golota and Brewster?
Lennie
Lennie,
I’ll pick a really nice brew on Andrew’s tap if he misses it by a God-awful hair. (Looks like George gets no Brew because Brewster cleaned Golota’s clock in 53 seconds of the first round.)
Note: When you send in your question, specify who you would like to answer it or they will be split up between George and I. Questions will be taken throughout the week and the cut off is Saturday evening. If you don’t make the cutoff, look for your question to be answered the following week. Send all questions to: [email protected]
