Boxing fans, unfortunate as it is, are used to underwhelming fight cards. But, silly us, we expect a little more when a card is headlined by the pound-for-pound champion and an eight-weight class world title holder.
And yet, by and large, the feeling you got as you walked out of the MGM Grand Garden Arena or tuned out your TV sets last night can be encapsulated truly in one word:
?Ehh.?
As in, ?Ehh, it was good, I guess.? Which is true. It really wasn?t a bad card. It just wasn?t a great card. And these days, Manny Pacquiao is synonymous with great, not good.
It?s not as if people faulted the pound-for-pound king Saturday night. He did his job. He manhandled Shane Mosley and threw his carcass aside with the likes of Miguel Cotto, Oscar De La Hoya, and Antonio Margarito, whom Mosley had previously dismantled as well. Even in what looked like it may have been a display of too much respect for Mosley (touching gloves every minute and a half was a little ridiculous), Manny still made it clear: This is my sport now, and I?m allowing you to be in it.
The problem lies in a quote from Bob Arum in the post-fight press conference. Arum, in responding to a question about the lackluster main event, said, ?The problem is that this is becoming a pattern. Manny doesn?t allow any fighter to fight his fight.?
That is to say, one man can be a great fighter. But there must be two men to make a great fight.
Saturday night was not a great fight, because two men didn?t show up to make one. Manny Pacquiao showed up; he?s a great fighter. Shane Mosley was present; he was a great fighter. He was not a great fighter last night. Mosley felt Pacquiao?s power early in the fight and went into defensive mode by round four, barely offering more in the way of offense than did another Pacquiao foe, Joshua Clottey. In fact, overheard comments in the arena indicated that the fan?s ire was not directed at Pacquiao, but at Mosley.
Pacquiao is slated to fight again in early November, and Top Rank will send a revised offer to Juan Manuel Marquez on Monday to fight Pacquiao again in Las Vegas. Other potential opponents could be Timothy Bradley or Zab Judah. Of course, there?s another guy out there, but he?s probably hiding with Waldo and Carmen Sandiego after last night?s performance. Point being, Manny Pacquiao needs a real fighter in his next fight. That?s where he looks the best. Great fighters need great fights. Great fighters should not hear ?Ehh,? they should hear ?Wow.?
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Thoughts on the rest of the card:
→ Hey, Ray Narh, I hear knitting is less painful than boxing. You should look into it. Plus it rhymes with ?quitting.? I?m sure you?ll enjoy that fact.
→ According to Al Bernstein, Kelly Pavlik wanted people after his fight to talk about what he did, not what his opponent didn?t do. And yet, here we are, talking about how if Alfonso Lopez had maybe not tired out, or had not consistently stayed open to the left hook, he may have been able to get the decision. On my unofficial scorecard, I had the bout 7 rounds to 3 for Kelly Pavlik, and a case could have been made for 6-4. The judges? scorecards were much wider than it should have been. Totally unimpressed with Pavlik?s return; I actually was more impressed with the spunk I saw from Lopez.
→ Quote of the night: ?Since when did Kelly Pavlik turn into Matt Vanda??
→ The one great moment of the night: Vazquez/Arce. What a fight, what a come-from-behind win! I thought Vazquez had banked enough early rounds along with the knockdown to keep a small lead on my card had he been standing at the last bell. Arce, though, with his usual blood-and-guts attack and cajones the size of Mexico, made sure that the last bell would never be heard. Arce may be getting on in years, and may have had several several wars, but he?s still a treat to watch.
→ I watched the first two televised fights from the press room and was able to get a feel of how Showtime was producing their pay-per-view fights, and I must say, I liked what I saw. I probably could have done without James Brown, but Gus Johnson, Al Bernstein, and Antonio Tarver made a great team at ringside, and although I did miss Harold Lederman having to tell Jim something, I would love to see more Showtime pay-per-views if for nothing else enjoying that ringside threesome again.
