Watched Pacquiao Box ‘Em Up
Of course y’all knew I was going to do my obligatory/celebratory Pacquiao post after picking apart Miguel Cotto.
I thought that after demolishing Hatton, it was what boxing really needed right now. So if that was the treatment to prolong boxing’s life, then this fight could potentially have been the antidote that cures and resuscitates boxing’s vegetable state. Though, restructuring the way the sport is promoted and fights are set up need to be considered as a part of the rehabilitation process.
Earning a seventh title in a seventh weight class is of historic significance for boxing, but it cannot be understated how collectively significant this moment was for the Filipino people. My previous article for WireTap and this more recent one from The Ring mean so much more right now. With the pain placed upon the Filipino people due to Typhoon’s Ondoy and Pepeng, a lot was riding on the people’s spirits for a victory tonight*. The humbleness and upbeat mood he exhibited before, during, and after the fight shows why he possesses the charisma for folks to be drawn to him and consider him to be a “people’s champ”. Big ups to the “L”s for “laban” during Michael Buffer’s introduction.
I wonder if it would be possible for someone to create a graph of Pacquiao mentions in rap lyrics over the past year, and to see what type of spike takes place after this fight.
In my opinion, he’s already solidified his placement with the greats. When boxing historians look back at the greatest of all time, be on the lookout for Manny’s name with Sugar Ray Robinson, Muhammad Ali, Joe Louis, etc. That statmenet might be premature to make, but it is crazy to see how he has been able to carry along his power and speed, as he has gone up in weight, not to mention that his skills have also improved throughout this period.
Next up is the inevitable battle with Floyd Mayweather, as long as he doesn’t try to make excuses (Money May doesn’t deserve more than 50% from the fight).
Much respect to Manny Pacquiao, Freddie Roach, Restituto “Buboy” Fernandez, and Miguel Cotto.
Michael Koncz, you can lean back with Fat Joe.
*I do digress a little bit, though, knowing the connections Pacquiao has with GMA and her own failed response to the disasters and almost every other aspect of the domestic affairs of the Philippines.
-Ninoy Brown
November 16th, 2009 at 9:42 am
As you have admitted Cotto is no where near the fighter he was before the Margarito plastering. beating a De La Hoya who was passed his prime and a Hatton who was more overrated then Fernando Vargas, beating these 3 dont make Manny a top 5 ever.
As monumental as the 7th belt is, what Manny has done is stuck himself right in the middle of the greatest fighter of his generation conversation.
Beating Floyd could put him up in the Sugar Ray Robinson, Muhammad Ali, Joe Louis conversation. without that fight there is no chance for comparison.
Floyd has been very public about how its about the money for him, it will be interesting to see how much boxing is about the money for Manny.
your article on wiretap was really good, first time I read it, well done!
November 16th, 2009 at 4:22 pm
A very fresh spin on on 21st century popular culture imagery and construction on identity of Filipinos with Pacquiao and other significant figures adopting or taking on that role. I guess what I would like to know is the role of Pac”mania” in Filipino graph business culture. I mean Nike has its own brands of Pacman paraphernalia, but before them, Filipino graphic tee printers were pumping out Pacquio t-shirts like hot pan de sal from Valerio’s. These Pacman shirts are equivalent to the posthumous photo tees of Big and 2Pac. Regardless, big ups Ninoy!
November 16th, 2009 at 9:02 pm
@airbernard: Cotto wasn’t the fighter that he was before Margarito, most definitely. But I still think that he was a fighter that could have easily given Mayweather more than a difficult time.
But when folks talk about those fights, I always find it interesting that folks try to discredit Manny’s wins by saying that his opponents weren’t at their peak anymore. Would you say that de la Hoya was still at his peak (of course this could easily be argued since DLH was drained from making weight)? Or what about when May fought Hatton? Hatton had to go up in weight, and Manny beat Hatton at the weight class that Hatton was undefeated.
When Sugar Ray Leonard defeated both Hagler and Hearns, it was after “The War” that those two had against each other. Those two wins for SRL were big wins for him that helped earn him the title of boxer of the decade in the 1980s.
If Pacquiao beats Mayweather, folks will say shit like, “Oh, that’s not the Mayweather that defeted Castillo and Corrales.” Gimme a break.
@Noel: Pacmania is in full effect. His face is plastered on a billboard in Union Square in SF. Peep game.
November 18th, 2009 at 7:37 am
If Mayweather vs. Pacquio goes down? How much of a race specific sports war will there be? Both communities are very visible and passionate forces? What’s your take?
November 18th, 2009 at 4:49 pm
I’d rather not think in terms of the problematic notion of a Mayweather vs Pacquiao fight going down as a race war. I discussed the visibility of racial conflicts during Pac vs Morales/JMM, but looking back, I cant think but wonder how much I might have added to the glorification of racial conflict. Boxing fights generally turn into this, but it has much more to do with the promoters than it does with the communities involved.
If anything, a May/Pac fight will highlight how huge of a Hip Hop event this will be.
November 19th, 2009 at 11:17 pm
NOBODY will say nothing about manny beating floyd, nobody who matters.
boxer of the decade candidate is not what I was talking about.
Manny has been beating Quality opponents since his first title fight.
greatest pound for pound ever conversation is what I was trying to have. and neither manny nor floyd can be entered in the conversation at this point. If Manny is in it, floyd is in it and if floyd is in it so is lennox lewis
at best a conversation about if you can have a conversation.
to me it will be most interesting to see how much manny wants to fight floyd. floyd does not want to fight manny.
November 20th, 2009 at 12:29 am
i thought it could be like a breakin battle for pac v cotto. westcoast filpino v. eastcoast puerto rican. that’d be less violent. huge hip hop event eh?