Sports Eye
Pacquiao’s ‘killing instinct’ vanishing?
By Jesus A. Garcia Jr.
WE watched how our boxing icon Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao pummelled the flamboyant black American pug Timothy Bradley to recapture the World Boxing Organization (WBO) welterweight belt. He punished him good but was unable to knock him down but there’s no doubt this time that the lawmaker from Sarangani really won the battle.
To me, it was not Bradley who stole the WBO welterweight belt from Pacquiao in their first fight but it was the two ring judges who literally took away Pacquiao’s crown. Pacman clearly outpointed Bradley but the two judges (C.J. Ross and Duane Ford) saw it the other way around, scoring identically 115-113 for Bradley while the third judge Jerry Roth tallied for Pacquiao with the same score, 115-113.
The fuming Top Rank Promotions czar Bob Arum called the three adjudicators as “The Three Blind Mice”, including Roth despite his favourable score for Pacman, saying that Roth’s count was still far from the reality, supposed to be at least 119-111 for Pacman. The controversy prompted WBO to organize a panel of five judges to review the fight and all the five clearly gave the verdict to Pacman with a wide margin.
Unfortunately, WBO can’t overturn the judgement. It was enough for WBO to tell the world that the three judges hugely erred, and perhaps also to save the image of world boxing fights. Anyway that’s water under the bridge ‘ika nga. The recent rematch was not as a revenge for Pacman but a vindication that he beat Bradley in the past but Ford and Ross turned the first clash was turned into a farce.
Boxing connoisseurs say the just concluded second meeting of the two showed how Pacman is no longer the strong fighter that he used to be, concluding that his ‘killing instinct’ is already fading. I had observed too that his left hand lethal power that stopped 38 of his opponents is also vanishing.
The last time he scored a knockout was in November 14, 2009, decking the Puerto Rican Miguel Cotto with a left hook and uppercut in the third and fourth rounds and finished him off in the 12th to capture his eighth belt in different WBO divisions. And that was it. His succeeding fights were all won by decisions, excluding his devastating defeat to Juan Manuel Marquez in December 8, 2012. That will be unforgettable. Hopefully he will redeem his image against Marquez in case they fight again, for the fifth time. Abangan natin.
“I’m anavidfan of Pacquiao and watched almost all of his fights but I think his knockout power is already gone and that’s probably because of his age,” said Angela Hernando, an employee of PNB/Allied Bank Dagupan.
“Pacquiao has become compassionate since became a Christian. There were instances that I believe he could have knocked out Brandon Rios and recently against Bradley but he lacked the will to do it,” said Johnny Valencia of Mangaldan.
I believe them because the many times we saw Pacman landed his left hand straight solidly on Bradley’s face (and on Rios in the Macau fight), his foes remained standing, unlike before. In fact, the two even taunted him to to throw his best punch believing that they can take his best. But let’s see in his next fight against Marquez or Mike Alvarado. Arum is working for either of the two to be Pacman’s next opponent before the much-awaited Pacquiao vs Mayweather coud happen – “The Fight of the Century”. I agree.
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It’s sad to know that the well-prepared event “First Dagupan Invitational Triathlon Championship” held last Sunday was marred by the complaint of Mario Gerardo Tolentino of San Fernando, La Union. His Starex van was ransacked by thieves at around 5:00 a.m. at the Tondaligan Beach parking lot, taking his black shoulder bag that contained his driver’s license, Seiko diver’s wrist watch, credit cards and cheques, flashlights, P30,000 and U.S. $500 cash.
It was not the organizers who were at fault. I have to blame the security men who were assigned to secure the place, whoever they were. I hope it will not happen anymore in the years to come. This is a shame.
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QUOTE OF THE WEEK: Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the Praetorium and gathered the whole garrison around Him. When they had twisted a crown of thorns, they put it on His head, and a reed in His right hand. And they bowed the knee before Him and mocked Him, saying, “Hail, the King of the Jews. Then they spat on Him, and took the reed and struck Him on the head. MATTHEW 27: 27-30
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