SLIMZ
03-16-2006, 09:48 AM
By Glenn Wilson
WBC President Jose Sulaiman announced this week that Manny Pacquiao has been given one week to accept a fight with Marco Antonio Barrera or forfeit his shot at Barrera, at least for the time being. This comes at the same time as the start of Team Pacquiao’s initial negotiations with Oscar Larios for a possible June 25 bout.
A Barrera-Pacquiao rematch would be a dream come true for all fight fans, Barrera looked like a fighter that was not quite right when they first fought in November 2003. While Barrera will probably be sharper than in their first fight it must also be noted that Pacquiao is a more complete fighter than he was two and a half years ago.
Barrera, 32, of Mexico City, Mexico, stamped his ticket to the Boxing Hall Of Fame a couple of years ago, but like all great fighters there is something that gnaws at him, that thing is Manny Pacquiao.
Having lost in a great fight is, while sometimes commendable, still is a loss. But when a fighter of Barrera's skill and pride loses so convincingly, in his mind it is unforgivable.
After the fight, the always gracious Barrera, hoped that he had had what all fighters occasionally have, an off night. His surgery or his training camp being moved were mentioned as possible reasons for his poor showing, again Marco said that maybe they were, but the bottom line was that Manny was just a better fighter on that particular night.
Since that night Barrera has steadily done what he is known for, outbox sluggers, punchout boxers and beat Erik Morales. But Barrera knows what the old timers have always said, you are never great unless you beat every man you have faced in the ring, even if that man beat you two or three times, you have to be able to say you beat every opponent at least once. Barrera knows this fact and being Marco Antonio Barrera means waking up everyday telling himself that Pacquiao was only lucky and the results will never happen again.
After his bout with Jesus Chavez was scrapped due to an injury to Chavez, Barrera called out Pacquaio for a rematch. Manny may be the number one contender for Barrera's crown, but it goes much deepert. Barrera has to have this fight and he has to have it now.
So many freak occurrences could alter Barrera's plan for redemption. Either man could lose their next fight, one of them could outgrow the division or even suffer a career ending injury. Do not think for a minute that these things have not crossed Barrera's mind.
If Pacquiao does not accept this proposal then Barrera will either have to wait out Manny or fight the best available opponent.
A fourth Morales fight could be great, but given the manner in which Morales lost to Raheem and was destroyed by Pacquiao leads one to believe that number four might be the stinker in the quartet. The WBC announced that should Pacquiao or Morales fail to materialize then Barrera would be pitted against their number three ranked fighter, a fighter that is not in most organizations top ten.
Manny Pacquiao, 27, Philippines, is definitely in the driver's seat when it comes to choosing his next opponent. Right now from 126 to 135 - Manny Pacquiao is the man. The man who walked through Marco Antonio Barrera, beat up the man too tough to beat up in Erik Morales and should have landed the decision against then Featherweight kingpin, Juan Manuel Marquez.
And Manny appears, dare I say, to be getting better. Under the watchful eye of trainer Freddie Roach, Manny has grown and developed on an already impressive array of skills.
Early in the first Morales fight, Manny landed a body shot that hurt Morales and just as quickly Manny got away from doing anymore bodywork. In fight two, Manny assaulted Morales' body in a way that would make Roberto Duran proud.
A year ago, Manny would have tried all night long to catch an opponent on the end of his straight left, now when he gets close he turns over hooks that tend to rattle his opponents' brains, makes use of his new found arsenal in combination with his lightning fast hand speed, and swift upper body movement. It’s quite possible that Pacquiao is the most complete offensive fighter in the game today.
Which brings us to Barrera-Pacquiao 2. This is a fight that needs no hype or build up, this is a match that is good for our sport. Mr. Sulaiman needs to listen when I say that now is the time to rescind your order. I know that the WBC is capable of slanting the rules in it's favor and this is a time when they need to be slanted.
This is all you have to do Mr. Sulaiman, have Barrera fight a decent fighter and have Pacquiao fight his tuneup, have them fight on the same night on HBO and then give us Barrera-Pacquiao 2 in late summer. The WBC gets their fight, we get our fight, Marco tries to proves it was a fluke and Manny tries to prove it wasn't.
i like his comment on calling out sulaiman, especially the last 2 paragraphs, hope this fight will push through
WBC President Jose Sulaiman announced this week that Manny Pacquiao has been given one week to accept a fight with Marco Antonio Barrera or forfeit his shot at Barrera, at least for the time being. This comes at the same time as the start of Team Pacquiao’s initial negotiations with Oscar Larios for a possible June 25 bout.
A Barrera-Pacquiao rematch would be a dream come true for all fight fans, Barrera looked like a fighter that was not quite right when they first fought in November 2003. While Barrera will probably be sharper than in their first fight it must also be noted that Pacquiao is a more complete fighter than he was two and a half years ago.
Barrera, 32, of Mexico City, Mexico, stamped his ticket to the Boxing Hall Of Fame a couple of years ago, but like all great fighters there is something that gnaws at him, that thing is Manny Pacquiao.
Having lost in a great fight is, while sometimes commendable, still is a loss. But when a fighter of Barrera's skill and pride loses so convincingly, in his mind it is unforgivable.
After the fight, the always gracious Barrera, hoped that he had had what all fighters occasionally have, an off night. His surgery or his training camp being moved were mentioned as possible reasons for his poor showing, again Marco said that maybe they were, but the bottom line was that Manny was just a better fighter on that particular night.
Since that night Barrera has steadily done what he is known for, outbox sluggers, punchout boxers and beat Erik Morales. But Barrera knows what the old timers have always said, you are never great unless you beat every man you have faced in the ring, even if that man beat you two or three times, you have to be able to say you beat every opponent at least once. Barrera knows this fact and being Marco Antonio Barrera means waking up everyday telling himself that Pacquiao was only lucky and the results will never happen again.
After his bout with Jesus Chavez was scrapped due to an injury to Chavez, Barrera called out Pacquaio for a rematch. Manny may be the number one contender for Barrera's crown, but it goes much deepert. Barrera has to have this fight and he has to have it now.
So many freak occurrences could alter Barrera's plan for redemption. Either man could lose their next fight, one of them could outgrow the division or even suffer a career ending injury. Do not think for a minute that these things have not crossed Barrera's mind.
If Pacquiao does not accept this proposal then Barrera will either have to wait out Manny or fight the best available opponent.
A fourth Morales fight could be great, but given the manner in which Morales lost to Raheem and was destroyed by Pacquiao leads one to believe that number four might be the stinker in the quartet. The WBC announced that should Pacquiao or Morales fail to materialize then Barrera would be pitted against their number three ranked fighter, a fighter that is not in most organizations top ten.
Manny Pacquiao, 27, Philippines, is definitely in the driver's seat when it comes to choosing his next opponent. Right now from 126 to 135 - Manny Pacquiao is the man. The man who walked through Marco Antonio Barrera, beat up the man too tough to beat up in Erik Morales and should have landed the decision against then Featherweight kingpin, Juan Manuel Marquez.
And Manny appears, dare I say, to be getting better. Under the watchful eye of trainer Freddie Roach, Manny has grown and developed on an already impressive array of skills.
Early in the first Morales fight, Manny landed a body shot that hurt Morales and just as quickly Manny got away from doing anymore bodywork. In fight two, Manny assaulted Morales' body in a way that would make Roberto Duran proud.
A year ago, Manny would have tried all night long to catch an opponent on the end of his straight left, now when he gets close he turns over hooks that tend to rattle his opponents' brains, makes use of his new found arsenal in combination with his lightning fast hand speed, and swift upper body movement. It’s quite possible that Pacquiao is the most complete offensive fighter in the game today.
Which brings us to Barrera-Pacquiao 2. This is a fight that needs no hype or build up, this is a match that is good for our sport. Mr. Sulaiman needs to listen when I say that now is the time to rescind your order. I know that the WBC is capable of slanting the rules in it's favor and this is a time when they need to be slanted.
This is all you have to do Mr. Sulaiman, have Barrera fight a decent fighter and have Pacquiao fight his tuneup, have them fight on the same night on HBO and then give us Barrera-Pacquiao 2 in late summer. The WBC gets their fight, we get our fight, Marco tries to proves it was a fluke and Manny tries to prove it wasn't.
i like his comment on calling out sulaiman, especially the last 2 paragraphs, hope this fight will push through