Another year for Pacquiao, Silva to prove doubters wrong

(This piece appeared in 8CountNews on January 9, 2009)

by Mark Lorenzana

After three successful fights in as many weight classes last year (first when he eked out a split decision over Juan Manuel Marquez, second when he annihilated David Diaz to win the WBC world lightweight title, and third, his eight round drubbing of Oscar De La Hoya) Manny Pacquiao is the consensus 2008 fighter of the year among boxing writers and pundits.

Thanks to his fantastic showing, Pacquiao is in perfect position to enjoy even more lucrative fights this year. First on the list is Ricky Hatton, who has been salivating at the prospect of fighting the Filipino ever since the Pacquiao — De La Hoya fight pushed through. Should Pacquiao defeat Hatton, the most logical opponent would be Floyd Mayweather Jr. And if Pacquiao chooses to fight three times this year– win or lose against Floyd Jr. — he can have a farewell bout at the end of the year (perhaps a third fight with Marquez at Jr. Welterweight?) before hanging up his gloves.

Of course when we say fighter of the year, we should also look beyond prizefighting and take a look at the best among the practitioners of Mixed Martial Arts.

I don’t know if Anderson Silva is the consensus MMA fighter of the year, but I do know that in my book he is. The Spider showed that he is still the man to beat at middleweight when he won via submission over Dan Henderson in March. A lot of people believed that Silva’s reign as UFC Middleweight Champion would come to an end against a dangerous, skilled, and experienced fighter such as Henderson. But Silva once again proved his critics wrong.

Silva then climbed up to light heavyweight and took on James Irvin. Not a few wondered how Silva would handle the extra weight, not to mention how he would fare against a bigger opponent. Silva knocked out Irvin in 61 seconds.

However, Silva’s last fight for 2008 against Patrick Cote left a bad taste in some fans’ mouths. Instead of going for the kill early, Silva appeared to be toying with Cote. He didn’t show his usual deadly form, much to Dana White’s chagrin. The fight ended quite unfortunately when Cote blew out his knee and the referee was forced to put an end to the fight.

I attribute Silva’s less-than-stellar showing in his last outing to boredom. He has fought every possible contender in his weight class, annihilated every one of them, and he needs to step it up. Maybe Dana White should consider putting Chuck Liddell in the Octagon opposite Silva? Or how about the winner of the upcoming George St.-Pierre – BJ Penn fight? The point is, as good a fighter as Silva is, he needs to be fighting top contenders instead of tomato cans for him to be challenged. Give him an opponent who he knows could hurt him and even take him out, and Silva wouldn’t even think of toying with the other guy. I guarantee you’ll see the old Silva back in action.

In Pacquiao’s case, it has always been and will always be, proving other people wrong. Nobody gave him a shot to beat Lehlo Ledwaba, everyone thought Marco Antonio Barrera would school him in their first fight, boxing experts thought Erik Morales’s length and reach would be too much for him, and lastly, majority of the sports and boxing media thought the Dream Match was a farce and a huge mismatch.

Of course Pacquiao, as recent history has told us, cut through all of these opponents (and then some) like a hot knife through butter. Or, more appropriately, like a violent, ravaging Pacific storm through a sleepy seaside town.

Do I hear Erik Morales recently making noises about how Ricky Hatton will flatten Pacquiao? What, Pacquiao will go down in the sixth or seventh round because he will tire and lose steam?

With all due respect to Morales, a great champion and future hall-of-famer, since when did anyone of us see Pacquiao tire? Heck, the Pacman can easily give the Energizer Bunny a run for its money. Hatton, on the other hand, has had stamina problems in the past, of which, perhaps can be attributed to his hard living in between fights. Hatton is tough, a strong body puncher, and he has knockout power in both fists. But stamina is not one of his strong suits. He is a good pressure fighter for the early to middle rounds but for the rest of the fight he plods along and holds. Whether Hatton can outhustle, outwork, and finally overpower Pacquiao remains to be seen. But I dare go on the record here and say that I highly doubt it. I believe it will be the other way around.

For Pacquiao and Silva, the year 2009 will be one of the most important years of their careers. And it is not just because it is another year to earn more money through the hurt business. More importantly, another year is upon them to show to the world that they can continue to fight the best, stay on top, and prove the critics wrong.

Again.

Hatton vs. Pacquiao: A Question of Excess and Overindulgence?

(This piece appeared in 8CountNews on December 24, 2008)

by Mark Lorenzana

Barring any unexpected hitches, it seems that Ricky Hatton is the opponent that looms closest on the horizon for Manny Pacquiao.

This early, reports are coming in that Freddie Roach thinks Hatton – unlike Oscar De La Hoya – can indeed pull the trigger. Roach believes that while Hatton is beatable (as evidenced by his lone loss by knockout to Floyd Mayweather Jr. last year), he has a style that can give Pacquiao fits. The Englishman is a rough and tumble pressure fighter, and he only knows one direction – forward. He bulls and bores into his opponent, utilizing clinches and holds to tire him out. And then the man known as the Hitman softens his adversary with crippling body blows before he finishes him up. Hatton also has enough knockout power in his fists to finish the fight at any moment. Out of Hatton’s 45 wins, 32 fights did not last the distance.

If Pacquiao thinks that he can take Hatton lightly, he’d better think again. Sure, he destroyed Oscar De La Hoya, but Ricky Hatton may prove to be a tougher customer. Which is why Roach wants Pacquiao to fly to Hollywood early, and he expects the Filipino to put in the usual hard work at the Wild Card for at least eight weeks.

Right now it’s safe to say that Pacquiao is still enjoying the fruits of his labors. He still has several weeks to enjoy the good life before he buckles down to work.

With this (but I could be wrong, of course), expect alarm bells to sound on how Pacquiao might enjoy his respite too much and give in to indulgence and excess.

As they say, where there’s smoke, there’s fire. But if there’s any effect of the purported hard-living by Pacquiao between fights, it remains to be seen. Performance-wise, Pacquiao has yet to lose since his close defeat to Erik Morales in their first fight. And with his recent destruction of De La Hoya, Pacquiao showed his deadliest form to date. Perhaps Team Pacquiao has a point when they ask the media to give the Filipino a fair shake especially when reporting about the boxer’s extra-curricular activities.

Ironically, if there’s a fighter that is also reported to give in to indulgence and excess, it’s Hatton. Christened Ricky “Fatton” for his penchant to put on the pounds when he’s not training, Hatton is known to guzzle pints and pints of his favorite brew, Guinness beer. He also enjoys fatty food, and admits that his favorite pre-fight meal is a fry-up, a full English breakfast.

A full English breakfast comprises several fried foods that include bacon, eggs, sausages, black pudding, potatoes, and beans. A sumptuous feast indeed, but you’d be hard put to find any sports nutritionist who’d be willing to prescribe this diet to any athlete, let alone a boxer. Especially one who enjoys wolfing down a fry-up prior to what may be one of the biggest fights of his career.

Of course, Hatton’s choice of food and drink is nobody’s business as long as he can make the weight come weigh-in and he can put on a good show come fight night. And Hatton has won his last two fights since his loss to Mayweather Jr.

Will Hatton cut down the chow and booze if a Pacquiao fight pushes through?

Who knows? But if Hatton loses, he’d better not blame it on the fish and chips.

Should Floyd Jr. Jump the Queue on Pacquiao Sweepstakes?

(This piece appeared in 8CountNews on December 17, 2008)

by Mark Lorenzana

Oscar De La Hoya had barely managed to lick his wounds and bruises from the thrashing he received from Manny Pacquiao when Floyd Mayweather Jr. had begun making noises regarding a comeback.

If the reports are true, then Mayweather Jr. would be lacing up his gloves again after announcing his second retirement last year. The encore retirement (certainly uncalled for, since avid and hardcore boxing fans enjoy Floyd’s virtuoso performances every time he practices the Sweet Science) came at the heels of an impressive stoppage victory over Ricky Hatton.

In this day and age, it’s no longer an exaggeration to say that immediately after Pacquiao TKO’d De La Hoya, Money Mayweather saw dollar signs dancing in front of him. Mayweather Jr. had a grand time dancing with the stars, but he would probably have a grander time dancing with Pacquiao, the new Pay-Per-View king.

Apart from Mayweather Jr., a lot of fans and boxing pundits alike are salivating at the prospect of the current pound-for-pound champion going up against the former p4p king. And on paper, it truly is a match-up worth looking forward to: Pacman’s speed, agility, and relentless pressure against the Pretty Boy’s defense, ring smarts, and superb boxing ability. Add to that master tactician Freddie Roach’s recent hint that Mayweather Jr. is a boxer who doesn’t like pressure fighters, and you have an instant recipe for a great fight.

Of course, not everyone is ecstatic about all this premature hoopla. Especially Ricky Hatton.

The Hitman, fresh from a smashing TKO victory over Paulie Malignaggi last month, told the UK Sun that he wants to fight Pacquiao next: “I’ve put the hard work in and would like to get the chance to take on Manny,”

Hatton also expressed his displeasure regarding a possible fight between Pacquiao and Mayweather Jr.

“I’m not surprised Floyd is considering a return — but I’d be disappointed if he got in ahead of me,” Hatton said.

For one, Hatton worked his ass off training for the Malignaggi fight, and he delivered. Surely he has a point being disappointed should Mayweather Jr. jump ahead of him in the queue?

In Floyd’s case, he walked away from the game for a second time, enjoyed his money and retirement, and now he wants to come back to fight and get an immediate shot at Pacquiao?

Going back to Roach’s claim that Floyd doesn’t exactly enjoy dancing with pressure fighters, he might have struck gold there. Roach named Jose Luis Castillo as one of the pressure fighters that gave Mayweather Jr. fits. But Roach could have gone further and mentioned one Antonio Margarito. Apart from Pacquiao, the Tijuana Tornado is one of the toughest pressure fighters this game has ever seen.

Margarito COULD HAVE given Mayweather Jr. a run for his money, if only they met each other in the ring.

But wait, didn’t Margarito call out Mayweather Jr. several times in the past when the Pretty Boy was still fighting?

So why didn’t tough guy Floyd accept Margarito’s challenge? Why did he retire instead?

Is Floyd Mayweather Jr. afraid of Antonio Margarito? Is he ducking him? Yes or no?

Only Mayweather Jr. can answer all these questions.

Nobody is questioning Floyd’s skills. His ring generalship, speed, and evasive techniques will be more than enough to make a competitive fight against Margarito. A fight against Margarito would definitely be a winnable one. But what is speaking loudly here, and is perhaps the biggest thing that is keeping the fight from happening is Floyd’s own assumed name, Money.

Simply put, why not fight Margarito first for the glory and Pacquiao next for the money?

Oscar De La Hoya made the mistake of choosing the supposedly “easier” fight with Pacquiao because he knew the match-up would be a bigger draw. Again, it seems Mayweather Jr. is looking at a fight with Pacquiao instead of a Margarito fight because he figures that this would be the biggest paycheck available with minimum effort.

Maybe he should watch a rerun of the Pacquiao – De La Hoya fight and re-evaluate the meaning of “minimum effort”?

In the meantime, to be fair to all concerned – especially to Ricky Hatton – maybe it is better and wiser for Mayweather Jr. to wait in line along with the growing number of fighters who are scrambling to win the Pacquiao sweepstakes and get a crack at the Filipino firebrand.

After all, Manny Pacquiao the current pound-for-pound champion has earned the right to choose whoever he wants to fight next.

Irrespective of glory, money, or both.

Nogueira vs. Mir: The Will and Resolve to Keep on Fighting

(This piece appeared in 8CountNews on December 2, 2008)

by Mark Lorenzana

When Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira fights, you notice a lot of things. You notice how calmly he stalks his opponent. You notice his poker face and how businesslike and dead serious he is in approaching the art of fighting. You notice that he’s not the biggest heavyweight out there and that on a few given nights his adversary would outweigh him by 15 pounds or more. You also notice that regardless of this, nobody or nothing fazes him one bit; he has extreme confidence in himself and his abilities (superb stamina, great Jiu-Jitsu and boxing skills) —that’s why his opponents regard him with utmost respect.

But perhaps the most noticeable thing about the man better known as “Minotauro” is a large scar on his back, an unmistakable deep indentation that becomes more prominent whenever his back muscles ripple as he unleashes a punch on the stand-up or whenever he dominates someone in the mount.

Although Nogueira started training in judo at the age of five and has been fighting all his life, the scar isn’t a result of his countless battles in the ring. At nine years old, he was run over by a truck. He fell into a coma for 25 days and during this time he lost a rib and part of his liver and had to be hospitalized for almost a year.

He wears his scar like a badge, a testament and symbol of his will to stand up, come back, and continue fighting.

Apart from his scar, his record speaks for itself and is proof of Nogueira’s durability. 37 matches, 31 wins, four losses. None of those losses came by knockout or by submission. He has hit the mat lots of times during his storied career but he has yet to be finished in a bout.

In fact, he hit the mat early in his Ultimate Fighting Championship debut against Heath Herring in UFC 73. Going into the fight, Nogueira seemed to have Herring’s number. After all, Nogueira already had two wins under his belt against the “Texas Crazy Horse” dating back to his Pride days. In the first few minutes of the opening round, Nogueira seemed to be doing well, stalking Herring and throwing jabs, most of which hit their target. Nogueira was successful in his first takedown attempt, and immediately tried to impose his superior Jiu-Jitsu skills on Herring. Herring managed to get up and Minotauro obliged, rocking Herring with a few punches and staggering him with a left followed by a knee to the face. Herring’s nose was immediately bloodied. Nogueira, the Jiu-Jitsu blackbelt, had turned the fight into a striking match and was winning it. Then, as Nogueira threw a jab, he unwittingly bobbed and ducked and his face smashed into a Herring high kick.

Nogueira went down like a sack of potatoes.

Herring immediately pounced on his fallen prey, raining a barrage of hammer fists on Nogueira’s face. Everyone in the stadium expected Nogueira to buckle under the onslaught. Everyone expected the referee to stop the fight right there and then. But curiously, as furiously as Herring swooped down on Nogueira as a violent tornado ravages a sleepy and unsuspecting town, the blitzkrieg stopped. Herring failed to capitalize and allowed Nogueira to stand up.

Bad move.

Herring should have realized that the man he knocked down and almost pounded out had been through worse situations. Nogueira dug deep and mustered enough resolve to stand up albeit on wobbly knees, come back, and continue fighting. He dominated the next two rounds and won the bout by unanimous decision.

If there’s one man who is known for his resolve and tenacity apart from Nogueira, it is Frank Mir.

Mir knows how it feels to be on top of the world after winning the vacant UFC heavyweight title against Tim “The Maniac” Sylvia four years ago at UFC 48. Referee Herb Dean stopped the fight at 50 seconds into the first round when Mir’s armbar visibly broke Sylvia’s right forearm.

Then, three months after claiming the UFC heavyweight belt, everything went crashing down – literally. Mir was knocked off his motorcycle by a car. The accident caused a break in Mir’s femur and tore all the ligaments in his knee. The bone in his leg had broken in two places and major surgery was needed to repair the damage. An interim heavyweight title was created while Mir was recuperating, which Andrei Arlovski won. Because Mir was not able to fight Arlovski as scheduled, Mir was stripped of the title, and Arlovski was promoted to undisputed UFC heavyweight champion.

In his first fight after the injury, Mir fought Márcio Cruz at UFC 57. It was a shocking upset, as Mir was TKO’d in the first round by the relative newcomer. He bounced back with a win against Dan Christison at UFC 61 but lost yet again to Brandon Vera at UFC 65 via TKO in the first round.

Unlike Nogueira, you won’t notice any distinguishing marks on Frank Mir. You have to take him as he is and take his fighting style and disposition as a gauge. With this in mind, he has more than proven that he has the will to stand up, come back, and continue fighting.

Take Mir’s last fight, for instance.

Mir took on Brock Lesnar (now the current UFC heavyweight champion) at UFC 81. In the first round, the hulking Lesnar wasted no time and immediately used his size and strength to take down Mir. While on the ground, Lesnar found himself in half guard with Mir working toward the sweep. Lesnar repeatedly banged Mir’s head with hammer fists, and with the latter in danger of getting pounded out, Steve Mazagatti stepped in and called a timeout. Mazagatti took a point away from Lesnar for hitting Mir in the back of the head. When the fight resumed, Mir went down a second time after getting hit by a Lesnar right. The hammer fists rained down again. This time, however, Mir didn’t wait for divine intervention to come in the form of Mazagatti. Mir found the resolve to maneuver and get a foot lock on Lesnar, and then a kneebar. Lesnar tapped out. Frank Mir, after going down two times and after being fed a steady diet of punches, successfully submitted Brock Lesnar in the first round.

When Frank Mir and Minotauro Nogueira face each other on December 27 at UFC 92, fight fans will notice a lot of things. But no matter what happens and regardless of the outcome, the most noticeable thing will be both men’s collective will to stand up, come back, and continue fighting.

An unfortunate childhood accident and a motorcycle mishap notwithstanding.

Mixed Martial Arts: Restoring Honor through Blood and Guts

(This piece appeared in 8CountNews on November 24, 2008)

by Mark Lorenzana

I want you to hit me as hard as you can.

This is the famous line of Tyler Durden, one of the main characters in Chuck Palahniuk’s iconic novel, Fight Club. The novel was adapted into a film of the same name and starred Brad Pitt, Edward Norton, and Helena Bonham Carter. The book became an international bestseller and the film became a pop culture phenomenon. Both featured the same plot, white collar guys meeting up in bars after work and knocking each other’s heads off, all in the name of stress release—and entertainment.

Of course, underground bare-knuckle fighting or fisticuffs depicted in the book and in the film is illegal. And not long ago, Mixed Martial Arts or MMA had a similar problem, as it had difficulty finding its way into the mainstream audience. Take the case of the Ultimate Fighting Championship for instance. The UFC is one of the earliest MMA organizations and back then it had a few limited rules. And it didn’t help that the UFC was marketed as “no holds barred”, prompting some legislators to label it as “human cock fighting”. Eventually the UFC reformed itself and slowly embraced stricter rules (and distanced itself from the bare-knuckle label by enforcing the use of four ounce MMA grappling gloves), becoming sanctioned by state athletic commissions, and making it the pay-per-view giant that it is now.

Even so, a lot of people still think MMA is nothing but a barbaric blood sport that pits two sadistic (and masochistic?) street fighters against each other. And more often than not, they view the fighters as unthinking brutes whose only mindset is to punish and hurt another human being.

Nothing could be farther from the truth. Take two of its practitioners, for instance. Chuck Liddell has a bachelor’s degree in Business/Accounting from Cal Poly. Rich Franklin was a math teacher and holds a master’s degree in education. Both could have stuck to their academic pursuits but decided to take up fighting as their profession. Collectively, Liddell and Franklin are just the tip of the iceberg.

And who can question these guys’ hearts and work ethic? It takes a lot of courage to take a pounding and never quit, to fight amid blood and guts, and it takes strong will and dedication to prepare yourself physically and mentally for a big fight much like a prizefighter does in training camp.

The goal of the honorable duel of medieval times was often not so much to punish the opponent as to gain satisfaction. Rather, it was to restore one’s honor by demonstrating a willingness to risk one’s life for it. And in my opinion, fighting in a cage or in a ring is no different.

So the first question that begs to be asked is: Why is MMA so popular and why do a lot of people watch it?

Maybe this question is best answered by other questions. Who could forget the David and Goliath battle between Royce Gracie and Dan “The Beast” Severn in the early days of the UFC? How could have the gangling Gracie, with an almost 80-pound weight disadvantage, beat the much bigger and stronger Severn? Who wouldn’t be mesmerized with the way Anderson “The Spider” Silva gracefully dismantles his opponents? Or who wouldn’t be awed by Chris “The Crippler” Leben’s courage and devil-may-care attitude each time he steps into the Octagon?

The other question that begs to be asked is: Why do MMA fighters do what they do?

Unlike the sadistic and masochistic brawlers in Fight Club, MMA practitioners don’t ply their trade just because they need to scratch a bloodthirsty itch. They are legitimate athletes and sportsmen and they passionately perform at the highest level for their audience as any rock band or performance artist.

would. They have work to do, and thankfully for them (and woefully for the most of us), it’s not a boring nine to five desk job.

This is the way they put food on the table, this is the way they pay the bills. They just do their jobs the best way they know how:

By hitting each other as hard as they can.