Pacquiao/Mayweather thriller still a ways off. What if?
One bout after another, the Philippines boxing sensation has his hands raised in victory.
Insiders have said, ‘It’s just a matter of when.’ When Manny Pacquaio consents to handing over a bigger purse or the larger financial guarantee and agrees to extensive blood letting, then and only then, will Floyd Mayweather Jr. from his perch on high consent to taking the fight of the century.
Since Pacquiao has always been about competition and challenge and “Money” Mayweather has been about the dough, I’d like to see the more altruistic gentleman come out victorious in this spat. The only way he can do that is to play hard to get.
If we put aside all this talk about “Pacman” versus Kentucky Floyd Chicken, then we’d be forced to think long and hard about an alternative. Which boxer or boxers come close to matching Pacquiao’s skills? Who would you like to see Pacquiao face? Who would give the best account of himself? Where does this individual lurk?
Suggested choices:
1) The WBC Title holder Andre Berto stands 5’ 8½” tall and weighs 146 pounds. Even though he has yet to be beaten, he hasn’t fought anyone of note except for Carlos Quintana.
2) How about the winner of the Timothy Bradley (25-0-0, 11 KO’s) versus Luis Carlos Abregu (29-0-0, 23 KO’s) welterweight fight on July 17, 2010 at the Agua Caliente Casino, Rancho Mirage, Ca. Bradley of nearby Palm Springs, Ca., is 26 years-old, stands 5’6” tall and has a 69” reach. Bradley has now beaten three really good boxers, Kendall Holt, Nate Campbell and Lamont Peterson. His opponent, Abregu, is from Salte, Argentina and trained by Abel Sanchez. Abregu is 27 years-old, stands 5’10” tall and has a 72” reach. The list of his victims is long but doesn’t include anyone with a big name.
3) Rafal “Braveheart” Jackiewicz (36-8-1, 18 KO’s), the IBC and European welterweight champion, is now 33 years-old. He has won 21 straight fights over the last five years, many of whom were against boxers with above average talent.
4) After seeing the major improvements to Miguel Cotto’s footwork and conditioning, many would like to see Cotto get another shot at Pacquiao. That suggestion would hardly benefit Pacquiao on a number of fronts.
5) The WBA World Champion, Vyacheslav Senchenko (30-0-0, 20 KO’s), is 32 years-old and 5’10” tall. According to his background and record, he should be a formidable foe. But you talk about being a hometown favorite, Senchenko has fought only three times outside of the Ukraine, once in Moscow, once in St. Petersburg and once in Monte Carlo, Monaco.
6) Jr. welterweights Devon Alexander, Marcos Maidana, and Amir Khan, the WBA Champion would be competitive for a few rounds, but because of their inexperience, I doubt if they would last long against Pacquiao.
7) The names Paul Williams and Sergio Martinez have been mentioned. They have plenty of experience but both are natural middleweights. They’re too big. Any talk of Pacquiao getting into the ring to fight a middleweight is insane.
So, who can help the Pacquiao/Mayweather camps make nice and get this agreement signed. Either they come to an arrangement, or one of the above scenarios will take place.
