Infamy

CASUALTY OF WAR Pacquiao on the canvas

Note: When America, through its Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, and the island of the Philippines was simultaneously attacked by the Japanese Imperial Army on December 7, 1941 (December 8 in Asia), the assault came as a shock to both Americans and Filipinos alike, leaving them hopeless and devastated in return. Now, 61 years later, at the exact same date, and right in the middle of an American desert, that "shock" came back to haunt again not only America and the Philippines but also the world, as "El Dinamita" unleashes a kamikaze of counterpunches to bring down a once formidable fortress.
     

It should have been decided a long time ago. When Juan Manuel Marquez complained about being “robbed” after his last fight with Manny Pacquiao, it was an allegation that should have been given the benefit of the doubt, now that Marquez was able to put to rest what has nagged him, and to us as well, for almost a decade. Though I had never seen the fight live on cable TV, initially I had it only through gossip and some replays on the internet, but sure enough, it was indeed Marquez who landed the heaviest jabs of that night. And although far from calling him the best pound-for-pound boxer in the world right now (despite the loss Manny is still up there), Marquez’s dominance over Pacquiao is simply off the hook, not even Timothy Bradley himself, as he bested the famous southpaw several months ago, could top that. And no doubt because of this fight we will remember Marquez for a very long time.

As for Pacquiao, he seemed like an exhausted fighter. In fact, he was already exhausted after that third fight when he unwittingly shook his head on his way to his corner after 12 grueling rounds, still puzzled perhaps with the ghost of Marquez Past, Marquez Present, or maybe even the Marquez of Things to Come. Like all of the sudden, the fire that has inflamed him into the toast of the boxing world is now burnt out. He was a completely different fighter from that point on and was even made palatable on the day of the Immaculate Conception, as he struggled to keep an eye on Marquez’s counterpunching, thus eventually receiving the inevitable, and landing him on the canvas emphatically.

Now, it was Marquez who robbed the living daylights out of him, and perhaps with some stroke of finality. Marquez finally got what should have been his since his rematch with Pacquiao. And he deserved it. Although there is still a little bit of controversy from him heading into the fight, with some substance issues alleging him of using performance-enhancing drugs with his collaboration with Angel Hernandez, his conditioning coach, who had a history of drug-related cases in the sport, to bolster somehow his bid against Pacquiao’s blinding speed and punching power (that, however, was absent in Pacquiao since his last 2 fights). Otherwise, it’s just a diversion at some point. That, however, did not discount the fact that Pacquiao was nowhere near his usual self every time he crashes into Marquez like a child caught with his hand in a cookie jar.  

Perhaps Mayweather would be encouraged to give Pacquiao a handful of his cookies this time. This should give him enough reason to come out of his shell and give Pacquiao at least “a fair shake”, a phrase he used for Boxing Analyst Larry Merchant after the Ortiz fight when the analyst accused him of trickery and cheap shots at Ortiz. Thanks mainly to Marquez’s counterpunching, Pacquiao’s ranking at that pound-for-pound billing and his seemingly cosmopolitan popularity seemed to have chocked a bit and has contributed to the fighting congressman’s abrupt plunge into the depths of boxing meltdowns that could potentially increase Mayweather’s (and Marquez’s) dominance and marketability from now on.

Marquez is the undisputed King of the Welterweights (for now, at least), and this after scoring a definitive TKO midway through the rounds. But it sounded more like Mexico had been liberated from a Pacquiao dictatorship, as the “Mexicutioner”, a title Pacquiao handled it with great pride over the years, has eliminated every important Mexican boxer during the last decade, from Barrera to Morales to Solis to Margarito to Marquez. This fight, however, signals the end of an era, maybe the end of the Pacquiao notoriety, the Pacquiao myth, which was considered by many to be invincible. And like the changing of the guards, Marquez’s decisive win last night changed all that.

HATTON IN REVERSE Manny nose dives into oblivion

Whoever lives by the sword dies by the sword. That was the line that went through my head when I heard the news. I was busy attending to my son’s school activity just as the fight went on. And when news of Pacquiao’s defeat spread through the land like the plague of boils over Egypt, falling down on the canvas, face first, after receiving a fatal right jab from Marquez, with only a second left in that ill-fated 6^th round, somehow it gave me a sigh of relief. I was actually rooting for Marquez even before they could slug it out on the ring, with only their muscles being displayed at the weigh-in and the disposition they have exuded as my only barometer for the fight, of which Marquez clearly had the upper hand, momentum included. Now, Pacquiao has tasted what it would be like at the other end of the rope, suffering a defeat he once dominated over his rattled opponents with relative ease. It was like Hatton falling down like London Bridge; only this time, Pacquiao’s face was a hatchet on its way to its burial.      

A day before the fight, I had these all on Twitter: “Bukas na ang laban ni Pacquiao. Lubos-lubosin nyo na ang pagkakataong ito kasi bukas talagang matatalo na ang ating Pambansang Kamao. Hahaha”---Tomorrow would be Pacquiao’s fight (with Marquez). I hope everybody makes the most out of it (now) because tomorrow our boxing hero will definitely lose. Laughing; “Well, the cue would be, if the Celtics win tonight, Pacquiao will have his also tomorrow night,” and, “Marquez by a split decision over Pacman, as the Sixers nip the Celtics, 95-94. That game is a reflection of tomorrow's bout between the two.” Apart from my prediction of a split decision for Marquez, everything turned out to be what I had in mind, which was then solidified after seeing the extent of Marquez’s improvement during the weigh-in. Are we seeing a decline in Pacquiao (a Celtics fan) like the one we associate it with the Celtics recently? That Celtics-Sixers game ended with Rajon Rondo making an awkward shot that would have won the game for the Celtics, as he apparently tripped just before making the shot, a scene much like Pacquiao’s as he tripped his way on to the canvas and stayed there for good.       

In the end, I think, it was Manny’s undoing that finally did him in. For some unexplained reason though, he seemed to exhibit a rather puzzled fight plan every time he faces Marquez, at times he seemed to be so confident almost to point of being playful, while in some instances he’s a bit cautious he can’t even unleash his perennial left hand to a seemingly vulnerable Dinamita. Plus the fact that Manny’s focus during his last three fights was everything but concentrated. Politics, show business, marital problems, even his newfound faith in God, somehow contributed to his lack of concentration, which Marquez seemed to have capitalized by doing the opposite, focusing more on the bout than in the bright lights.

Although Manny was able to knock Marquez in that penultimate Round 5, it merely looked like a brush off. Unfortunately for Pacquiao though, Marquez, as always, remained resilient against his proverbial onslaught, until he could no longer deny Marquez’s superiority and sure-fire jabs that proved to be the nail of his long-delayed coffin. Even then, Marquez gave him a consolation, “You’re a great fighter,” he said to Pacquiao, immediately after Manny recovered from his devastating jab. I doubt even if Manny is listening when he said those words, it was more like a death knell to me for someone who had had enough of boxing in favor of a guarantee as he dedicated this bout to the victims of Typhoon Pablo.    
          

“Why not?” said Top Rank Promoter Bob Arum after the fight, when asked about the possibility of a Pacquiao-Marquez 5. But by the looks of it, it would be anti-climactic. Marquez’s performance today somehow has made a case that he really was indeed “robbed” in one of those fights. My best guess would be the second one, the rematch. I could still remember the Dean, Quinito Henson, and Chino Trinidad, who covered that fight through GMA Network, that they were so worried about Pacquiao coming up with a win, and when Manny did come up with a split, they were so elated they even hugged and kissed Manny nervously at the locker room, visibly surprised at the decision. Perhaps Henson and Trinidad, at that time, somehow prepared themselves for the worse, and it might do some justice to them now that what they felt then was anything but decisive until December 8 (Las Vegas time), the date which will probably live in boxing infamy.

(photos: ESPN.com, Reuters)