Originally Posted by
Sriracha Hot Sauce
[h2]Manny Pacquiao Would Beat Anyone Under 160 Pounds[/h2]
Posted May 03, 2009 12:45PM By
Michael David Smith (
RSS feed)
Filed Under:
HBO
On Saturday afternoon, I told someone that I thought
Floyd Mayweather Jr. would beat
Manny Pacquiao, if the fight between the world's two best boxers finally materializes. After watching Pacquiao destroy
Ricky Hatton on Saturday night, I no longer think that.
In fact, I now think this: Pacquiao, the little man who started his professional boxing career in the Philippines fighting at 106 pounds, would beat any boxer at any weight class under 160. Yes, you read that right: Pacquiao would have to move all the way up to middleweight before I'd bet against him.
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The way Pacquiao just tore through Hatton Saturday night was nothing short of breathtaking. Hatton is a good boxer -- he was the world junior welterweight champion, and when he fought the undefeated Mayweather, he managed to win a couple of rounds before finally succombing in the 10th. But against Pacquiao, Hatton never knew what hit him, falling twice in the first round before getting knocked cold in the second.
Similarly, Pacquiao and Mayweather both fought
Oscar De La Hoya, and while Mayweather beat De La Hoya by split decision, Pacquiao destroyed De La Hoya for nine rounds before making him quit on his stool. I have a hard time seeing how anyone who watched the last two fights for both Mayweather and Pacquiao could deny that Pacquiao is the better boxer.
In fact, Pacquiao is so great that I think he could move up another 15 pounds or so and beat the best junior middleweights in the world,
Vernon Forrest and
Paul Williams. Obviously, Pacquiao's strength and reach disadvantage would cause him problems against those opponents, but he's just so fast and so smooth a puncher that I think he'd move in and out, connect with flurries of punches and frustrate either Forrest or Williams.
Obviously, size does matter in boxing -- that's why there are weight classes. At some point, the 5-foot-6, 138-pound Pacquiao would be unable to keep winning if he kept moving up in weight class, and I think that point is at 160 pounds: The middleweight champion of the world, Kelly Pavlik, is 6-foot-2 and 160 pounds and would probably be able to use his reach, his power and his strong jab to beat Pacquiao.
But put the best pound-for-pound boxer in the ring with any opponent smaller than Pavlik, and my money is on Pacman.
Link:
http://boxing.fanhouse.co...anyone-under-160-pounds/
