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This confession I will make: there were nights when I dreamt I was
Brad Pitt and was being made to choose between Angelina Jolie and
Jennifer Aniston.
Of course, it’s one dream that will never turn
into reality. Heck, I’d be lucky if get a chance to date the girl
who barely made the cut on the cheerleading squad.
Then again, as a boxing fan, I also dreamt about
Manny Pacquiao taking on the all-time greats. One fight that often
whets my fistic imagination is Pacquiao taking on the great Henry
Armstrong. Armstrong is the only boxer to hold three world titles
simultaneously. Armstrong held titles in the featherweight (126lbs),
lightweight (130lbs) and welterweight (147lbs) in an unbelievable
run during the late 1930s. He even tried to go after the
middleweight belt (160lbs) but was held to a draw by Filipino
Ceferino Garcia in 1940.
Armstrong stood only 5’5”—about an
inch-and-a-half shorter than Pacquiao. Historians however swear that
style-wise Armstrong and Pacquiao are mirror images of each other.
Armstrong earned the nickname “Homicide Henry” because the guy
just didn’t stop punching inside the ring. Pacquiao, when in a
punching mood, is also a relentless buzzsaw. Like Pacquiao,
Armstrong also excelled in different weight classes.
Pacquiao-Armstrong is a bout that will remain in
the backburner of my memory bank. Which leads me to the Pacquiao-de
la Hoya bout that is being tossed around in the boxing neighborhood
these days. It’s one fight that I also dreamt once. Boxing fans
are tickled pink over the idea of Pacquiao moving up to as high as
the welterweight division (147lbs) to challenge de la Hoya. The last
time I saw this fight happen, I was playing the Playstation 3 game
Fight Night and the video game version of the Pacman was more than
holding his ground against the cyber-chiseled de la Hoya.
Even Pacquiao admits that he never thought he
would come this close to actually locking mitts with de la Hoya.
Boxing fans are saying that a Pacquiao-de la
Hoya fight would be one for the ages if it comes into fruition. I am
not ready to go that far; I can only say that it is a fight that
will sell because of the “fantasy-turned-reality” angle. De la
Hoya is far from being the vintage Golden Boy; the last good
performance he posted was in September 2002, when he stopped a game
Fernando Vargas in 11 rounds.
While his skills have diminished, de la Hoya is
still bigger and arguably the heavier hitter than Pacquiao. People
always love to see a David-versus-Goliath matchup. This is what
Pacquiao-de la Hoya brings, and this is what pricks the imagination
of the fans. Can Pacquiao shatter the myth that a big, good boxer
will always beat a good, small boxer?
It has been seven years since de la Hoya last
fought at 147lbs. But de la Hoya is tantalizing coming close to
meeting the weight. Last May, he weighed in at 150lbs in a decision
win over Steve Forbes. De la Hoya said he felt strong at a lighter
weight and this bodes well as he needs to chop off three more pounds
to meet the welterweight limit.
De la Hoya is planning to just fight one more
time before calling it quits. Pacquiao is in Oscar’s itinerary,
but so is World Boxing Association welterweight champ Miguel Cotto,
who is set to meet Antonio Margarito this weekend. Unlike Pacquiao,
Cotto is a legitimate welterweight and poses a direct to de la Hoya.
If Cotto wins in spectacular fashion on Sunday, expect the clamor
for a Cotto-de la Hoya showdown to escalate to unbearable decibels.
A loss by Cotto, however, might just seal the deal for Pacquiao-de
la Hoya.
Pacquiao-de la Hoya is definitely the stuff
dreams are made of. OK, I’m lying; I’d still take Jolie over
Aniston.
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For comments, the writer can be reached at atty_eduardo@
yahoo.com
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