Manny Pacquiao-Brandon Rios: Notice Size Difference?
MANNY PACQUIAO MEETS COMPETENT RIVAL BRANDON RIOS
San Francisco, CA– A few days ago it was reported that Manny Pacquiao sprained his ankle during a basketball game in the Phillippines. Just a day later however, he was seen training and expressed a nonchalant attitude about the minor injury he received. The last thing the Filipino Congressman needs at this point is an injury like this in the lead up to his November fight with Brandon Rios, a tough as nails Mexican-American willing to take one to give one in gladiator-like fashion.
REASONS WHY PACQUIAO CAMP SHOULD BE CONCERNED
Manny Just got Knocked the Hell Out! When a fighter is 34 years old he isn’t the athlete he was in his prime. After he gets knocked unconscious as Pacquiao did last year against Mexican foe Juan Manuel Marquez he more often than not loses a bit of himself and is never quite the same. Boxers coming back from these situations are often unable to “pull the trigger” when the opportunities and find themselves much less willing to engage. Now when you have a 34 old, who just got knocked out, fighting with a fragile ankle, you are unnecessarily adding to an already long list of disadvantages.
MANNY WILL NEED MOVEMENT MORE THAN EVER
Many have wrote off the California native in his upcoming bout against the former ( to some) ‘pound for pound’ champion by comparing him to his former stablemate Antonio Margarito. If you don’t recall, the “Tijuana Tornado” entered the ring outweighing his Filipino foe by as much as 20 lbs, and was the much harder hitter. But Pacquiao boxed circles around the rugged Mexican, using angles, darting in and out while firing off vicious combinations and closing his opponent’s eye which later required multiple surgeries. Despite how easy it looked to us as viewers, Margarito landed his fair share of punches, particularly some bodypunches in the midrounds, that forced the much smaller challenger to bite down then fight back. Pacquiao said afterwards that this was one of his most difficult bouts and his bruised face proved it. Think about it, can you name a fight Pacquiao has looked good in since.
BRANDON LOOKS NATURALLY BIGGER
Rios, 27, is much younger, fresher and less shopworn than the Mexican mauler was at the time. Margarito was coming off a knockout loss to “Sugar Shane” Mosley, a bout enamored by the controversial finding of illegal substances in Margarito’s wraps in the dressing room beforehand. He had fought just once in the two years since the beating he took from Mosley and was largely underwhelming in that bout.
INSIDE GAME FAVORS WHOM?
Not only that but Rios is a much more intelligent boxer than his Margarito, he is very adept at fighting at close range in the trenches. Furthermore, he is FASTER in both hand and feet than Margarito was that night he was broken down in Dallas. Manny will NEED to keep this fight at a distance and a swollen ankle will not help that in training.
PAC NEED BE 110% OR IT’S ROY JONES ALL OVER AGAIN?
If Manny’s ankle isn’t fully healed a month from now he would be wise to call this fight off. If he isn’t effected by last year’s knockout in anyway he should be able to win a competitive decision. On the other hand if he has a lost a step and has other factors preventing him from being 100%, it is very possible that this fight looks like Roy Jones comeback from his brutal knockout loss to Antonio Tarver. Jones thought he would be in a “safe” comeback fight against Glen Johnson, not realizing how much the Tarver loss had taken out of him. But he learned in the 10th round when Johnson put him to sleep. Here’s to wondering if history will repeat itself with the Philippine icon Manny Pacquiao? Lastly, was the ankle just a promotional ruse to try and draw some attention to the Pacquiao-Rios promotion?
Jason B. Nava