Pacquiao And Fans Better Get A Grip On Reality That Mayweather Won

Published

10 years ago

August 25, 2015

As a six year old in 1964, and seeing Cassius Clay on TV for the first time (right before he challenged Sonny Liston for the undisputed heavyweight title), I’ve been obsessed with the sport of amateur and professional boxing.

I’ve spent countless hours thinking about it, watching it, training, sparring and fighting and then back to observing it both near and from afar.

And after all that, one of the things that amazes me the most is how often and easily fighters and their fans lie to themselves.

I remember as a 12-year old trying to convince anyone who would listen that Muhammad Ali was robbed of the decision the first time he fought “Smokin” Joe Frazier on March 8th, 1971. I reasoned that the boxing establishment was out to get Ali because of his opposition to the Vietnam war. Even going as far as to say that Judge Bill Recht, who scored the fight 11-4 in favor of Frazier, must’ve had a son who was drafted and that’s why he was so biased in how he saw the fight in favor of Frazier so decidedly.

Well, around 1972 I was re-watching the Super 8MM version of the fight with my friend across the street who loved Frazier as much as I loved Ali. While we were watching the fight for the umpteenth time, I was going through my theatrics every time Muhammad landed a punch trying to illustrate how Ali really won the bout. However, I noticed my buddy fell asleep and it was a waste of time trying to convince him that my guy won. So I sat down and continued watching the fight. As the rounds went by I asked myself if I just landed on earth from Mars and didn’t know the name of either guy, who would I think was getting the better of it; the short guy wearing the green trunks or the tall guy wearing the red trunks? And for the first time I was honest and said if I didn’t know who was who, I’d say the short guy in green trunks was winning….as we all know Ali was the taller guy sporting the red trunks and tassels on his boxing shoes. From that moment on I promised myself that I’d never lie to myself regarding whether or not my fighter or team won or lost. At that moment I realized that my manhood or self-worth had nothing to do regarding whether or not my guy won or lost.

Today, when I re-watch Frazier-Ali I, I realize Bill Recht’s score of 11-4 wasn’t that far off. I usually score the fight 9-6 Frazier with 10-5 being very plausible. I was at the fight that night watching it live from the rafters of Madison Square Garden and had no doubt Joe won convincingly seeing it live and in the moment. A few years later Ali even admitted that he lost the first Frazier fight. He came back and beat Joe in their two subsequent bouts to win their trilogy and historically Ali deservedly ranks above Frazier.

When Floyd Mayweather won a unanimous decision over Manny Pacquiao earlier this year, many Mayweather haters and Pacquiao fans cried over the decision and tried to convince anyone who would listen that Pacquiao really won the fight, which is flat out wrong. They reasoned that Floyd ran and Manny was the aggressor. This actually borders on being insane. Mayweather didn’t run, he used his feet and boxed Pacquiao as it was stated in this space he would numerous times since 2009. He took advantage of Pacquiao’s ineptness at cutting off the ring and his tendency to fight in spurts instead of applying bell-to-bell aggression. In fact, Pacquiao wasn’t close to being an effective aggressor and wasn’t even Floyd’s toughest fight, something that had a lot to do with their natural fighting styles and Mayweather’s advantages in size and reach.

This past week Chris Chase of the USA today wrote, “Think back to this past May, if you will. It was a Saturday night. You gathered with your friends, either at their place or yours, then you collectively sat around, put $100 into the toilet and flushed, just waving goodbye to that substantial amount of cash. Remember that? The night of the dud of the century bout between Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao, the one Mayweather controlled from the outset while tediously jabbing his way to victory, all while your $99.95 went up in smoke, like the hundred-dollar bills Floyd probably uses to light cigars? Remember that? Well, it’s been three-and-a-half months and Manny Pacquiao still somehow thinks he won that fight.”

Pacquiao thinks he won the fight? Really. Just look at his disposition during the bout after the fifth round and tell me that’s a fighter who really believes in his heart that he’s winning. Manny looked confused and bewildered because he was.

No, Mayweather didn’t beat him up and yes Pacquiao had an injured shoulder, but come on, Mayweather, with the exception of the fourth round, basically controlled the entire bout. He fought when he wanted to. He pot-shotted and boxed when he wanted to and even backed Pacquiao up when he sensed Manny was confused and searching for an answer on how to attack him with even a modicum of success. Something that never really transpired over the course of 12-rounds or 36 minutes of fighting/boxing.

It’s nearly four months out from the fight and Pacquiao is healing from shoulder surgery. There’s no doubt that he’s not done fighting and I expect that he’ll try and get a rematch with Mayweather. If I were him, I certainly would. I’d justify it by reasoning even with one arm I didn’t really get beat up and managed to win a few rounds. And if I’m Mayweather, I’d announce my retirement after I beat Andre Berto and then UN-retire and come back to fight Pacquiao for my 50th career win. And my justification for that would be the money for the fight, though not as good as the first time, will still be off the chart. In addition to that, Pacquiao wasn’t my toughest fight and there’s nothing he can do differently if we fight again.

And therein lays the problem for Manny if he gets another shot at Floyd. Firstly, he better come to reality and accept that he lost to Mayweather and really never even gave him one good scare during the entire fight when they last met. If he accepts the truth, which isn’t a given, somehow he and trainer Freddie Roach better come up with a plan that enables Manny to get inside and force the fight, thus making it impossible for Mayweather not to engage with him. This means Pacquiao will have to reinvent himself stylistically, and those odds aren’t too good, especially if he thinks just bringing more of what didn’t work the last time will work. This is the real world and reinventing himself from a stylistic vantage point won’t be easy. This is the real world and not Rocky III.

Sadly, before Manny even has a chance to try and reconstruct his style, he must break from the mold in which most elite fighters can’t admit they lost unless they were knocked out or punched all over the ring. Based on his thoughts suggesting that he won and Mayweather ran, it doesn’t look good. Lastly, it’s really not all that difficult to accept if you’re a big Pacquiao fan that Mayweather won their fight because he really did. And believe it or not it doesn’t make you less of a person or fan because your guy lost. It’s life and everybody suffers setbacks and defeats, no one is spared from that and hopefully we learn and grow from it.

Frank Lotierzo can be contacted at GlovedFist@Gmail.com

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Frank Lotierzo

Jorge Garcia is the TSS Fighter of the Month for April

Published

1 day ago

April 28, 2025

Arne K. Lang

Jorge-Garcia-is-the-TSS-Fighter-of-the-Month-for-April

Jorge Garcia has a lot in common with Mexican countrymen Emanuel Navarrete and Rafael Espinoza. In common with those two, both reigning world title-holders, Garcia is big for his weight class and bubbled out of obscurity with a triumph forged as a heavy underdog in a match contested on American soil.

Garcia had his “coming of age party” on April 19 in the first boxing event at the new Frontwave Arena in Oceanside, California (roughly 35 miles north of San Diego), a 7,500-seat facility whose primary tenant is an indoor soccer team. It was a Golden Boy Promotions event and in the opposite corner was a Golden Boy fighter, Charles Conwell.

A former U.S. Olympian, Conwell was undefeated (21-0, 16 KOs) and had won three straight inside the distance since hooking up with Golden Boy whose PR department ballyhooed him as the most avoided fighter in the super welterweight division. At prominent betting sites, Conwell was as high as a 12/1 favorite.

The lanky Garcia was 32-4 (26 KOs) heading in, but it was easy to underestimate him as he had fought extensively in Tijuana where the boxing commission is notoriously docile and in his home state of Sinaloa. This would be only his second fight in the U.S. However, it was noteworthy in hindsight that three of his four losses were by split decision.

Garcia vs. Conwell was a robust affair. He and Conwell were credited with throwing 1451 punches combined. In terms of punches landed, there was little to choose between them but the CompuBox operator saw Garcia landing more power punches in eight of the 12 rounds. At the end, the verdict was split but there was no controversy.

An interested observer was Sebastian Fundora who was there to see his sister Gabriela defend her world flyweight titles. Sebastian owns two pieces of the 154-pound world title where the #1 contender per the WBO is Xander Zayas who keeps winning, but not with the verve of his earlier triumphs.

With his upset of Charles Conwell, Jorge Garcia has been bumped into the WBO’s #2 slot. Regardless of who he fights next, Garcia will earn the biggest payday of his career.

Honorable mention: Aaron McKenna

McKenna was favored to beat veteran campaigner Liam Smith in the co-feature to the Eubank-Benn battle this past Saturday in London, but he was stepping up in class against a former world title-holder who had competed against some of the top dogs in the middleweight division and who had famously stopped Chris Eubank Jr in the first of their two encounters. Moreover, the venue, Tottenham Hotspur, the third-largest soccer stadium in England, favored the 36-year-old Liverpudlian who was accustomed to a big fight atmosphere having fought Canelo Alvarez before 50,000-plus at Arlington Stadium in Texas.

McKenna, from the small town of Monaghan, Ireland, wasn’t overwhelmed by the occasion. With his dad Feargal in his corner and his fighting brother Stephen McKenna cheering him on from ringside, Aaron won a wide decision in his first 12-round fight, punctuating his victory by knocking Smith to his knees with a body punch in the 12^th round. In fact, if he hadn’t had a point deducted for using his elbow, the Irishman would have pitched a shutout on one of the scorecards.

“There might not be a more impressive example of a fighter moving up in class,” wrote Tris Dixon of the 25-year-old “Silencer” who improved his ledger to 20-0 (10).

Photo credits: Garcia/Conwell photo compliments of Cris Esqueda/Golden Boy; McKenna-Smith provided by Mark Robinson/Matchroom

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Chris Eubank Jr Outlasts Conor Benn at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium

Published

3 days ago

April 27, 2025

David A. Avila

Chris-Eubank-Jr-Outlasts-Conor-Benn-at-Tottenham-Hotsour-Stadium

Feudal bragging rights belong to Chris Eubank Jr. who out-lasted Conor Benn to
emerge victorious by unanimous decision in a non-title middleweight match held in
London on Saturday.

Fighting for their family heritage Eubank (35-3, 26 KOs) and Benn (23-1, 14 KOs)
continued the battle between families started 35 years ago by their fathers at Tottenham
Hotspur Stadium.

More than 65,000 fans attended.

Though Eubank Jr. had a weight and height advantage and a record of smashing his
way to victory via knockout, he had problems hurting the quicker and more agile Benn.
And though Benn had the advantage of moving up two weight divisions and forcing
Eubank to fight under a catch weight, the move did not weaken him much.

Instead, British fans and boxing fans across the world saw the two family rivals pummel
each other for all 12 rounds. Neither was able to gain separation.

Eubank looked physically bigger and used a ramming left jab to connect early in the
fight. Benn immediately showed off his speed advantage and surprised many with his
ability to absorb a big blow.Chris Eubank Jr Outlasts Conor Benn at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium

Benn scrambled around with his quickness and agility and scored often with bigcounters.

It took him a few rounds to stop overextending himself while delivering power shots.

In the third round Benn staggered Eubank with a left hook but was unable to follow up
against the dangerous middleweight who roared back with flurries of blows.

Eubank was methodic in his approach always moving forward, always using his weight
advantage via the shoulder to force Benn backward. The smaller Benn rocketed
overhand rights and was partly successful but not enough to force Eubank to retreat.
In the seventh round a right uppercut snapped Benn’s head violently but he was
undeterred from firing back. Benn’s chin stood firm despite Eubank’s vaunted power and
size advantage.

“I didn’t know he had that in him,” Eubank said.

Benn opened strong in the eighth round with furious blows. And though he connected
he was unable to seriously hurt Eubank. And despite being drained by the weight loss,
the middleweight fighter remained strong all 12 rounds.

There were surprises from both fighters.

Benn was effective targeting the body. Perhaps if he had worked the body earlier he
would have found a better result.

With only two rounds remaining Eubank snapped off a right uppercut again and followed
up with body shots. In the final stanza Eubank pressed forward and exchanged with the
smaller Benn until the final bell. He simply out-landed the fighter and impressed all three
judges who scored it 116-112 for Eubank.

Eubank admitted he expected a knockout win but was satisfied with the victory.
“I under-estimated him,” Eubank said.

Benn was upset by the loss but recognized the reasons.

“He worked harder toward the end,” said Benn.

McKenna Wins

In his first test in the elite level Aaron McKenna (20-0, 10 KOs) showed his ability to fight
inside or out in soundly defeating former world champion Liam Smith (33-5-1, 20 KOs)
by unanimous decision to win a regional WBA middleweight title.

Smith has made a career out of upsetting young upstarts but discovered the Irish fighter
more than capable of mixing it up with the veteran. It was a rough fight throughout the
12 rounds but McKenna showed off his abilities to fight as a southpaw or right-hander
with nary a hiccup.

McKenna had trained in Southern California early in his career and since that time he’s
accrued a variety of ways to fight. He was smooth and relentless in using his longer
arms and agility against Smith on the outside or in close.

In the 12 th round, McKenna landed a perfectly timed left hook to the ribs and down went
Smith. The former champion got up and attempted to knock out the tall
Irish fighter but could not.

All three judges scored in favor of McKenna 119-108, 117-109, 118-108.

Other Bouts
Anthony Yarde (27-3) defeated Lyndon Arthur (24-3) by unanimous decision after 12 rounds. in a light heavyweight match. It was the third time they met. Yarde won the last two fights.

Chris Billam-Smith (21-2) defeated Brandon Glanton (20-3) by decision. It was his first
fight since losing the WBO cruiserweight world title to Gilberto Ramirez last November.

Viddal Riley (13-0) out-worked Cheavon Clarke (10-2) in a 12-round back-and-forth-contest to win a unanimous decision.

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Avila Perspective, Chap. 323: Benn vs Eubank Family Feud and More

Published

5 days ago

April 24, 2025

David A. Avila

Avila-Perspective,-Chap.-323:-Benn-vs-Eubank-Family-Feud-and-More.jpg

Next generation rivals Conor Benn and Chris Eubank Jr. carry on the family legacy of feudal warring in the prize ring on Saturday.

This is huge in British boxing.

Eubank (34-3, 25 KOs) holds the fringe IBO middleweight title but won’t be defending it against the smaller welterweight Benn (23-0, 14 KOs) on Saturday, April 26, at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London. DAZN will stream the Matchroom Boxing card.

This is about family pride.

The parents of Eubank and Benn actually began the feud in the 1990s.

Papa Nigel Benn fought Papa Chris Eubank twice. Losing as a middleweight in November 1990 at Birmingham, England, then fighting to a draw as a super middleweight in October 1993 in Manchester. Both were world title fights.

Eubank was undefeated and won the WBO middleweight world title in 1990 against Nigel Benn by knockout. He defended it three times before moving up and winning the vacant WBO super middleweight title in September 1991. He defended the super middleweight title 14 times before suffering his first pro defeat in March 1995 against Steve Collins.

Benn won the WBO middleweight title in April 1990 against Doug DeWitt and defended it once before losing to Eubank in November 1990. He moved up in weight and took the WBC super middleweight title from Mauro Galvano in Italy by technical knockout in October 1992. He defended the title nine times until losing in March 1996. His last fight was in November 1996, a loss to Steve Collins.

Animosity between the two families continues this weekend in the boxing ring.

Conor Benn, the son of Nigel, has fought mostly as a welterweight but lately has participated in the super welterweight division. He is several inches shorter in height than Eubank but has power and speed. Kind of a British version of Gervonta “Tank” Davis.

“It’s always personal, every opponent I fight is personal. People want to say it’s strictly business, but it’s never business. If someone is trying to put their hands on me, trying to render me unconscious, it’s never business,” said Benn.

This fight was scheduled twice before and cut short twice due to failed PED tests by Benn. The weight limit agreed upon is 160 pounds.

Eubank, a natural middleweight, has exchanged taunts with Benn for years. He recently avenged a loss to Liam Smith with a knockout victory in September 2023.

“This fight isn’t about size or weight. It’s about skill. It’s about dedication. It’s about expertise and all those areas in which I excel in,” said Eubank. “I have many, many more years of experience over Conor Benn, and that will be the deciding factor of the night.”

Because this fight was postponed twice, the animosity between the two feuding fighters has increased the attention of their fans. Both fighters are anxious to flatten each other.

“He’s another opponent in my way trying to crush my dreams. trying to take food off my plate and trying to render me unconscious. That’s how I look at him,” said Benn.

Eubank smiles.

“Whether it’s boxing, whether it’s a gun fight. Defense, offense, foot movement, speed, power. I am the superior boxer in each of those departments and so many more – which is why I’m so confident,” he said.

Supporting Bout

Former world champion Liam Smith (33-4-1, 20 KOs) tangles with Ireland’s Aaron McKenna (19-0, 10 KOs) in a middleweight fight set for 12 rounds on the Benn-Eubank undercard in London.

“Beefy” Smith has long been known as one of the fighting Smith brothers and recently lost to Eubank a year and a half ago. It was only the second time in 38 bouts he had been stopped. Saul “Canelo” Alvarez did it several years ago.

McKenna is a familiar name in Southern California. The Irish fighter fought numerous times on Golden Boy Promotion cards between 2017 and 2019 before returning to the United Kingdom and his assault on continuing the middleweight division. This is a big step for the tall Irish fighter.

It’s youth versus experience.

“I’ve been calling for big fights like this for the last two or three years, and it’s a fight I’m really excited for. I plan to make the most of it and make a statement win on Saturday night,” said McKenna, one of two fighting brothers.

Monster in L.A.

Japan’s super star Naoya “Monster” Inoue arrived in Los Angeles for last day workouts before his Las Vegas showdown against Ramon Cardenas on Sunday May 4, at T-Mobile Arena. ESPN will televise and stream the Top Rank card.

It’s been four years since the super bantamweight world champion performed in the US and during that time Naoya (29-0, 26 KOs) gathered world titles in different weight divisions. The Japanese slugger has also gained fame as perhaps the best fighter on the planet. Cardenas is 26-1 with 14 KOs.

Pomona Fights

Super featherweights Mathias Radcliffe (9-0-1) and Ezequiel Flores (6-4) lead a boxing card called “DMG Night of Champions” on Saturday April 26, at the historic Fox Theater in downtown Pomona, Calif.

Michaela Bracamontes (11-2-1) and Jesus Torres Beltran (8-4-1) will be fighting for a regional WBC super featherweight title. More than eight bouts are scheduled.

Doors open at 6 p.m. For ticket information go to: www.tix.com/dmgnightofchampions

Fights to Watch

Sat. DAZN 9 a.m. Conor Benn (23-0) vs Chris Eubank Jr. (34-3); Liam Smith (33-4-1) vs Aaron McKenna (19-0).

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