After winning the world heavyweight title in 1964 from Sony Liston by a stunning 7th rd TKO and changing his name from Cassius Clay to Muhammad Ali on embracing the Muslim faith, Ali announced that he was planning to defend his title in a bizarre one-night spectacle unheard of at the time. As Ali proposed it, he will take on three contenders in one night for ten rounds each in a 3-min. per round with a 30 minutes rest in-between fights. Having claimed earlier that he is “The Greatest” and to show off that he really meant what he claims, he lined up to fight first Floyd Patterson, a US 1956 Melbourne Olympics gold medalist and a two-time world heavyweight champion, then Ernie Terrell who stands 6’6” and one of the top contenders at the time and last, Canadian George Chuvalo, the one he called the “Great White Hope”. To show that he was serious with his plans, he stressed further that whoever beats him, wins his world title. Knowing that this has not been done before, Ali made it even more interesting by promising to retire after he beats all three men. However, without any of the three fighters he named showing interest to the plan and promoters willing to gamble on it, Ali’s “three-fight, one-night” spectacle fizzled into thin air and all these can now just be read in the pages of history.
Reminiscent of that failed Ali one-night spectacle as conceived by the self-proclaimed “The Greatest” himself, the coming De La Hoya-Pacquiao fight would in every sense equal it in scope and impact. Unlike Ali’s, this is not any of the fighters’ creation or of their promoter and coaches’ but by the initiation of the popular and durable American boxing commentator Larry Merchant. Mr. Merchant foresees that such fight between these two popular and exciting fighters, regardless of their size and weight could set records of global proportions in revenues that can be expected and would surely be a blockbuster of a fight. But where this fight will have its focus most is in the difference of the physical statistics and bio-data of the protagonists.
While Oscar De La Hoya started his pro career and won his first world title as a jr. lightweight (130 lb.) and reached as far as to fight and win a title in the middleweight (160) division, Manny Pacquiao started his as just a light-flyweight (108) and fought for the first time as a lightweight (135) only last June. And while De La Hoya had been an Olympian, Pacquiao is not, but lately tasted what the Olympic Games is all about when he served as the flag-bearer of his country the Philippines in the just concluded Beijing Olympics. And with their fight set to be at 147 lb. or welterweight division, it will also mark Pacquiao’s first venture into this level since starting professionally at 108 or a jump of 39 lb. Such that by imagining his sudden jump to 147 lb. would surely raised eyebrows in disbelief considering that his size would put him at a very disadvantage against a much taller and a fine fighter like De La Hoya. Somehow, he is not fazed by this huge odd, yet it now scares many of his fans, but not this writer.
As far as this writer knows, no fighter in history has fought three times in succession within a span of just 9 months and in three different divisions as Pacquiao is scheduled now. Yet despite all these odds, he feels confident and is even sure that he can take the challenge. As he has earlier admitted, he can beat De La Hoya and this writer believes so. Since being propelled to being a world-class fighter after winning his first world title in the flyweight division in Thailand and especially after knocking out Barrera in 2003, Pacquiao has never retreated from a fight no matter who his opponent is and how great the odds are. When asked if when he wants to fight, he usually answers, “anytime, anywhere” that it has almost become his trademark. And just like Ali, he fears no one and is one who takes every fight seriously and without letup in training.
Looking back to Ali’s proposed spectacle way back 44 years ago, had it happen, this writer believes that Ali could’ve easily turned out triumphant in all three fights. Based from his actual fights with the tree fighters later in his title defenses, Ali could have easily outclassed, outboxed and annihilated all of them with even more extra efforts to punish them had Ali wished to. But being a true entertainer that he was, and to give fans their money’s worth of seeing him show off his vast excellent boxing skills in the ring, he prolonged each fight. Being shorter and smaller than him but with a good boxing skill, Ali could have easily finish off Patterson in just four rounds. Then, Ali could have rush up Terrell with so many different solid punches; jabs, straights, uppercuts, hooks, etc. to force him to retire in six or eight rounds from cuts and bruises. Against Chuvalo, well, as shown in their actual fight, Ali got tired hitting him for 15 rounds without putting him down even just once. So, Ali has just to coast to a 10-round decision against him and still come out the winner overall against all three. With unlimited stamina to power him during the early stage in his career, Ali could have even fought up to 20 rounds without getting tired. Somehow, with no interested parties then willing to listen to Ali or to promote it at the time, such unique one-night spectacle would just now play in the minds of those who knew and longed for it, just like in the minds of this writer.
(To be continued…)
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The Greatest After Ali (Part 8) If ever Manny Pacquiao accepts the terms regardless of the sharing as laid out by the Golden Boy Promotions for their “dream fight” with Oscar De La Hoya to take place, two conditions governing the fight contract that are unprecedented in the history of the sport would surely attract attention.Read more…
