Bleacher Report - Articles by Collin Galanos

Cotto Vs. Clottey: The Aftermath

Collin Galanos — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 13:35:27 -0400

In a fight that went the way many boxing fans had probably imagined it would go, Miguel Cotto earned a close decision win over Joshua Clottey.

What boxing fans never want however, is for some unforeseen occurrence to spoil what could otherwise amount a near perfect fight between two highly competitive athletes in the most glamorous division in the sport.

There were two such occurrences.

The Puerto Rican Star sustained a nasty cut above his left eye as a result of an accidental head-butt and the Ghana native seemed hurt after he fell face-down to the canvas with a thud when Cotto attempted to shunt him off after the two got tangled up near a corner.

Had these been two lesser men the fight would probably have been called early, but to their credit, both combatants fought bravely on and gave spectators a pretty good show.

After a back and forth struggle, Cotto won a fight that was in reality, much closer than the final tallies on the official scorecards would indicate. One judge scored the fight 115-112 in Cotto’s favor while another had it 114-113 for Clotty.

The third judge however had Cotto winning 116-111, a total that ringsiders and fans alike feel was the least true of the three.

The truest score for this fight would have been 114-113 for Cotto, the difference being his first round knockdown of Clottey. Even a draw would have been acceptable, but 116-111 in favor of either fighter seems way off. It was that close.

This was the kind of fight that can spawn a trilogy to establish which of the two really is better. The inconclusive ending cries out for a rematch, which is exactly what Clottey said he wants. He deserves one because despite coming up short on the scorecards he fought well enough to earn it.

As for Miguel Cotto, the most important of the post-Margarito questions surrounding him have been answered. Does he still have what it takes to compete with the A-listers in boxing's deepest division?

The answer is a resounding Yes! Not only did he take on one of the toughest opponents he could’ve faced at this time, he fought through the adversity of a nasty eye-gash and a big strong and very durable foe who possesses boxing skills and came away with the victory.

There were times especially during the middle rounds when the fight started to resemble the Margarito affair. Clottey applied tremendous pressure scoring at times repeatedly with right hands and uppercuts and even got in some bodywork.

The fact that Cotto didn’t unravel under those circumstances even when it became clear that Clottey was not going to be discouraged in any way, shows that what happened to him against the disgraced Mexican fighter is in the past and is unlikely to affect him when the going gets rough in future battles.

In the shark-infested waters of a Welterweight division teeming with the likes of Shane Mosley, Floyd Mayweather, Andre Berto, Manny Pacquiao, Juan Manuel Marquez, and Louis Colazzo, both Cotto and Clottey have what it takes to swim with the big fish and from that perspective it is good that the both of them are still in the picture.

Throw in the fact that Paul Williams is lurking out there and the possibilities are endless.

Why Manny Pacquiao's Victory over Hatton is Good for Boxing

Collin Galanos — Mon, 04 May 2009 10:16:49 -0400

Now we know why Godzilla decided to keep his stomping grounds restricted to the vicinity of Tokyo. He was avoiding Manny Pacquiao.

Ricky Hatton should have exercised similar good judgment and stayed in Manchester. The fight wasn’t even close.

Who could’ve seen it coming? Most of the experts probably didn’t and Ricky Hatton certainly couldn’t. Sure, I saw Pacquiao winning the fight before they even stepped into the ring, but I didn’t expect it to end as devastatingly as it did, or as quickly as it did.

The difference in speed showed up right away, but the one-punch power against a strong, true Jr. Welterweight was a surprise. Looking back at it, it's easy to agree.

With Hatton’s face-first style, he practically impaled himself on Pac Man’s fist, much like an overzealous gladiator throwing himself onto the sword of his foe.

We saw it happen against Floyd Mayweather Jr. in December of 2007, and we saw it against PacMan. Pacquiao just hit the button sooner.

This is testimony to the fact that nobody puts together a fight plan as well as Freddie Roach, especially when he’s coaching a talented fighter like Pacquiao, who can do anything in a boxing ring.

We knew Freddie Roach had a battle plan, but we didn’t know how effective it would be against a retooled Hit Man. We know now.

Ricky Hatton looked more like the Hittable Man than the Hit Man. He was out before his body hit the canvas.

The Filipino fighter dashed Hatton’s hopes of becoming the world's No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter by way of a brutal second round KO.

At least Hatton didn’t suffer through eight rounds of battery like Manny’s previous victim, Oscar De La Hoya, did several months ago.

Pacquiao is, indeed, the pound-for-pound king, even if Floyd Mayweather Jr. announced his return to boxing.

With the way that things turned out, the stage for a fresh new drama is unfolding with Hattton out of the picture.

Perhaps the boxing gods will grant fans what they truly want. I can see the card’s title now, “Pacquiao vs Matweather—a Clash of Kings."

Mayweather is undefeated and Pacquiao is seemingly unbeatable. What makes the matchup more interesting is the vulnerability that Pacquiao showed with his two close calls against Marquez, the man whom Mayweather will be fighting this July.

Pacquiao made quick work of Hatton and De La Hoya, just like Mayweather.

Regardless of what fights await us, fans are in for some great matches. Mayweather-Pacquiao or Pacquiao-Marquez would both be amazing.

Some day we may even get to see Pacquiao-Godzilla. Smart money would be on Pacquiao.

Manny Pacquiao vs. Ricky Hatton: The Way I See It

Collin Galanos — Sat, 02 May 2009 13:38:21 -0400

The most anticipated fight of the year is upon us. For the serious boxing fan, not to mention fans of both of the fighters involved in the main event, this must be like all of the major holidays rolled into one come early.

What I personally find interesting is, there’s no villain of this piece, which is the role that’s usually embraced by the former pound-for-pound king.

To paraphrase one of my favorite songs, “There ain't no good guy, there aint no bad guy, There’s only Ricky Hatton and Manny Pacquiao and they just won’t agree” once they’ve come together in the squared circle in Las Vegas, and we’ll want it no other way.

Usually a bad guy is needed just as much as a good guy to sell an event of this nature, an event of this magnitude. After all, there’s got to be some varmint that is just itching to get what’s coming to him and we’d gladly shell out a fraction of our hard earned wages just for the pleasure of seeing him get what he deserves while the whole world watches.

Therein lies the beauty of viewing these things live. But the lack of a black hat-wearing scoundrel does nothing to diminish the appeal of this venue. The popularity of these two nice guys alone, coupled with the expectation of mind-blowing excitement is enough to sell this fight far more effectively than a truckload of hype can.

So when worlds collide in the “Battle of East and West,” there can’t help but be an explosion. This fight promises to make the Cinco De Mayo affair between Oscar De La Hoya and Floyd Mayweather Jr back in 2007 look like peace talks. Come to think of it, that’s what Oscar and li’l Floyd’s meeting looked like anyhow.

That having been said, only one man can win. I know that’s a cliché, but there’s scarcely another way to put it. As well liked as these guys are, especially by their own Countrymen, Hatton from England, and Pacquiao from The Philippines, nobody wants to see this end in a draw. So without further ado, here goes my attempt at the breakdowns.

Manny Pacquiao...

...has got to treat the ropes as though they are lined with a corrosive acid; He cannot allow is back to be on friendly terms with them. He also cannot allow Hatton to push him into any of the corners. The Hit man does his best work when his opponent has run out of road.

Sure, Floyd Mayweather Jr. got away with it verses Hatton; but FMJ is defensively sound enough to make it work...that’s just Floyd. Any other fighter who allows himself to languish in a corner against Ricky Hatton would rue the day—and the night too. That’s not Manny Pacquiao’s fight.

Pacquiao will have to keep the action in the middle of the ring and he’ll have to establish to Hatton right away that there’s a price to be paid for trying to get in close and the toll aint gonna be cheap!

He’ll have to use that right jab of his as a long-range weapon and the beauty of the jab is that it can be used as an offensive weapon as well as it can be used defensively.

Pacquiao has a good jab but at no time can he afford to be lazy with it, otherwise Hatton will slip to one side and bang him to the body. For the sake of polite company, I’ll resist the temptation to put it exactly the way that Freddie Roach uttered it near the end of the first episode of the 24/7 series; “I don’t want him to touch your body. Don’t let him touch you.”

He can take a page out of the notebook of the only man who has beaten the Hit Man in a pro fight, throw the jab quickly, make it stiff, and don’t wait around for return fire. Once FMJ decided to break out the jab, it made an effective tool for keeping Ricky at a comfortable range, and Pacman is quite capable of doing the same.

As Hatton will no doubt move in on Pacquiao and try to keep it on the inside where he can smother his man and get his own shots off, Pacquiao will have to give him angles.

Moving straight back won’t help. In his last two fights Manny showed the ability to pivot well and literally box circles around his opponents, so he should have that covered. However, you can be sure that Floyd Jr’s. daddy won't miss a trick.

Ricky Hatton...

...will have to enforce the point to Manny Pacquiao that “this weight class is my home and you’re not welcome to it.” In order to do that Manchester’s favorite son will have to take the fight to the Filipino sensation right away and make it as uncomfortable for him as possible.

Nobody does this better than Ricky. He can roughhouse well enough to give some of the top guys in MMA fits. Look for Hatton to be as aggressive as ever, tempered with caution and more attention to defense. If he’s learned anything from the elder Mayweather, expect to see more head movement as he advances.

If he’s learned anything from his loss to the younger Mayweather, expect to see a less bullish, more controlled Ricky Hatton. Increased speed is something that team Hatton worked on in the gym. He is not going to out-speed Pacquiao, it ain't gonna happen, but being a tad fast faster in this fight can’t hurt the Hit Man either.

Having been here before only to be denied, he may be all the more determined the second time around.

There are no common opponents between these two combatants, but they both did better than they were expected to do in their previous encounters. Pacquiao dismantled Oscar De La Hoya in shocking fashion.

So brutal and one-sided was the assault, that, Oscar, who owns one of the prettiest faces in boxing, and that’s even if you include female boxers, came away looking like Quasimodo's ugly brother, after an eighth-round stoppage.

Hatton took a little longer to get the job done in an affair that was also quite one-sided, an 11th-round stoppage of Paul Malignaggi, which should serve as a booster shot for a fighter coming back from a recent KO loss to Floyd Mayweather Jr.

Ricky can take heart in the fact that it took the best to beat him and possibly nobody else will, not on his home turf of 140 pounds, where he remains undefeated anyway.

In Pacquiao’s case much has been made of the fact, after the fact, that the Golden boy was so much tarnish last December having come into that fight at a weight that he had outgrown ages before.

Be that as it may, it was plain to see that in the fight with Oscar and the one previous to that with David Diaz, two divisions south at 135 pounds, that Pac Man’s most important attributes are upwardly mobile, so look out Ricky Hatton!

Similarly, Hattons beating of Malignaggi also is not without it’s criticisms. Malignaggi’s punch couldn’t make a mold of jello quiver and before that, Hatton seemed to have jitters against journeyman Jaun Lazcano and before that he got knocked out by Mayweather Jr.

Ricky Hatton cannot afford to have FMJ flashbacks when the going gets tough, and it will. If he starts to unravel at any time, like his namesake, Pac Man will gobble him up.

Trainer vs. Trainer

The burden of proof is on the flamboyant Mayweather Sr. to show that he can out-train Freddie Roach”, the man he has made up Rhymes about. It’s nice to be a poet, but the ability to speak in rhymes won’t help his cause one bit once that first bell rings.

Besides, Ali did it 100 times better.

Throughout his career as a trainer, FMS has moved from fighter to fighter and had a measure of success with some of them, most notably Oscar De La Hoya whom he developed into a two-fisted fighter from a left hook specialist and guided to victory in two of his most important engagements, which were both won by KO against rugged fighters, Fernando Vargas and Ricardo Myorga.

But he has never set up his tent with any one fighter long enough to see what his true long-term potential might yield. Still, he’s good. He’s very good.

Meanwhile, headquartered across the ring will be team Pacquiao, skippered by Freddie Roach, whom Mayweather Sr. Laughingly calls “the joke coach Roach.” Have no illusions about this. When it comes to Freddie’s craft it’s no laughing matter.

During their time together, he has brought Pacquiao along from, Boxer-puncher to well-rounded fighter. The two of them have worked so well together that they can probably read each others thoughts by now.

The all-around edge goes to team Pacquiao coming into this fight, the strongest factor for either team in the equation being Pacquiao's dazzling speed; but the mystery of what the new team Hatton can produce remains to be seen and it’s not long 'til we find out.

As the ticks of the clock bring us closer to showdown time, (from that point of view) Ricky Hatton’s chances begin to look better. He’s a live wire of an underdog. Therein lies the intrigue, therein lies the suspense, therein, lies the allure of high-profile boxing.

Can Floyd Mayweather Teach Ricky Hatton How To Beat Manny Pacquiao?

Collin Galanos — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 09:11:58 -0400

Pacquiao vs. Hatton: Head to Head

May 2 is fast approaching and for those of you who have been living in a cave deep in the nether regions of nowhere, that is the day that boxing fans the world over are waiting for. Two of the sports most popular icons are set to square off against each other in the ring battle that has been dubbed “The Battle of East and West”.

The Principals

The man from the East in this venue is none other than Manny Pacquiao, pride of the Philippines, (an understatement I’m sure) division hopping warrior aka “Pac man”, the currently recognized pound for pound king in all of Boxingdom and coming in from the West is the Pride of Manchester, (another understatement) king of the 140 pounders,aka “the Hit Man” and seeker of the “Holy Grail” of boxing, the pound for pound crown, Englishman Ricky Hatton.

Trainer vs Trainer

It’s probably apparent by now to all but the casual or by the way fan that trainers Freddie Roach and Floyd Mayweather Sr. have been locked in an ongoing battle to see which one of them can out-macho the other.

They’ll each be afforded a new opportunity come May 2nd when their charges go head to head. Roach, who has had a winning formula with Pacquiao over their many years together is confident that East will conquer West and Mayweather Sr. seems just as confident that when the smoke clears it is the West that will emerge victorious.

This is as much a battle between trainers as it is between boxers. While Pacquiao and Hatton do battle on a physical level on the night of the second, they’ll be the pieces on the board game of Roach and Mayweather: a game which has already commenced play on the training grounds and will conclude when one combatant’s hand is raised and this one is in the books. How will this play out and who will win?

Records and Quality of Opposition

Manny Pacquiao sports a pro record of 48-3 (KO 36) and hasn’t lost since dropping a decision to Mexican legend Erik “El Terrible” Morales in March of 2005, a loss he has twice avenged by stopping Morales in their two follow up battles.

The other two losses on his record came early in his career before he had developed into the unstoppable force that he is today and therefore have no bearing on here and now.

He owns victories over other Mexican legend Marco Antonio Barerra whom he beat twice, and legend in the making Juan Manuel Marquez over whom he holds one draw and one razor thin victory and his drubbing of Oscar De La Hoya last December is still a fresh memory.

Ricky Hatton has a record of 45-1 (KO 32). He has beaten former 140 pound Monarch Kostya Tszyu, tough Mexican Jose Louis Castillo, slick Welter weight Louis Collazzo, and other top 140 pounders, Juan Urango and Paul Malignagggi.

He is still on the mend following his first and only loss after being knocked out by Floyd Mayweather Jr. (his connection to Hatton’s current trainer should be obvious) in December of 2007.

Both fighters have impressive records and the numbers are close in terms of quantity of bouts fought including victories and stoppages. While Hatton has beaten bigger men than Pacquiao has, his ring rivals have ranged from average to good or just plain tough save Tszyu.

Pac man has been successful against exceptional fighters in various weight classes. Hatton has only fought North of 140 pounds twice and both times he ended up looking like he’d been exposed even though he did get the nod against Collazo.

Pacquiao also looked great in his destruction of the Golden boy at 147 pounds and while it could be argued that De La Hoya was a drained out shell in that fight it was obvious that Pacquiao’s speed and power are upwardly mobile and that’s bad news for Ricky.

Edge: Pacquiao.

Age and Physical Equipment

Both fighters are 30 years old with Hatton being the senior of the two by a few weeks so they’re pretty even there. Pacquiao is a southpaw with a fast right jab and good power in both hands.

He uses his canvas space well, carried around on sturdy legs as he moves in and out on opponents, while dealing out punishment with speedy combinations. Hatton is naturally the bigger man and should be physically stronger on fight night. He is a pressure fighter who only engages forward gears. His foot speed is underrated, as he is able to close the distance between himself and his opponents quickly and is good at cutting off the ring.

Even the very mobile Floyd Jr. had trouble keeping him at a comfortable distance in the early going of their fight. Ricky has good two-fisted power and does some of the meanest body work in the business.

When they meet however, expect Ricky’s raw aggression and roughhousing to make it a tough fight but Manny has his fleetness of hands and feet to cause problems for Ricky.

Edge: Even

Strengths and Weaknesses

Both fighters seem to be able to give as well as they get. Ricky Hatton will be the strongest man Manny Pacquiao has had to deal with in the ring. And Manny will arguably be Ricky’s most Dangerous Opponent to date. Pacquiao is no Floyd Mayweather Jr. Or Sweet Pea Whittaker in the defense department but that does not make him an easy target either.

His constant head movement side-to-side motion and angles can frustrate most fighters. However, he does have a tendency to throw caution to the wind in the heat of battle and is subject to getting hit by timed counters.

Marquez was able to exploit this flaw repeatedly in both fights. Hatton However has displayed a tendency to lunge in behind lead punches while leaving himself wide open to get caught while moving forward as demonstrated when he paid the price for doing so against mayweather.

He can’t afford to walk through the fire against Pac Man either otherwise this will end for him like the Mayweather affair did. Hatton is also prone to cuts, and bruises easily around the eyes. This also can be a problem against Pacquiao who doesn’t seem to have the same problem.

Edge: Pacquiao

The Intangibles

Pacquiao and Roach are coming into this fight supremely confident following successful leaps to multiple weight classes, which included knockout victories over bigger men like Oscar De La Hoya and David Diaz.

Yes you’ll hear the arguments that Oscar was old and wasted and Diaz has all the mobility of a tree trunk but he still looked spectacular beating two bigger men who were top fighters in their respective weight classes by stoppage no less.

In addition to Roach Pacquiao now has former World Heavyweight champion Michael Moorer as the second voice in his corner. Like Pacquiao, Moorer is also a lefty and who better to give advice than a fellow southpaw who has had success on the highest level in the sport. This can only be a plus for team Pacquiao.

Most of the unknowns going into this fight surround team Hatton. Ricky hasn’t looked quite the same since losing to Floyd Mayweather Jr. Have no illusions, he fought well against the former pound for pound ruler. Just because he came up short in that outing doesn’t make him a chump, he was in against the man who was regarded as the best in the sport and went 9+ rounds with him. No disgrace there.

It’s his performance in the two fights he’s had since then that may leave questions as to how badly he was affected especially in a mental capacity as a result of that brutal knock out loss. In his first fight back He beat tough Hispanic fighter Juan Lazcano who is far from being in the elite column but had some troubling moments along the way.

For his next fight which was the last one for him until May 2, he jettisoned his former trainer Billy Graham and brought in Floyd Mayweather Sr. who has had an ongoing rivalry with Freddie Roach, his competitor for the I’m-the-best-damn-trainer-in-the-whole-stinkin’-world- so- in-your-face award, hence the sub-plot to this drama. Even though Hatton won by late stoppage the fight with Malignaggi (his most recent opponent) doesn’t tell us much.

How much did he improve under Mayweather’s care? While Malignaggi is regarded as a good fighter he has no power to speak of (5 KOs in 25 pro fights) and he fought the wrong kind of fight against Hatton. Pac man never fights the wrong kind of fight against anyone unless you count the first Morales fight and he has not made the same mistake since.

My opinion is that Hatton would have won the Malignaggi fight anyway, with or without Mayweather Sr. in his corner.

Also of note is the fact that Malignaggi wanted to continue at the time it was halted. His corner tossed in the towel after they realized it was pointless to let him continue in a fight Paulie wasn’t winning and lacked the power to change anything.

Much of Hatton’s success will depend on what Mayweather has been able to teach him for this upcoming fight and this fight alone.

Will Ricky’s speed have improved enough to make a difference? Does Mayweather have a game plan that can work against Pacquiao and if so can Ricky, make it work? Will Ricky’ defense have been polished enough to deal with Manny’s best stuff?

Has the demon of Floyd Jr. been exorcised completely enough to not be a factor for Hatton against a fighter that can give him fits? On the other hand, if a new improved model of the Hit man rolls out of the workshop will pacquiao be able to make the needed adjustments? Will Manny be able to avoid taking punishment to the body? Will Hattons size and strength be too much for Pacquiao?

These are all questions that can only be answered on fight night but for now it’s going to come down what kind of Ricky Hatton is unwrapped.

Edge: Pacquiao

Conclusion

This fight is Pacquiao’s to win and he should win it if he continues to do what he’s been doing all along, that is, use his speed and power effectively. Hatton could win this fight if he comes in with improved defense and Heightened speed coupled with his well-known work rate and effective aggressiveness.

If Mayweayther is able to mold Hatton into the fighting machine that he boast’s he will then he’ll have created a monster that would make Doctor Frankenstein look like a kid with a wind-up toy. However that is a pretty big if especially considering the time frame in which he has had to work on a fighter who is probably set in his ways.

If I had to pick right now under threat of pain or death, (I’m allergic to pain and death) I’d have to go with Pacquiao by late stoppage. Still Let’s not count Ricky out just yet because he is always extremely dangerous and a serious threat to any fighter who faces him at 140 pounds. Pacquiao included.