"...and he is gradually reconfiguring de la Hoya's beautiful face!"

Reviewed by H. Bala, 2010-01-25

GRANDES PELEAS Vol. 21, and the across-the-board theme to this thing should really have been "...and a legend must fall." Except that Rocky Lockridge didn't do his part. Anyway, this DVD replays Manny Pacquiao vs. Oscar de la Hoya, Wilfredo Gomez vs. Rocky Lockridge, and Julio Cesar Chavez vs. Oscar de la Hoya II - as we watch the sun set on two hall-of-fame champions, the great Julio Cesar Chavez and the very good Oscar de la Hoya. Wilfredo Gomez should've had the sun set on him, too, but somehow his big heart (and dirty pool tactics) allows him to survive long enough to get that good old hometown decision.

- Manny Pacquiao vs. Oscar de la Hoya (December 6, 2008)

There's a sort of revisionist history being invoked regarding the de la Hoya-Pacquiao match. I remember that the prevailing pre-fight notion was that Oscar, the naturally bigger man, would simply impose his strength and length on the Pacman. No one figured that de la Hoya would enter the ring so weight-drained, thereby costing him his edge. Every casual boxing fan knows what happened next, how Pacman dismantled the Golden Boy and did so effortlessly, highlighted by his unbelievable barrage in the seventh round. The ultimate humiliation came when Oscar's corner retired him in the corner after round eight. I remember three quotes coming from this unexpected blowout: Pacquiao's trainer Freddie Roach's "He can't handle your speed, son!"; HBO commentator Jim Lampley's "Manny Pacquiao looks largely untouched... and he is gradually reconfiguring de la Hoya's beautiful face!"; and commentator Larry Merchant's "Death by a thousand left hands."

So, today, critics and analysts tend to dismiss Manny's win over Oscar, labeling the Golden Boy as already "shopworn" at the time of this fight. Later, these cats would also degrade Manny's 2nd round knockout of Ricky Hatton, saying that Hatton was past his prime and wasn't really more than a club fighter to begin with. What this suggests to me, instead, is that maybe, just maybe, Pacquaio is so spectacularly good that he makes his opponents look bad. The only two exceptions, really, have been Marquez and, in their first contest, Morales. Now that Manny's beaten up powerhouse welterweight Miguel Cotto, the word circulating is that Cotto was already damaged goods, thanks to his earlier fight with Antonio Margarito. Whatever. I expect the naysayers to say the same thing, rinse and repeat, should Manny beat sturdy Joshua Clottey in March.

The de la Hoya-Pacquiao fight was one-sided from the get-go. Pacquiao's speed is just unreal, and Oscar simply couldn't catch up or time him. Oscar also couldn't deal with Manny's unorthodox in-and-out movement or the power in both hands. Manny made him look old and the rounds soon began to resemble a sparring session. As someone said, it was like "a mean little bully beating up a big bully." There were times when only Oscar's pride kept him from going down. This fight wasn't as gripping or competitive as Manny's earlier run-ins with Barrera, Morales, and Marquez, but this was the one which vaulted Manny to superstar status and gave him an even broader crossover appeal. I take one thing back: Manny's rumbles with Barrera were pretty much one-sided as well.

He's such a remarkable fighter. And I say "fighter," and not "boxer" - even though Pacquiao has developed into a pretty well-rounded boxer - because this guy simply loves to fight. He's relentless, a two-fisted whirling locomotion careening around in the squared circle. And he's always, always looking for the knockout. It blows my mind whenever I think of his starting out fighting at 106 pounds and now he's competing and crunching legit opponents at the junior-welter and welterweight divisions. Blame Erik Morales who, as the rumor goes, after outpointing the Filipino slugger, dismissed him as someone who, if not for his dynamite left hand, would just be an ordinary fighter. This apparently motivated trainer Freddie Roach to remake his guy into a complete pugilist, along the way converting his ordinary right hand into a powerful weapon almost as potent as his vaunted left. The right hand is so good now that it even has a nickname ("The Manila Ice"). Pacquiao then went on to beat the crapcakes out of Morales, not once but two times. Sometimes, you just got to keep your mouth shut.

Another thing that's mind-boggling is how well the guy handles distractions. If you've checked out HBO's 24/7 shows, then you know just how crazy Pacquiao's life is, in and out of the ring. And he holds up so well to pressure. In fact, he seems to thrive in it and seems to really relish representing his country. When he's not boxing, he's either starring in movies, recording CDs, or running for office in his native Philippines, where he is revered as an icon. And it doesn't hurt his Q-rating that Manny Pacquiao is also humble, unassuming, and soft-spoken.

Oscar de la Hoya, who was already in the twilight of his very good career, later admitted that he didn't have it anymore. But the Golden Boy is already a shoe-in for Canastota, never mind that he's fallen short of beating the likes of Shane Mosley, Bernard Hopkins, and, now, Pacquiao. You have to appreciate Oscar for not having ducked anyone. So is his fight with the Pacman worth watching? It depends. If you're a fan of Manny, then you're in for eight breathtaking rounds and a reaffirmation of his greatness. If you're a fan of de la Hoya, this is really bittersweet stuff. Me, I'm a fan of both guys, so I saw this thing live with mixed feelings. But it's time for Oscar to hang up his gloves, if he hasn't already.

For Manny Pacquiao, though, the sky's still the limit. After embarrassing Oscar, he would later demolish Hatton and Cotto, and now the question surfacing is where do you place him in the ranks of the All Time Greats? We'll soon know in the coming months. A future bout with Floyd Mayweather may have been temporarily derailed but it seems inevitable, especially if Pacquiao gets thru Clottey and Mayweather survives Mosley (if that fight gets signed). If there's one cat out there who may be able to cope with Manny's combination of electric speed, awkward fluidity, and concussive power, Money Mayweather may be the guy. Or maybe not.

- Wilfredo Gomez vs. Rocky Lockridge (May 19, 1985)

In a perfect world as envisioned by Rocky Lockridge, he would've won this fight. He wouldn't have stopped fighting when, late in the rounds, he was well on his way to knocking out the great Wilfredo Gomez. In a perfect world, he would've retained his WBA Jr. Lightweight belt. But then here's where you insert that quote about the plans of mice and men effing things up (I'm paraphrasing...).

Back in the day when boxing still went fifteen rounds, back when boxing still had the respect of the major networks, NBC unveiled this gem of a fight. It started out as a tremendous toe-to-toe you-hit-me, now-I-hit-you kind of scrap. Just no let-up. It started with Lockridge stalking Gomez and strafing the boricua with good cracking shots. With Gomez merely months removed from a KO loss to Azumah Nelson, there were murmurs about whether the great man was washed up. Well, Gomez and Lockridge measured each other's stones that night. But Gomez was the one moving up in weight, and Rocky was a whale of a puncher, and his hammering fists took their toll.

Gomez was game, and competitive gamesmanship would dictate that he get his own back, whether its by a left hook occasionally venturing south of the border, or a punch here and there thrown after the bell or on a break, and, when his energy was flagging, an untied shoestring. But, to the dismay of the partisan Puerto Rican crowd, Lockridge kept on having his way from the middle to the late rounds. After watching Gomez administer so many smackdowns, it's a bit surreal to see Gomez on the receiving end. In round eight fight commentator Ferdie Pacheco asks, "When was the last time you saw a great champion like Wilfredo Gomez flail away like he just did at this thing?" (Marv Albert is his co-commentator, by the way, in case you think he only does basketball games.)

There were several chances for the Lockridge to get Gomez out of there late in the fight (round 10 had Gomez perceptively shook up), except that the Puerto Rican's mean body shots must've begun to sap Lockridge's reserves because the champ suddenly stopped fighting or when he threw punches, they were winging and wide and missed horribly. Give the exhausted Gomez his due, he hung around and hung around and then actually stole most of the last four or five rounds. I still don't know that he deserved to win the thing, but Lockridge can only blame himself for not having what it takes when it mattered most.

- Julio Cesar Chavez vs. Oscar de la Hoya II (September 18, 1998)

Ah, back in the day, when the Golden Boy's future was still this brightly gleaming thing. When the gold medalist from East L.A. rematched the legendary Julio Cesar Chavez, the Mexican fans were still steadfastly in Chavez's corner and Oscar still considered as something of a sellout, trading on his good looks for the white bread crossover appeal.

But say what you will about de la Hoya, the homeboy from the barrio was a born fighter and he meant to put a hurting on Chavez. However, over-the-hill el gran campion may be, but Chavez offered a good accounting on that night, his resistance giving de la Hoya some grief. Ultimately the Golden Boy proved to be too young and too skilled and too much for Chavez. The great old man would fail to come of his corner for round 9, citing a bleeding mouth or tongue or something (but I suspect his feelings were more hurt). Interestingly, Oscar would also stay on his stool instead of coming out for round 9 in his fight with Pacquiao. Sweet Science, occasionally, thy name is irony.