Tomorrow, tomorrow: It's only a day away
by SC
on Dec 7, 2007 7:11 PM EST
in News
Tomorrow night's welterweight title fight between pound-for-pound king Floyd Mayweather, Jr., and 140-pound champion Ricky Hatton may not be quite as big as Mayweather-de la Hoya, but it's big. Really, really, really big.
In fact, what makes Mayweather-Hatton even bigger than Floyd's bout with Oscar is the international aspect of it all. Ricky Hatton is a national hero in England, a superstar beyond any American boxer in the States, even Oscar. And his American popularity has increased in the last few years, too. He's a boxing celebrity over here, if not a superstar.
Mayweather is the heir to Oscar's throne as far as revenue goes. His nickname (for himself) is "Money" Mayweather, and he's earned it. Oscar had done huge money before, with great fighters like Trinidad and Mosley, and great opponents like Mayorga and Vargas. But it was with Floyd Mayweather, past Oscar's prime, that he set all-time records.
Mayweather is a combination of the Vargas/Mayorga dynamic and the great fighter dynamic. He's a trash talker that people love to hate (or, in some cases, just love), and he's also the best boxer in the world. Boxing doesn't often get a guy like Mayweather. Roy Jones, Jr., had a similar demeanor and comparable skills at his peak, and he was arguably the biggest star of the 1990s. But he never approached the numbers Mayweather did with Oscar, or the numbers expected for tomorrow night's fight.
Mayweather: Experience Will Count
For Floyd, he has a lot of past fights to draw upon on Saturday. Hatton's plan is to bully and pressure Mayweather, after Oscar de la Hoya said that Floyd doesn't respond well to pressure.
Honestly, I think Oscar's opinion is only sort of true. It wasn't really pressure that had de la Hoya performing well, but a very effective jab, and, more importantly, the fact that Mayweather has no business fighting at junior middleweight.
Is Hatton's jab good enough to do what Oscar did for half the fight? I don't think so. Actually, pretty much everything I want to say right now was already said by our own Matt Miller in his debate with Ian McNeilly at Boxing on the Box, so let me just quote Matt:
The best pressure attack against Floyd, ever, came from Jose Luis Castillo. And Mayweather won those two fights. He didn't win them easily, but he won them.
Hatton: Opportunity of a Lifetime
Fellow Mancurian Noel Gallagher said in 1995, at the peak of Oasis' popularity, "This is it. It doesn't get any better than this. This is it."
(What's the Story) Morning Glory? had just been released, a massive hit on both sides of the pond that established them as one of the bands of the 1990s. They were the biggest band in the world.
Ricky Hatton, tomorrow night, will be in the world's biggest prize fight. This is it, Hitman. It doesn't get any better than this.
Of course, Oasis creatively and commercially went downhill after '95. Most are expecting Hatton to go downhill starting at the opening bell tomorrow.
How can Hatton win? Christmas miracle, maybe. Look, as Roger Mayweather said in a recent ESPN.com chat, every fighter has a chance. But Hatton's chances rely not only on him giving a performance that dwarfs that of his career-defining victory over Kostya Tszyu, but Mayweather being a little bit off. Floyd would have to turn in one of his worst performances.
I'm not knocking Hatton. He's a very good fighter. He's better than Gatti, better than Baldomir, and probably about on par with the Castillo that Mayweather beat.
But Floyd is such a defensive master, and such a chess king once the fight is underway. Ricky Hatton and Billy Graham both say they've seen fighters like Mayweather before, but they haven't. Not even close. Hatton knows Floyd is fast, but I believe he's going to be overwhelmed by Mayweather's footwork, defense and punching accuracy.
I don't think Floyd will knock Ricky out, but I think he's going to dominate the fight.
But upsets happen in boxing. Huge upsets. Don't focus on Rocky, because that's not what this is. This is real life. "The Cinderella Man," Jim Braddock, made history once upon a time. And there are countless other stories that fill the sweet science's history with colorful tales of little engines that could -- and did.
Is Ricky Hatton going to join the ranks of the legendary underdogs, or is he just the 39th win in the career of "Pretty Boy" Floyd?
The sun'll come out tomorrow. And the story will unfold at the MGM Grand.
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Analysis: Mayweather-Hatton Slambang
By Mortz C. Ortigoza
It was a slam-bang where every body was breathless since Ricky was holding for his dear life - thanks to his incessant clinching. He was fading, and his head was getting hit by looping right and left hooks from his opponent.
There was a time when his enemy unleashes a flurry of undefended crystal clear
eight solid uppercut combination at his body before it was punctuated by a jarring 1-2 right and left hooks at his face.
His opponent exploited speed, body and head movements, and his long reach. This opponent was ain't Floyd Mayweather, Jr. yet.
He was Luis Collazo. And the spectacle was May 13, 2006.
For the first time Hatton explored the Welterweight Division (140.1 to 147 lbs) from his natural and perennial perched in the Super Lightweight Division (140 lbs). Here he struggled dangerously and scarily.
The above boxing drama ensued on the 11th and 12th rounds.
Some of the earlier rounds had similar scenarios. Collazo was undisputedly awarded with six of the 12 rounds.
However, his fault: he was tentative and shelled himself too much at the first four rounds. And worst, he was knockdown at the first round to what my Sunday School teacher told me when I was a tot: "All things work together for good, Hallelujah!". Indeed it was hallelujah for Hatton since the poor Collazo backpedaled when he was overtaken by a left cross cum pushed that palpably outbalanced him. It was counted a 10-8 knockdown that will continually haunt Collazo in the after math of the tussle.
Collazo treated Hatton in a war of attrition where he earned six of the 12 rounds. Reminiscent of Iwo Jima inWorld War II.
But Collazo is ain't Mayweather, Jr. The latter is 2 or 3 times faster than the former.
At his whims and caprices, he could hit different parts of his opponents' body and heads with a technician's accuracy.
His feint is an orgasm to watch as it acts as messenger of death for his lethal hooks that
come from either of his fists.
It chopped Diego Corrales five times to the canvas. It made minced meat out of the defenseless Arturo Gatti. His other blinding combos made HBO Compubox attests that he earned more hits than Oscar de la Hoya.
After he unleashed his flurry of hooks to the body, Hatton fights like a hot slut as he clinches, embraces, and caresses with passion at the frustration and expense of his opponents.
This hot babe's actuation should be a test for Referee Joe Cortez and the rules provided by Nevada Athletic Commission and the Association of Boxing Commission. The rules penalized excessive clinching that carry a point deduction.
In the 12th round, a physically sluggish Hatton survived a knock down from Collazo's left hook. Luck made him fell against the latter that he eventually embraced instinctively. An embraced that no man could put asunder except the referee who parted them off after they both fell on the dais.
It was a lopsided round in favor of Collazo.
It was deja vu to Sugar Ray Leonard beating to pulp Thomas Hearns in the 12th Round on their rematch where one of the judges gave 10-8 without a knock down.
This was the same score Collazo should earned on the said round. But probably those three judges (or was it two since Judge Leo Garcel gave a slim 114-
113 score for Hatton?) and HBO scorer were too wary to court controversy despite the imprimatur of boxing bodies on this kind of ruling.
But comes December 9, 2007, Hatton returned again to this hap hardly chartered Welterweight territory where he is pitted to a bigger with a long reached opponent who is two or three times faster and better than Luis Collazo.
So, who wanna bet?
(Send comment/s to totomortz@yahoo.com)
by jag head on Dec 7, 2007 7:29 PM EST 0 recs
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