In this weeks ‘Left-Hook Lounge’ segment it would probably be more appropriate if we named it the “Oscar Hour”. Why?, well, because of all the questions received from various fight fans, it was Oscar De La Hoya’s name that consistently came up. At any rate, aside from the Oscar chronicles, we’ll also take a glimpse into a few questions that ponder the future of Paul Williams, Manny Pacquaio, Ricky Hatton, and perceived pretender turned true contender, Sergio Mora as well. Kicking off this weeks Q&A session, we head to the Sunshine State….
Freddie O. (Boca Raton, Fl): Now that Hatton has decided not to face Oscar, how likely is it that we will see him face Pacquiao?, and how do you see this fight panning out?
Vivek Wallace (ESB): From day one I found the Oscar/Hatton fight talks to be exactly that….talk! We’ve long known since the Collazo/Hatton fight, and certainly since the Hatton/Mayweather fight that Ricky doesn’t wear those extra 7 lbs too well. You couple that with the fact that we’ve still YET to see Oscar make it back down to the 147 lb weight limit in years, and all of a sudden you have to ask yourself who’s fooling who here? I’m happy that the fight was deemed a no-go, now we can gear up for a mega fight that I do think is easily more appealing. Despite being a bit smaller, I like Pacquiao in a potential showdown with Hatton for the simple fact that he has proven to fight for a full 12 rounds without wearing down. In all fairness to Hatton, we haven’t seen Pacquiao fight near the 140 lb weight limit and don’t know if the extra weight may hurt his stamina, but all things remaining equal, I just like Pacquiao’s skill level better over the longhaul.. We have seen Pac-man wobbled by punchers with lesser power, but I just think that Hatton would eat more leather than he’s used to against a fighter who won’t stop coming forward. Hatton ran out of gas against Mayweather who slowly and methodically picked him apart, so how could any of us logically expect him to maintain the action needed to keep Pac at a distance for 12 full rounds? My prediction would be a slugfest split decision to Pacquiao.
Hiram Escalante (Miami Lakes, Fl): After weeks of negotiations to fight Oscar, what do you think led to the sudden retirement of Floyd Mayweather Jr.?
Vivek Wallace (ESB): I think it’s a bit unfair to speculate on the subject because in reality, none of us truly know, but since the proverbial ‘can-of-worms’ has been opened, I think it could be a wide array of individual things, or perhaps a culmination of them all. One speculation is that Oscar De La Hoya has once again done the same thing rumored to have halted his bid to face Trinidad in a rematch years ago, which was demand a higher purse in a second fight despite losing the initial encounter. Then there’s another speculation relative to Floyd not complying with WBC defense guidelines and being forced to either defend against the mandatory challenger or be stripped. This becomes an issue when you consider the fact that Floyd would be left with even less bargaining leverage being that he’d no longer be a Champion in the fight. One last speculation is that as dysfunctional as the Mayweather family has appeared, people don’t realize that buried underneath all the made for television drama, Floyd Jr. and Floyd Sr. do have a mutual love for one another. Mayweather Jr. just buried an uncle on his Mothers side who once had a major issue develop with his Father. The unfortunate death was not something expected, and in a very introspective moment – which those who know Floyd knows he can be very good for – Mayweather Jr. probably decided that life is a bit too short to add more drama by encouraging a media circus around he and his Dad again. To the average fan, the Mayweather vs Mayweather drama is a selling point, but somewhere in the mind of Floyd Jr., it has to be a tough decision to know that the man who bought you into the world is training a man who’s trying to take you out! Collectively, each of these things potentially had some place in Mayweather’s decision. Love him or hate him, for whatever reason, the sport is now without its most talented asset. Personally, I’d like to wish him well.
Maurice M. (Dallas, TX): Do you think Paul Williams is for real after his destruction of Quintana?, and do you support a rematch?
Vivek Wallace (ESB): I don’t see how anyone can think anything the opposite. The guy took his lost like a man, went to the drawing board, saw his mistakes, and capitalized on his opponents in the process of eliminating his own. I don’t know what else anyone can look for when trying to figure out whether or not a guy is ‘for real’. As far as a rematch goes, In a sense I support it because it’s only fair; Quintana won the first fight, Williams won the second, now break the tie, right? Well, wrong. I think a first round annihilation nullifies any decision lost suffered. Not since Roy Jones Jr.’s beatdown of Montell Griffin have we seen a followup performance so dominating. I think that victory answered all their was to know about Williams, and subsequently put the rest of the division on notice. At it’s best, it just appeared that Williams had lost motivation and quickly regained it. If he uses his attributes like he did in this Quintana fight against all future opponents, there’s NO ONE at 147 lbs who could defeat him. Bar none! His length, workrate, ability to take a punch, and reach make him nearly unbeatable.
Fernando Pineda (West Covina, CA): Who do you see Oscar De La Hoya choosing as his next opponent?
Vivek Wallace (ESB): Now that Mayweather has officially dropped the rematch bid, I think Oscar has a ton of options. Initially, he stated that he only wants two more fights and both will take place this year, then he sort of recanted that statement by saying that he may just close shop after one more instead. I think he will use this opportunity in Floyds absence to take another fight that he perceives as a slightly greater risk than his last one against Forbes to hone his skills a bit more in preparation for a December showdown with the Margarito/Cotto winner. Of all the options out there, I think last Saturdays victory for Sergio Mora bolstered his chances quite significantly. What’s most appealing about it is that Oscar would be able to obtain a title, giving him better negotiation strength for his December finale’. Trouble with that options is that Mora is nearly, if not as slick as Forbes was. Now, if Forbes was able to land as much as he did with a 5 inch reach disadvantage, I don’t know if Oscar really wants to jeopordize his career ending payday against a man who stands taller than him, (6′ to 5’10”), is talented, and has equal reach at 73 inches. For those with short term memory, Oscar hasn’t defeated anyone with a greater reach than his since Derrel Coley which was nearly 9 years ago. We know that with only 5 KO’s in more than 20 fights Mora won’t knock him out, but there’s a strong chance he does actually outpoint the Goldenboy. I don’t think that would be a strong option to consider but with Floyd Sr. coming out and saying that he doesn’t like Oscar’s chances against a defensive style like Winky Wright, I don’t know if there are any other notable names to throw into the mix. Something tells me that Mora may get the nod. He has just enough attraction to his name, and he’s an L.A. boy, which would create enough of local buzz to stage the fight in Los Angeles. Look for the official word by the end of the week.
Amir S. (Washington, DC): With Mayweather retired again, who do you feel is the new P4P King of Boxing?
Vivek Wallace (ESB): For starters I’ll say that my answer is my answer and in no way, shape, or form, is meant to be considered as the definitive answer. That being said, I think based on past accomplishments you have to go with Joe Calzaghe. The guy has done more, he’s done it over a longer period of time, and the fact that he propelled himself to this status on his opponents turf solidifies his whole argument. Some may argue Pacquiao, Pavlik, Cotto, and I’ve even heard Haye, but neither of those guys have a resume that spans over 10 years, let alone one that spans better than 10 years as a Champion. If Calzaghe doesn’t get the nod here, I’m not sure we ought to be handing it out to anyone. He’s clearly heads and shoulders above the rest of the pack in my humble opinion.
(Got Questions or Feedback? Write ESB’s Vivek Wallace at vivexemail@yahoo.com or show some love at www.myspace.com/anonymouslyinvolved).