Clash of the Titans

Clash of the Titans

**UPDATE**

Pacquiao v Mayweather Junior is on!  According to the Filipino’s promoter the two camps have put aside their differences and the pair will meet on March 13 with only a few minor issues to be resolved.

Michael Koncz, “We all believe that it will be done.  Arum presented what he thought was the best proposal he can bring during a two-hour breakfast meeting with Pacquiao in Manila. Manny has some additional requirements, requests, which Arum didn’t think was a problem. The requests of Manny were so realistic that Arum doesn’t feel it’s a problem and it’s pretty much a done deal.”

The Pac-mans trainer, Freddie Roach said the bout will be the biggest fight of all time and went on to say: “It would be a tough fight and we will need to set some traps and work on some strategies. But it is a fight Manny wants, he is very confident he can beat Floyd.”

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Manny Pacquiao will fight Floyd Mayweather Jr next year, that was the message from Pacquiao’s trainer Freddie Roach yesterday.

Roach told Sky Sports that his charge would go head to head with Mayweather in 2009 in the superfight boxing fans have been dreaming of.
However it was a bittersweet message, as fight fans will have to wait the best part of a year before the contest. There is also the possibility that the Pac-Man will take on another bout before facing Mayweather.
Roach told Sky Sports: “We want to fight in March they don’t want it that early so we might take one fight before, but we’re looking to make it happen in September. It’s hopefully going to be a done deal soon.”

And the Times today revealed that Roach is lining up Israeli Yuri Foreman as a possible opponent for Pacquiao, a fight that would see the Pac-Man go up yet another weight division.
Nonetheless it does looks as though the Pacquiao v Mayweather has come a step closer.

There is no doubt that if this bout goes ahead it will go down as not only the richest in history, but also the biggest conflict seen in recent years. It will blow away other recent superfights and rank alongside the likes of Joe Frazier vs. Muhammad Ali in 1971, Marvin Hagler vs. Tommy Hearns in 1985 and Sugar Ray Leonard vs. Tommy Hearns in 1981.

As Matthew Syed recently wrote in the Times:

“For it is match-ups such as these, and the emotions they arouse, that are capable of elevating pugilism beyond other of sporting and artistic spectacle. Look back across the decades and it is not cricket and football that provides the definitive iconography of the age, but the contests that brought nations to a standstill.”

Boxing is not as popular as it once was and faces stiff competition from UFC and other forms of MMA, but it is fights like this that can bring boxing back to global consciousness. Boxing has, since the retirement of Mike Tyson, lacked the truly global superstars we have seen in previous generations.

But here we already have two fighters who can define their generation.
Pacquiao is already more than a national icon. He is a politician and musician as well as a boxer!
Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo once said: “He is truly one of our nations heroes who can unite us even in times of divisiveness. An icon of the masses. Manny Pacquiao mirrors the champ within every Filipino, here and abroad.”
The Pac-Man is the #1 Pound-for-Pound fighter in the world. He became the first boxer to win seven different belts at seven different weight classes and this could potentially reach eight by the time he squares up to Mayweather – if his fight against Foreman is sealed.

Then there is the trash talking, Floyd Mayweather Jr, who in 2008 retired for a short spell as the Pound-for-Pound king and beat everyone before him. Money-Mayweather is the owner of an impressive 40-0 record (25 by knockout) and has won six world titles at five different weight classes.
Mayweather’s adviser, Leonard Ellerbe, recently said: “Floyd has made it perfectly clear to Team Mayweather and the rest of the world that he wants to give the fans what they want, and that’s Mayweather versus Pacquiao,”

So here we are with two of the greatest fighters of our time, if not ever, potentially squaring up. So who would win?

It is hard to doubt Manny Pacquiao especially after seeing his destruction of Miguel Cotto. He is lightning quick, has fists of steel and a granite chin. Pacquiao has also shocked the world with his ability to move up the weight classes without losing any of his devastating power.
But then there is Floyd ‘Money’ Mayweather. He is simply overwhelming and just as fast as Pacquiao. He perhaps does not possess the power of Pacquiao but he has in recent fights proved untouchable with his artistry, allusiveness and counter-punching ability.
It is this that makes the fight such a mouth-watering prospect. They are two different fighters who complement each other in the ring. It has all the makings to become one of the greatest fights in history.
It is the fight that the boxing world wants and it must be ensured that this mega-bout goes ahead.

Who do you think would win if the fight goes ahead.

The Pac-Man’s record 50 Wins (38 knockouts, 12 decisions), 3 Defeats (2 by knockout, 1 by decision), 2 Draws

Money Mayweather’s record 40 Wins (25 knockouts, 15 decisions), 0 Losses, 0 Draws

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