Bleacher talk Pacman over the Hitman

CEBU, Philippines – Today’s sports pages (like this past week) will all be about the Pacquiao-Hatton fight, and for as long as we’re all here in the Philippines, all stories will be expectedly pro-Pacman. If you were a Pinoy boxing fan, it will sound like Hatton was a patsy being lined up to make the Pacman look good. And if you followed the trending of all these stories, there doesn’t seem to be any chance for Pacquiao to lose at all.

While we also like Pacquiao’s chances of winning, neither can we take away the fact that Hatton also has a chance of breaking all our hearts. Before we get carried away with our blind loyalty towards Pacquiao, we also need to set our feet on the ground and be realistic. Hatton is a legitimate fighter who is tough, well-respected and admired by the other side of the globe just as much as Pacquiao is admired on our side. Thus the appropriate tag of East vs. West when they meet on top of the ring.

With all stories talking about Pacquiao’s speed, power and winning streak, let’s take time out to also check out what has made Hatton so good. The one big weapon that Pacquiao has to look out for is Hatton’s left. His left hooks to the body are textbook definitions of how to land a body blow, and this has taken out many of his opponents in the past. When Hatton’s opponents succumb to an almost endless series of body blows and eventually drop their hands, they end up ripe for the picking. They either drop to the canvass or leave their faces open. This is when Hatton goes head hunting with his left hooks, uppercuts and right straights. Hatton is methodical in applying the strategy of going down-then-up with his relentless style of attacking. Can and will he do this against Pacquiao?

On the downside, Hatton’s preference to use the left hook as a lead punch instead of the more standard left jab approach opens him up to the right jabs and hooks of Pacquiao. The big question here is who’ll be quicker to land the lead punch: Hatton’s left hooks to the body or Pacquiao’s right jab or left straight at Hatton’s face? Should Pacquiao be able to land the right jab consistently, he’ll keep Hatton off-balanced and out of position to land those hard left hooks to the body of Pacquiao. But then Hatton is also good in finding the right timing to land his left hooks. He usually throws his left bombs when the opposing fighter is on a defensive mode with both arms tucked in. But with Pacquiao’s speed and unorthodox way of throwing punches even while on the run, Hatton will have to perfect from a timing perspective.

An upside going for Hatton is that he’s fighting at his natural weight against a Pacquiao who’s moving up a weight class from his comfort zone of 130 to 135 pounds (from 126, 122 all the way to 112!). Hatton won’t be like a dehydrated de la Hoya who dropped from 154 down to 147 pounds against Pacquiao. Hatton will most likely climb the ring at a heavier 150 pounds against Pacquiao who’ll weigh around 140 to 145 pounds. Note that Pacquiao weighed in at 138 pounds while Hatton hit the dot at 140. Pacquiao can’t discount Hatton’s power. Being heavier and more “natural” at a certain weight means more power, too.

The Mayweather-Hatton fight is a good preview of what speed, quickness and power can do against Hatton, all of which Pacquiao possesses. Mayweather did a great job of staying away from Hatton’s left hooks by being the wiser and more athletic boxer. He moved in and out, went sideways, and twirled around Hatton to deny him any clear shot from a good angle. While Hatton did land some good shots against Mayweather, these weren’t enough to take him out. In the end, Hatton became reckless, leaving himself open and ended up at the receiving end of Mayweather’s quicker, power punches. I’m pretty sure Freddie Roach and the rest of Team Pacquiao have seen how Mayweather won over Hatton and they’ll pick up a lot of pointers to adopt. I believe Pacquiao will do just that: move like Mayweather, then add his unique way of throwing punches from all angles, and get away from Hatton’s bombs just as quickly as he lands his punches. And just when Hatton takes it easy, Pacquiao will pounce on him again to reign in the blows.

Game over. Go Pacman!

* * *

Time-out: The Cebu Milo BEST Basketball Clinic will be held May 18-23, 2009 at the Sacred Heart School-Jesuit Mango Campus Gym. For more information, please contact 516-9036, 0918-939-4846 or 0923-342-8193.

You can reach me at [email protected]. – THE FREEMAN