Hermie on the warpath

Once upon a time, boxing scholar Hermie Rivera was a non-believer. In 2003, he appeared on TV and predicted Manny Pacquiao would lose to Marco Antonio Barrera in their battle for The Ring Magazine featherweight title in San Antonio, Texas. Rivera joined Al Mendoza, Ed Picson and yours truly in the studio panel assembled to provide analysis and commentary.

Rivera never lived down what he said. He was lambasted by Pacquiao faithful for going against the then-budding ring icon. As it turned out, Pacquiao halted Barrera in the 11th round, leaving Rivera eating humble pie. To this day, fans recall Rivera’s blasphemy and some remind him to smash his crystal ball. But Rivera has moved on and is now one of Pacquiao’s most vocal rah-rah boys. He learned his lesson the hard way. An astute political analyst, Rivera wouldn’t commit the same mistake twice.

Rivera, who now lives in Newark, California, recently blew into town to attend to his latest caper – he’s lobbying for the passage of a bill denouncing steroid dealer Angel Hernandez, also known as Memo Heredia, and other deviants who use illegal means to enhance the performance of athletes, particularly boxers. He’s working closely with Sen. Gringo Honasan in drafting the bill, a copy of which should be on Rep. Manny Pacquiao’s desk any day now. Also involved in crafting the bill are Sen. Sonny Trillanes and Sen. Bongbong Marcos.

More than turning the heat on malefactors, the bill aims to protect Filipino fighters from being maimed by drugged opponents. Rivera said he was inspired to suggest the bill by Pacquiao’s close win over Juan Manuel Marquez in Las Vegas last month.

“Manny’s our national treasure,” said Rivera. “I couldn’t believe Heredia was allowed to train Marquez. And I also couldn’t believe how big and how strong Marquez was on the day of the fight. Manny felt his punches right from the start and probably knew he was up against a souped-up fighter. Manny could’ve been badly hurt. My idea is to clamp down on steroid pushers and users. There’s no place for those guys in boxing. We want to eradicate the use of performance-enhancing drugs which may be almost undetectable today.”

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Rivera tried to raise the possibility of Marquez being on steroids in the post-fight conference at the MGM Grand Garden media room. Rivera called Heredia a doper. Top Rank chairman Bob Arum wouldn’t hear of it. Rivera was told to sit down and shut up. In a public forum, accusing anyone of pushing or using illegal drugs without proof could be damaging to the health. Rivera said he has nothing against Arum but would’ve liked to air out his concerns, if only to explain why the fight was closer than expected.

“My campaign is to rid boxing of evil characters, whether they’re promoters, trainers or managers,” said Rivera who guided Luisito Espinosa and Morris East to world titles. “Heredia worked with Marquez for several months to prepare him for Manny. What Heredia did to Marion Jones got her in hot water. Heredia himself has been quoted to say that substances like human growth hormone and the blood booster erythropoietin are virtually impossible to detect.”

Rivera said Heredia, a former Mexican national discus champion with a degree in kinesiology from Texas A&M University, was caught red-handed as a steroid dealer and user but escaped a sentence by turning state witness to save his own skin.

“Federal investigators confronted Heredia with evidence of money laundering and drug trafficking and offered him a deal – tell what you know or we’ll go after you,” wrote Barry Petschesky. “For years, Heredia said he helped his clients flour the rules and easily avoided detection.”

How Marquez’ physique was transformed into an armor of muscle within three to four months has baffled sports fans and experts alike. Was he pumped up to get bigger against Pacquiao? Was Heredia up to his old tricks?

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Curiously, Floyd Mayweather Jr. once accused Pacquiao of taking steroids because of how he was able to retain his power and speed moving up from one weight division to another. Pacquiao, however, has never tested positive for drugs. He has gone to court to sue Mayweather for defamation. The difference between Pacquiao’s and Marquez’ transformation is the Filipino bulked up gradually while the Mexican did it in a matter of a few months.   

 Rivera said the bill will raise the recent Pacquiao-Marquez fight as a case in point. “This is about protecting fighters and providing for their safety in the ring,” said Rivera. “We want to sound the alarm because one of these days, an accident might happen in the ring if a fighter on steroids proves to be too strong for his opponent.”

Rivera said Pacquiao and his family were supposed to leave for the US on a holiday last Wednesday but the trip was cancelled as the Congressman from Sarangani will spend time looking after those who were marginalized by the flash floods in Cagayan de Oro and Iligan City.

As for Mayweather stepping up to the plate, Rivera said it may not happen until after the US elections late next year. “Mayweather has reserved May 5 for a fight in Las Vegas but nobody knows against whom,” said Rivera. “It’s the Cinco de Mayo holiday so it stands to reason that Mayweather wants to fight a Mexican. President Obama is running for reelection and I don’t think he’ll risk antagonizing the Filipino-American electorate by siding with Mayweather. But if the fight happens, Manny and Mayweather will happily find their way to the bank.”

For someone who once doubted Pacquiao, Rivera is now a believer. The proof of the pudding is, as they say, in the eating. Pacquiao’s eight world titles in different divisions should be enough to convince even the harshest critics that the WBO welterweight champion deserves to be recognized as one of the greatest fighters ever.