By Carl Guevara, 8CountNews.com
When most athletes reach the age of thirty-three most start to realize that they are no longer able to compete in the same way they did ten years ago. It's simply part of life and it is no surprise at all. They usually start to lose their athleticism and physical attributes such as speed, power, and reflex. But there are certain athletes that go beyond the limits of science. Michael Jordan defied the impossible and became even greater as he got older becoming the only NBA player to score 50 or more points at age 40.
In boxing, athletes usually reach their peak between the ages twenty seven and thirty and then begin slowing down soon there after. This is the time when youthful boxers must use their age as an advantage. But again, there are some boxers who continue to defy this logic. There are few who dig deep to uncover a fountain of youth in the abyss of there souls. Current superstar boxers such as Juan Manuel Marquez, Sergio Martinez, and Floyd Mayweather Jr. are all over thirty-three years old and have preserved their skills and have arguably even gotten better. The same goes for Sugar Shane Mosley and Bernard Hopkins. For Manny Pacquiao, would this be similar fate?
Sparring Partners
Before we touch that, there are many problems that the opponents of Pacquiao have yet to solve. The first and most telling factor is that there is no boxer in our present generation that could emulate exactly how Pacquiao moves. When searching for a sparring partner for a Pacquiao opponant perhaps trainers should hold a open casting call for actors. How could anyone prepare for the Pac-Monster if they cannot find someone who could mimic Pacquiao in training? So far there really haven’t been any sparring partners who come close to fighting like Manny.
Style
The second fact pays tribute to his awkward boxing style. De La Hoya, Hatton, Cotto, Clottey, and Margarito were fully aware of Pacquiao’s speed, power, and relentless punch count that he accumulates in any given round. All of these opponents’ said the same thing after fighting him, “they never know where the punches are coming from.” His unpredictable punches from diverse angles are a major factor if you are Pacquiao’s next opponent. How could you prepare for someone whose punch seems to come out from nowhere?
Stamina
The third and perhaps the hardest fact of all is Pacquiao’s almost super-human stamina. If there is a boxer today that could punch at least one hundred times per round, without losing power and speed while remaining accurate then congratulations! You have now solved the 1st part of the Pacquiao puzzle.
Wisdom
The next piece to solve is the ability to out-smart the three time BWAA trainer of the year, Freddie Roach. Cracking the Roach-Pacquiao cube should be easy according to Mayweather Sr. Go figure.
Choices
Congressman Manny Pacquiao of the lone district of Saranggani province has now turned thirty-two. From my perspective there are still no signs that the current pound for pound king is slowing down. He destroyed the much larger opponent in Antonio Margarito who outweighed him by at least 17 lbs on their November 14 Super Welterweight title match held in Texas. As he breezed through his 8th divisional world title he only seems to become more indestructible and more unbeatable.
While his height could prove to be an issue against a much taller fighter like Paul Williams, I see no legitimate weakness about this superhuman wrecking machine.
Pacquiao is an offensive demon and by his own admission he is very much hittable, but he tends to thrive on getting hit.
His offense is also his defense. Not many opponents have proved to withstand a Pacman onslaught once he gets his engine revved up. However, if the above logic holds true, his age could be the only factor and this could be the chance that the younger generation of boxers has been looking for.
For the first time in his career we saw a different side of Pacquiao during his training for Antonio Margarito. Freddie Roach and Alex Ariza were vocal about Manny’s commitment to training when they arrived back to the Wild Card Gym in Hollywood. 8CN’s Brad Cooney and Ed Anderson were both in Hollywood during this time and were both vocal about seemingly “changed atmosphere” on Vine Street that later became public on HBO’s 24/7.
Moving closer to thirty-three years old, Pacquiaos political ambitions may also diminish his passion for the sport. But as long as Manny Pacquiao can hold on to his ‘never say die attitude’ and continue to puzzle his opponents, it is inevitable that the pound for pound king will still rein supreme for as long as he wants.
Source: 8countnews.com
