MANNY KNOWS

This is a look back at some of Manny's career defining fights in the lead up to his blockbuster bout vs Tim Bradley coming up on the 12th April..... 

Manny Pacquiao vs Miguel Cotto

Manny Pacquiao was now at the zenith of his popularity and his next opponent would be Miguel Cotto. In his previous fights he had relied mainly on single weapons. That is his straight left against Oscar De La Hoya and his right hook against Ricky Hatton. Against Cotto he would require all his tools to win.

Manny had shocked the boxing world by rising up weight classes so quickly and still destroying everyone in his path. He was now a fixture in the welterweight division which meant he would constantly be fighting naturally bigger men, and in theory stronger. Of all his previous opponents no one would doubt that the hard hitting Cotto was the epitome of this notion. In his rise to super stardom each one of his fights would throw up a new doubt about his ability to deal with the problem in front of him and he stormed through every challenge. The Cotto challenge was no different.

The big question this time? ….Could Manny take Cotto’s power? Surprisingly against De La Hoya and Hatton he was not tested in this regard as neither could touch him. There was little doubt though that Cotto would present a bigger challenge. Manny would have to deal with his power. And deal with it he did.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                
 The big question for this fight....          Could Manny take Cotto’s power?
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                

Manny seemed to take offense to the notion that he couldn’t take Cotto’s punches and his trainer Freddie Roach kept imploring his fighter to ‘Stay off the ropes !!! Don’t fight his fight’. In a display of machismo the very next round Manny would then go on the ropes and show everyone Cotto could not hurt him…..’Manny knows’ indeed.

The following video highlights start by showing most of the heavy shots he took from Cotto, and he did take quite a few. Anyone human would have been slowed by these shots. But Manny is a superhuman and nothing had any effect on him as he absorbed Cotto’s shots and fired back harder. He never slowed down the entire fight and the second half of the highlights show the menagerie of shots he used to beat poor Cotto to a pulp. By the seventh round Manny had brutally knocked down Cotto two times and Cotto was in survival mode. Rather than the bigger ‘stronger’ man pressuring Manny, the tables were turned and Manny spent the rest of the fight stalking and menacing a retreating Cotto. Who would have thought?
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                
The tables were turned and Manny spent the end of the fight stalking and menacing a retreating Cotto. Who would have thought? 
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                
 


Manny as always disguised his punches and Cotto acknowledged this in his post fight interview. He ‘did not know how to defend himself’. The HBO commentators reffered to this throughtout the fight as ‘throwing from weird angles’. Manny often throws his left hand power shot from his hip and it is impossible for his opponent to know if it is going to be a body shot, an uppercut, a straight left or a looping hook. Early in the fight it was clear Manny could take the power of Cotto with ease and once this was realized it was all over. The rest was just a spectacle for Manny’s excitement inducing skills and aggression.

Weird angles : Manny disguising punches. Both punches start from the hip but the first lands at the body the second at the head. Directly inverse to where Cotto's guard is.

Something else interesting happened this fight though. Cotto’s obvious strategy was to pressure Manny and not give any ground. But as it became clear that Manny would turn the tables on that theory, Cotto started to box and move. It was too late by this stage, but Manny was clearly getting frustrated by the lack of engagement and this ironically might have been Cotto’s best strategy if employed right from the beginning. While this is not Cotto’s style it is however the style of other future Manny Pacquiao opponents…….  




MANNY THE ROCKSTAR

This is a look back at some of Manny's career defining fights in the lead up to his blockbuster bout vs Tim Bradley coming up on the 12th April..... 

Manny Pacquiao vs Ricky Hatton

With his win over Oscar De La Hoya, Manny Pacquiao now got the ‘24/7’ treatment from the HBO camera’s for his next fight against Ricky ‘The Hitman’ Hatton. With Manny and his team lapping up the attention their confidence was at an all time high and this fight wasn’t going to change that. Manny’s trainer and trusted mentor Freddie Roach was so unconcerned about Hatton that he opened up Manny’s sparring to the TV cameras basically showing Hatton his strategy before the fight. Freddie was telling Hatton how Manny was going to beat him before the fight. Manny was just that good.
                                                                                                                                                                                                        
Freddie was telling Hatton exactly how Manny was going to beat him before the fight. Manny was just that good.
                                                                                                                                                                   

Manny Pacquiao’s previous fight against Oscar De La Hoya was a showcase of his much vaunted straight left cross. Against Hatton however he would save that punch for his grand finale. Under the watchful eye of master trainer Roach, Manny was now a versatile fighter and he demonstrated this by using his right hook as his main weapon of choice.

Hatton was a pressure fighter who moves his feet well. However he was a somewhat crude boxer and when he stepped up to fight Mayweather and Pacquiao his lack of refinement was exposed. After pressuring Floyd Mayweather for 9 rounds Hatton was knocked out with a well timed left hook counter. Pacquiao would use the same strategy of constantly throwing counter hooks over Hattons predictable jab, but Manny only needed 2 rounds.

Effective jabs need to include feints and / or movement. When throwing the jab the boxers defence is compromised as the jab hand is not there to protect his chin so it is imperative to disguise this punch or move quickly after it has been thrown. Hatton did nothing of the sort. His jab was painfully predictable and he did not move after throwing it. He was a stationery target and against a brilliant counter puncher like Manny this is a recipe for defeat as can be seen in the video clip below. In the first round Manny just waited for Hatton’s telegraphed jab which he timed perfectly, slipping the shot while simultaneously landing a hook over the top with amazing accuracy.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               
The finishing move came when            Manny landed flush with a brilliantly disguised straight left hand.   
                                                                                                                                                                   

By the end of the first round Hatton was done, and in the second Manny finished him off. First he hit him with a quick left uppercut. Just a setup to the award winning final blow. The finishing move came when Manny landed flush with a brilliantly disguised straight left hand. The last scene in the above video highlights show Manny feinting a jab, then starting to throw what looks like an uppercut or body shot. At this point Hatton thinks Manny is going to hit him with another uppercut like he had just seen. Hatton moves his right hand to block this shot only to find Manny changes in mid punch to a straight left, looping it perfectly around Hatton's compromised defence to the chin. For this masterful one punch KO Manny won 'Knockout of the Year' from ESPN and Ring Magazine, his fame hitting stratospheric heights.

With another big win, a $12 million plus paycheck, and plenty of karaoke the Manny Pacquiao show continues to grow and hit fever pitch. Next up, Miguel Cotto............

THE RISE OF A LEGEND : ‘Death by a thousand left hands'’

This is a look back at some of Manny's career defining fights in the lead up to his blockbuster bout vs Tim Bradley coming up on the 12th April. We start with Manny ending Oscar De La Hoya's career with his win in 2008. Oscar was 35 at the time, the same age as Manny will be vs Bradley.....

Manny Pacquiao vs Oscar De La Hoya  (2008)

Professional boxing is unique in the world of sports. It is extremely demanding physically, mentally and skill wise. But unlike other sports, prizefighting cannot survive without drama. Part sport part theatre. As De La Hoya said before this fight “you’ve never been on the big stage unless you’ve fought Oscar”. Going into the fight ‘Golden Boy’ Oscar De La hoya was the comfortable favorite with the bookmakers and an overwhelming favorite among ‘experts’. With a substantial height, weight and reach advantage people thought it preposterous that Mannny Pacquiao, who was at the time ranked as the top pound for pound fighter in the world, could handle De La Hoya……...The stage was set. 
                                                                                                                                                                                                                 
Prizefighting cannot survive without drama, nor it 
seems can Manny Pacquiao.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                     
  
In contrast to the pre fight talk the fight was a blow out from the very beginning in favour of the ‘underdog’. A showpiece for Manny’s famous straight left cross punch. “Death by a thousand left hands” was what Larry Merchant famously called it. The following highlight video shows many examples of these left hands being thrown with a number of variations. Watch as Manny very deliberatley keeps his lead right foot on the outside of Oscar’s lead left foot. His straight left punch is therefore lined up perfectly with his target, right between Oscar’s wide guard for the shot straight down the pipe to the head. If De La Hoya tried to counter off this Manny would use his quicker feet to back up or step off to the right to avoid the punches. To be able to move your feet quickly after throwing a power punch is not an easy thing to do, requiring great balance, co-ordination and timing. It is one of the many things that separates a great fighter from a merely good one. By this stage of their carreer’s Manny’s footspeed was too much for Oscar who could never find Manny to get his feet set and throw power punches. Any time Oscar didn’t try to counter Manny’s lead left cross, Manny would read the situation and throw in a right hook.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               
To be able to move your feet quickly after throwing a power punch is not an easy thing to do. It's one of the things that separates great fighters from the rest.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                


Manny never put too much power on his punches, but just enough to wear down De La Hoya who was constantly trying to pressure the smaller man to no avail. Eventually De La Hoya did tire and the tables were turned. This was the young and ruthless Manny continuing his rise to legendary status and he was relentless in his subsequent stalking beatdown of Oscar. In the 7th and 8th rounds De La Hoya was flat out of ideas of how to adjust to Manny’s speed and movement and could do nothing but stand helplessly in the corner while Manny continuously pounded him, eventually leading to Oscar’s corner stopping the fight after the 8th.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                
This is what a pound for pound king is supposed to do. Not just beat, but destroy everyone in his path.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                

This was the clear ending of an era for one aged boxing alpha male and the rise of another. Prizefighting cannot survive as a sporting spectacle alone, there must be authentic drama both in and out of the ring and this fight certainly delivered. Outside the ring the talk was of De La Hoya dominanting the smaller man but inside it was a one sided show piece for Manny’s skill against a faded superstar and the beatdown was dramatic. This is what a pound for pound king is supposed to do. That is, not just beat, but destroy everyone in his path.

WINNING IS NOT ENOUGH - Danny Garcia beats Mauricio Herrera

Fight Review 

Danny Garcia vs Mauricio Herrera

Prize fighting is more than just a boxing match. To justify its very existance there has to be drama. Prizefighters make a lot of money, generate a lot of hype and there are long build ups to their fights which we all eagerly anticipate for weeks and sometimes even months. If there is no drama during the actual fight it is just another 36 minute sporting event. If that’s all a fight offers there are plenty other options to watch on the weekends. Danny Garcia won a boxing match in his fight against Mauricio Herrera but if he wants to maintain his reputation as a prize fighter he will have to do better against 2nd tier opponents.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                Danny outboxed Hererra but he did not deliver what the viewers wanted which was a dramatic beat down.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                

There has been the usual cries of ‘robbery’ and ‘controversial decision’ in the aftermath of this fight but in reality it was nothing of the sort. Danny outboxed Hererra but he did not deliver what the viewers wanted which is a dominating beat down. In the absence of this kind of expected victory the perception becomes that this was a close fight. 

Herrera tried to win with the jab. The jab is a punch to be used for many reasons, but mainly distracting and occupying your opponent and also for timing and positioning to land power shots. It is not supposed to be used to win fights. On the rare occasion he did throw a ‘power’ shot it was not thrown with conviction. Fighting like this you will never hurt your opponent which is the main objective of professional boxing. Throwing a power punch is risky as when it is actually thrown with power, if you miss or even if you land you can find yourself off balance and out of position. This opens you up to counters. Herrera, by never throwing with power rarely left himself open. 
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                
Throwing a power punch is risky, as if you miss or even if you land you can find yourself off balance and out of position opening yourself up to counter punches.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 

As a consequence of this strategy Danny found it hard to land any dramatic big shots. His strategy is mainly to counter punch but if his opponent doesn’t open himself up this ability is restricted. If Garcia wants to be a prizefighter however he must initiate attacks a lot more. Agaisnt a light hitter like Herrera he should have been applying constant pressure but this lack of attack first shows up in his jab stats. Of his 675 punches thrown only 273 were jabs. A good jab is a near necessity to set up and initiate attacks and Danny clearly needs to work on his.

This fight was a clear win for Danny as he threw 402 power punches to Herrera’s 276. He landed on 150 to Herrera’s 82 for a much higher land percentage. They also landed with a lot more power and conviction. Garcia showed the skill and athleticism to distiguish himself as a world class fighter vs the 2nd tier Herrera, but if he wants to maintain his fame and prize fighter reputation he will have to win in a lot more dominating fashion in the future. He did not provide the drama required to make a large audience required for blockbuster fights to sit up and take notice.



BETTER THAN HE LOOKS - Why Danny Garcia is the 140lbs King

Danny Garcia vs Mauricio Herrera

Coliseo Ruben Rodriguez, Bayamon, Puerto Rico
Sat, Mar 15 at 7:00 PM on SHOWTIME
12 rounds for the WBC, WBA and The Ring light welterweight titles
PREDICTION: Danny Garcia stoppage / KO


“Never looking impressive but consistently winning” - Emanuel Steward.

This quote sums up Danny Garcia perfectly. Everything he does looks somewhat mediocre yet he keeps winning against world class opponents. How does he do it? While his fighting style doesn’t look spectacular he is great at things that are not so obvious. He is smart, very level headed, and has great timing and accuracy. His fight on March 15 against Mauricio Herrera is a significant step down in quality compared to previous opponents and a chance for Danny to cash in on his new found fame. Let’s then take a look at the things he did to beat the world class opponents he faced on his way to becoming the light welterweight king.

His great timing and accuracy showed up most clearly when he fought Amir Khan. Getting soundly beaten in the first 2 rounds, Garcia seemed completely unable to handle Amir’s quick hands. The counter punches he threw were far too late against Khan’s blistering speed. That is until round 3 when Amir came in with his by now predictable left hand right hand combo. In a great display of timing Danny stayed in the pocket against the left hand then straight away turned his head and body to the right causing Amir’s right hand to miss, while throwing a left hook over the top. Lucky punch right? Well maybe not as was seen when he fought Zab Judah.


                                                                                                                                                                   
At first Danny had trouble with Amir's speed, but he adapted and once used to it he counter punched with perfect timing and precision seriously hurting his opponent.
                                                                                                                                                                   

In Danny's fight against Zab Judah, Zab’s one two right jab left hand cross was effective in the early stages. Zab would clinch after these combo’s not allowing Danny the space to counter. In a clever adjustment later in the fight however Danny decided to take a step back when Zab launched his predictable attack. This created the space Danny needed to launch a perfectly timed right hook, landing with precision and hurting Zab. A knock down came later in the fight on another Zab right hand left hand combo. This time the left got through but Danny has a granite chin and took it well all the while maintaining his composure enabling him to fire back with a left right combo of his own.

Apart from these displays of timing, accuracy and composure there are examples of his smartness in the ring. Against Zab he constantly kept his lead left foot on the outside of Zab’s lead right. In this position he was able to pepper Zab with looping right hand leads so as to keep Zab from escaping to his left. If Zab tried to escape by moving away from Danny’s right hand he would run into a danger zone in the form of Danny’s left hook, not to mention there was not much space for an exit as Danny’s left leg was in the way. Due to Danny’s limited physical abilities this strategy did not overwhelm the more athletic Zab but he was able to narrow this disadvantage and eventually hurt Zab with what he is good at. Counter punching. Particularly impressive was when he did have Zab hurt he didn’t wildly chase him around the ring, but very calmly kept with the fight plan of keeping that left lead foot on the outside all the while pressuring the still recuperating Zab.
                                                                                                                                                                   
When Danny had Zab hurt he kept calm, staying to his fight plan of keeping his lead left foot on the outside of Zab's to line up his right hand lead.
                                                                                                                                                                   

By the time he came to fight Lucas Matthysse late in 2013, it seemed his physical and skill limitations would catch up with him. In his previous fights he looked like a poor mover who could only fight standing still. This could get him in trouble against the hard hitting Argentinian. But surprisingly from the first bell he came out moving quite well. Nothing impressive but well enough to win. Against Amir and Zab his advantage was in letting them come to him and countering or trying to restrict their movement. It would have been unwise to try and match their superior footwork. Against Matthysse however this style would have played into his opponents hands. Matthysse prefers a stationary opponent to unleash his power on, so Danny changed it up as he saw his advantage in his much improved footwork.

Danny also made a clever adjustment during the fight. When Matthysse attacked he would duck down under Danny’s counter leaving Danny swinging at air. Danny’s trainer Angel Garcia then implored his son to ‘hurt him to the body’ as an adjustment to Mattyse’s ducking head movement. Straight away he started countering Matthysse's attacks by landing to the body, eventually turning the fight in his favour.
                                                                                                                                                                   
Danny adjusts well during his fights. He started going to the body when he couldn't find Matthysse's head, in the process turning the fight in his favour.
                                                                                                                                                                   


As can be seen in the above video clips Danny Garcia does a lot of small unspectacular things to get spectacular results. Smart adjustments, composure, great timing, and accurate punches have enabled him to get the better of world class opponents all the while propelling himself to the top of the light welterweight mountain.
 
This leads us to his latest match up vs Mauricio Herrera. This is as they say in pro boxing a ‘stay busy fight’. A chance for Danny to cash in on his new found fame. Herrara has poor movement, defence, and power but he does posses an incredibly strong chin, though how long he will be able to last against Danny is the only point of interest in this fight. Chances are not for the whole 12 rounds so a Danny Garcia KO is likely. If not, it will be a dominating win with lots of action. Be sure to tune in March 15.

REPUTATION RESTORED : Canelo's Ruthless destruction of Angulo

Fight Review
Saul Alvarez v Alfredo Angulo

Waiting to make his entrance, Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez looked as confident as ever. With the now infamous ranchera classic ‘Mexico Lindo y Querido’ blaring in the background, the 23 year old looked like an all conquering Mexican Ivan Drago as he strolled to the ring, his broad shoulders appearing more like those of a bodybuilder than a light middleweight prizefighter. After the criticism he received in the aftermath of his last fight, an embarrassing loss to Floyd Mayweather, Canelo was looking to regain his 'hero' status once more.
 
In contrast, from first sight of Alfredo Angulo my initial suspicions were confirmed. This would be a very one-sided fight. It is not normally a good idea to read too much into a boxers pre fight body language, but in this case it was unavoidable. Angulo looked like a ‘dead man walking’. Nervous and reluctantly he entered the ring punctuated by a big deep breath as though he knew what was coming.
                                                                                                                                                                   
Canelo looked like a Mexican Ivan Drago while Angulo looked like a dead man walking.
                                                                                                                                                                    

The fight started with Angulo being very tentative throwing light punches not wanting to open his guard to the atomic bombs Canelo was launching. In my preview to this fight I emphasised Canelo’s great counter punching ability and predicted Angulo would get countered over his weak jab all night long. Well, most of the time Canelo didn’t even bother waiting for a counter opportunity, rather just blasting through Angulo’s weak guard with impunity. Angulo’s poor footwork meant he could not find an escape from the onslaught and just had to stand there and take the beating. After the first round Angulo’s trainer Virgil Hunter asked his fighter ‘are his punches bothering you’? ‘A little bit’ was the astonishingly honest reply, conveying that Angulo was in a place he did not want to be.

It was clear Canelo could have ended the fight at any time, but he decided to pace himself, giving a chance to showcase his skills. Angulo tried to pressure him and Alvarez obliged going toe to toe during the mid part of the fight. At one point Canelo was up against the ropes and goaded Angulo to bring his best shots subsequently slipping, ducking and shoulder rolling everything that Angulo threw at him. He could do nothing to hurt the rock solid Alvarez but he showed a lot of heart and kept pressuring. Canelo then started stepping back and circling the ring to create space, periodically firing off combinations at will.

Between the 9th and 10th rounds Virgil Hunter was close to throwing in the towel while Angulo was being checked by the doctors. The referee spared the trainer of his obligation to protect his fighter, stopping the fight early in the 10th after a vicious uppercut from Canelo. It was a responsible stoppage, and although Angulo acted annoyed one must think he was happy the ordeal was over and he had a chance to save face. After getting to know the compassionate side of Angulo in the behind the scenes All Access series (aired by Showtime in the buildup to the fight), it was hard to watch the man take any more damage.
                                                                                                                                                                   
Canelo showed ruthlessly that if you put him in the ring with anyone less than world class, he will destroy them.
                                                                                                                                                                   

Canelo has the skills of a world class fighter. The drop off in his reputation after the loss to Mayweather must have been insulting to him. He subsequently showed that if you put him in the ring with anyone less than world class, he will ruthlessly destroy them. He stated he wanted to fight the winner of the Sergio Martinez v Cotto fight to be held on 7th of June. His team should therefore be hoping Cotto wins as they will not want to put him in with the ring with the fleet footed Martinez. Either way Canelo’s next fight will be a blockbuster we can all look forward to.