Pac stuns Hatton and British army of fans in two rounds
Published May 2, 2009 by Martin Bean
By Erik Sarmiento Dela Cruz (email).
A flurry he unleashed somewhere at the middle of opening round forced his naturally bigger opponent to resort to his clinching tactic, Manny Pacquiao (now 49-3-2, 37 KOs) sensed that his power at the weight was more than enough to bother IBO junior welterweight and Ring Magazine’s champion Ricky Hatton (now 45-2, 32 KOs). It was the first flurry he connected with successfully after enduring roughhousing tactics launched by Hatton, a known infighter and the lineal champion of the division, during the early goings that saw the British trying to bulldoze Pacquiao with his patented pressure forward offense.
Several seconds later, a shock happened as Hatton hit the floor courtesy of an unexpectedly strong and surprisingly accurate right hook thrown by the Filipino superstar. The right hook landed flush on Hatton’s chin and the first knock down was scored by the naturally smaller man. The MGM Grand Arena erupted with the roars of the Filipino fans as the British contingent who flew all the way from England were silenced. The sight was simply unbearable to watch as it was unbelievable. The king of the division who was able to withstand the hardest blows of his past powerful opponents was down on the floor, his head on the level of the counting hands of referee Kenny Bayless. There would be no chorus from the British fans during the next critical moments of the first round.
Hatton took the count and fought back valiantly, trying his best to establish his infighting by roughing up Pacquiao with his short hooks at the body and upstairs. But the knock down scored by the reigning pound for pound king had already given the Filipino the confidence to press the action and stand toe to toe against him. Hatton was becoming tentative of stepping inside and his defence was slackening. Pacquiao willingly obliged to the close fight challenge and swing with his own lead fisted attacks. The complexion of the fight at this juncture was a complete turnaround from the first 90 seconds where Hatton had a little success in closing the gap as well as in pushing Pac-Man behind the ropes, with Pacquiao refusing to go infighting.
Eight seconds left before the final bell and Pacquiao connected again with a powerful combination that landed clean on Hatton’s face. He was down on the floor again as the arena exploded once more with roaring. Hatton took a count for the second time as the first round ended.
Two knockdowns and all out action, the fans gave their approval to the full scale ring violence that had just unfolded behind them as the two warriors retreated to their respective corners for a short rest and some tactical adjustments. Will Pacquiao, now sensing blood, go for the kill and not disappoint Freddie Roach who was so vocal in this three-round prediction? Should Hatton remap his pressure forward strategy and try to fight from a distance as he employed so successfully against Ben Tackie (29-11-1, 17 KOs) and Paulie Malignaggi (26-2, 5 KOs)?
The game plan, however, seemed too sound for Hatton to abandon. He is the bigger guy and it’s completely wrong to fight from the outside. The naturally smaller man should wear out soon as he began to feel some full junior welterweight power shots relentlessly connecting to his body. There must be more forward pressure and the punching should be without let up now.
The bell of the second round sounded and the two fighters squared off for another three minutes of war. Hatton pressed it more and Pacquiao played his own game. There was little boxing now as Pacquiao began to be his old self, which is letting the leathers fly in a full-scale offensive assault. For Hatton, it was roughhousing all throughout: left leads, get inside, tie his left to the other guys’ body and rough him up with right hooks downstairs and up to the head. Bayless did a very good job in preventing prolonged clinching. A right from Hatton found its mark and Pacquiao was visibly hurt; a punch he would admit later after the fight to be very strong. But Pacquiao, showing what his chin was made of, countered with his own combos which effectively prevented Hatton from building on it.
Pacquiao was his old self now: a shark that had just smelled blood, circling his prey for a massive bite. Halfway through the round, Hatton’s guard became noticeably low and that didn’t escape the alert eyes of the pound for pound king. With the right distance and a proper angle, Pacquiao swung his lethal left for a big blow that hit the bullseye. Hatton hit the canvas like a huge timber that had just been felled to the ground, this time he was flat on his back. Bayless knelt to look at Hatton and waved his hand.
It was over. The official time was 2:59 at round two.
With this win against Hatton at junior welterweight, Pacquiao earned his fifth sanctioned title, a fitting addition to his impressive collection of four sanctioned belts he earned at flyweight, super bantamweight, super featherweight and lightweight. All of this he accomplished by fighting through ten divisions. Including the ring magazine title he earned at featherweight by beating Marco Antonio Barrera (65-7, 43 KOs), Pacquiao is now a six division titlist.
But the historical significance of this win doesn’t stop there. Pacquiao is now a four lineal titlist, with the first three he earned by beating Chachai Sasakul (65-4, 40 KOs) at flyweight, by destroying Barrera at featherweight and trashing them all at super featherweight.
With his historic win against Hatton and his incredible performance against Oscar De La Hoya (39-6, 30 KOs) at welterweight, Pacquiao who is still in his prime, has history in his own hands. To further enhance his legacy, he could go up in weight and see Sugar Shane Mosley (39-6, 30 KOs) for another lineal title; a welterweight fight which is a full ten divisions north of his junior flyweight debut.
A fifth lineal title in a span of ten divisions will definitely put his name along with Sugar Ray Robinson (173-19-6, 108 KOs), Henry Armstrong (149-21-10, 101 KOs), Muhammad Ali (56-5, 37 KOs) and Roberto Duran (103-16, 70 KOs).
With his amazing speed he displayed against De La Hoya and his incredible power he showed against Hatton, history is waiting for him at welterweight division.
There are currently 0 comments on this article.