The Pacquiao-Dela Hoya Caper: My Fearless Forecast

Much has been said and written about the Pacquiao – Dela Hoya encounter on Sunday, December 7, 2008 (Manila time zone). And there is almost no more room for another analysis much more a fearless forecast, so-to-speak. But even then, I feel that I still have the right to assert mine, and me - never been an authority in boxing – notwithstanding.

In terms of height dela Hoya is 5-inch taller (5’11”) than Pacquiao (5”6”) but this gap shall be made even by Manny’s speed and agility.

In terms of reach dela Hoya has 6-inch advantage (73”) over Pacquiao (67”) but this will be overcome by Manny’s ability to dive in with his punches and pull away at the blink of an eye. This time, he should do a Muhammad Ali: “sting like a bee and dance like a butterfly”; and one more thing: he should heed Tyson’s unsolicited advice: “never approach dela Hoya head first, rather ride on a barrage of punches..”. Fine.

In terms of experience dela Hoya held the champ belts in six divisions while Pacquiao is king in four divisions but Pacquiao had 49-3-1 record compared to dela Hoya’s 38-5-2. By number of fights, Pacquiao had more.

Pacquiao’s only edge are his youth (7 yrs younger than dela Hoya), his speed and agility, and probably his punch power too. But we have yet to see the effect of added pounds on Pacquiao’s punch power and agility since he is climbing up a heavier weight class. To some boxers this was an advantage, but to some it turned out to be a jinx.

Dela Hoya says, they can box, counter-punch or brawl and this is the kind of fight that's gonna end in a knock-out. Pacquiao says, this is the most important fight in his boxing career.

I say that this fight is gonna end like this:

The fight shall go the distance with both men still standing up to the last round and the winner shall be declared by a split decision. In such case, nobody is real winner and loser. That will be good for both of them in their boxing career and the re-match will certainly be more exciting than this first one.