I was glad to be wrong in my prediction of this past Saturday night’s welterweight title bout between Keith Thurman and Manny Pacquiao. Pacquiao looked sharp and explosive dropping the champ in the first round in route to a convincing victory.
Last week I compared the fight to the Iran Barkley-Roberto Duran classic in 1989 when a 37 year old, supposedly over-the-hill Duran upset the prime Barkley taking his middleweight title. The difference though, was Barkley-Duran was a back-and-forth battle of attrition; this was fairly one-sided even if the Vegas judges turned in a split decision.
I had it 117-110 for the Filipino. That’s 9 rounds to 3 with a point deduction from Thurman for the knockdown. MAYBE you could give Thurman 4 rounds; he did have his moments.
But Glenn Feldman either has cataracts or is crooked scoring it 114-113 for Thurman. Even Dave Moretti and Tim Cheatham’s scores of 115-112 were too close for my liking; no way Thurman won 5 rounds.
Poor judging seems to be a factor in nearly every big fight these days, especially in Las Vegas. But at least the right guy got his hand raised this time.
What now for Thurman?
Where Keith Thurman goes from here is up to him, but he should be honest with himself. It never helps a career to loose to a 40 year old but he handled himself with class and accountability, and he never quit in the fight.
He’s only 30 and can still write his own script. He can learn from this and fight on as long as the fire is there, but is it?
Only he knows but I am not sure it is. He has enough talent to stay a factor in the division, but he is also extremely knowledgeable and engaging in the broadcast seat. So he doesn’t have to fight.
What now for Pacquiao?
The new WBA champ can ride off into the sunset, but he won’t. The logical next step is a unification showdown with the winner of the upcoming battle between IBF champ Eroll Spence Jr. and WBC strap holder Shawn Porter.
courtesy of Daily Mail
Spence is a heavy favorite in that fight and would be a stylistic nightmare for Pac Man at any age with his size and technical ability. Porter would be a winnable, but hellacious match-up for the 40 year old.
What Team Pacquiao really wants is a rematch with the retired undefeated Floyd Mayweather Jr. I may be forced to surrender my membership card for the hardcore boxing fan club for saying this, but that’s the fight I want to see.
Courtesy of Sportsnet
I want to see what this version of Pacquiao (re-motivated, not over-trained and with both shoulders fully intact) does against the defensive wizard. The question is, does Mayweather (who watched Saturday from ringside) want it?
The money wouldn’t be as big as the 2015 dud, but it would still be the most lucrative fight in boxing. The thing is, Floyd is interested mostly in big paydays today that come with sure victories.
His legs looked shot while he carried Connor McGreggor in that circus he calls his last fight. Does he take this money and get back in the gym, or is he satisfied with his fortune and record?
I bet the latter. I am not one of these guys who calls Floyd a coward. He fought everybody.
However, he was always sure/smart enough to get guys at the right time. He did not seem super interested in exchanging blows with Pacquiao until the Senator started showing signs of deterioration and a lack of killer instinct.
My bet is that Floyd doesn’t have the desire to shake off the 2 year ring rust, really 3 when you account for the fact that his last fight was not with a boxer. I believe Pac Man ends up in there with Spence.
The legend should enjoy this win which moves him up the all-time ladder. But Father Time is coming with the check. Talk soon.
-Marksman
PS: I read this article today in the NY Post. I don’t have children, but if my son was not a true academic type, college is the last direction in which I would point him.
As I see with friends of mine who make far more than I do, a college degree is not a necessity for financial success. It’s actually a slave contract of sure debt.
More importantly, the Duke Lacrosse and UVA rape hoaxes are just the tip of the iceberg in how these Marxist campgrounds called campuses are waging war on masculinity.