Pacquiao was overhyped and got badly exposed by Marquez

By Boxing News - 11/15/2011 - Comments

Image: Pacquiao was overhyped and got badly exposed by MarquezBy Babatis Banda: Looking at a number of Manny Pacquiao’s fights, you will realize that Bob Arum and Freddie Roach did a good job in building Manny’s name. The definitive fights in Manny’s ascendancy to the top were so choreographed such that it was inevitable for the casual fan to jump on the band wagon. To a larger extent, Manny and those around him also fell to their own making, they built a big belief in themselves too.

The real beginning was a finished Oscar De la Hoya, who had several defeats in his bag, including to Floyd Mayweather Junior. Oscar fought Manny at a terrible catch weight, he was unable to do anything in that fight, and he simply was a walking target and this set the pace for Manny’s ascendancy. We saw how Manny threw a thousand plus punches to a stationary, non-reactive target called Joshua Clottey, a pure joke of a fight, but now this built a reputation. Antonio Margarito was just an icing on the cake, slow and spider-like arms were no match to quick and powerful hands of Pacman. This was another clever choice, to cement the belief.

I give respect to Manny’s win against Miguel Cotto. That fight was indeed exciting, and Manny won in style but again, we saw that Manny was very vulnerable when Cotto boxed and moved intelligently until he thought he could out-muscle Manny, and that was the making of his end. There is no doubt that Marquez has exposed Manny as just a good boxer, not anything extra-ordinary. The press and team Pacquiao built the illusion in hard-core Manny supporters and most casual boxing fans that Manny was indestructible, and yet we know he is very vulnerable against class opposition.

Information technology has allowed unprecedented selling of products through half-truths and sometimes, clear lies. This happens in most sports too and it is called ‘hype’ and the casualty is you and me. Manny Pacquiao, though a good boxer was a product of clever selling, but he will never come out of the deep-hole Arum and Roach dug for him, for Floyd Mayweather junior will wipe the myth away soon.



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