A Rematch?

CEBU - I don’t know what Floyd Mayweather Sr. saw in Manny’s demolition of his former ward Oscar Dela Hoya last Sunday but now he’s talking about a rematch! Yes, he wants Dela Hoya to “redeem” himself by asking for a rematch.

Mayweather may have seen that Pacquiao slowed down a bit after the third round prompting Freddie Roach to tell Manny to stop “carrying” Oscar.

Now, Mayweather is saying that Oscar couldn’t lose to Manny had he trained him. I may not be a boxing expert but I don’t think having Mayweather as trainer would have made a difference. Simply, Oscar can’t pull the trigger anymore.

I don’t know if Manny will ever entertain this idea knowing that there are other boxers making a beeline for a crack at him and the huge paycheck that goes with it.

Aside from his “awkward” boxing skills, Manny showed something to the liking of our editor Jerry Tundag. He never liked Pacquiao but the other day had a change of mind saying that Pacquiao is at “least on the same level” with Elorde because he had respect for an overmatched foe. 

This isn’t the first time Manny showed kindness and compassion to a rival – he tried to lift Juan Diaz as the latter laid helplessly on the canvass after he had wrested the title from him.

Moreover, while we’re at it, the brutal sport of boxing abound with gentlemen in the ring. Last month, Joe Calzaghe had mercy on Roy Jones by slowing down in the last three rounds of their bout. Calzaghe got up from a first round knockdown to batter the 40-year-old Jones to a pulp. He pleaded with the referee to stop the fight but he didn’t so Calzaghe just coasted along until the bell sounded. Larry Holmes was hitting Muhammad Ali with impunity in their 1980 bout, but slowed down after realizing that Ali couldn’t even throw a decent punch, prompting the referee to mercifully stop the fight.

Now to that idea of a rematch. I don’t think so. Manny would be better off fighting someone else; Oscar has to retire.

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Ilang tulog na lang at Midnight Run na! I’m excited because this will be my first time to run at night – at the stroke of midnight to be exact. I won’t be running by my lonesome, however. There will be many runners there, including some of my friends, from the Cebu Executive Runners Club (CERC).

Tukayo Raffy Uytiepo told me that Jessie Taborada, John Pages, Roel Militar, Dr. Tito Macarasig, Kenneth Casquejo, Dr. Rosan and Roy Trani, Jane-Jane Ong, Annie Neric, Steve Ferraren, Dodong Sulatre, Dr. Vic Verallo, Dr. Alex Junia, Harthy Satina and Meyrick Jacalan, would be running, in what they call a “Thanksgiving Run” after conquering the Singapore Marathon last Sunday.

The other members of CERC, including Dr. Renald Ramiro, Judge Gabby Ingles and Ed Labella will be there as well. Atan Guardo and ABS-CBN’s Haidee Acuna will join too plus members of Holiday Gym and Rox Gym.

Some of Cebu’s brightest stars will surely illuminate the race as Liezl Getaruelas, Madelyn Carter and Marlita Arias will be competing in the women’s division and the likes of the Delposo brothers and Mendel Lopez leading the men’s field.

See you at the starting line!

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