Quijano: Pound-for-pound rankings, 1st quarter 2012

Monday, January 23, 2012

BEFORE the big fights happen, let’s post our pound-for-pound rankings beginning 2012.

1.) Manny Pacquiao (54-3, 38KOs)—Based on his recent fight, the Pacman’s hold on this spot is tenuous. This Last Rounder scored the fight for Marquez by a point, but of course, the fight could have reasonably been scored for Manny too, albeit the four-point margin turned by one judge was generous.

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But we have to abide by the official decision and so Manny holds on to the top spot by virtue of the victory.

2.) Floyd Mayweather Jr.(42-0, 26KOs)--The Pretty Boy’s last fight was not without its share of controversy either. Ortiz scored with a jumping head-butt in the fourth round, and so Floyd repaid the misdeed by socking him with a combo while “Vicious” Victor was busy trying to make amends. Love him or hate him, the guy definitely knows how to win.

3.) Nonito Donaire Jr. (27-1, 18KOs)—The Filipino Flash didn’t look so spectacular in his last bout, but not entirely his fault. Omar Narvaez was a conspirator as he fought merely to survive and hear the final bell.

Up next is Wilfredo Vasquez Jr., a potentially dangerous opponent. This talented son of a legend is raring to get back on track after suffering the only blemish on his promising career.

4.) Sergio Gabriel Martinez (48-2, 27KOs)—“El Maravilla” struggled a bit with unheralded Darren Barker in his last fight but was still good enough to register a late knockout.

His career seems to be getting nowhere with another unpalatable tussle in March against Mathew Macklin. What a waste of serious talent.

5.) Juan Manuel Marquez (53-6, 39KOs)--Another close fight and another disputed verdict. What is apparent is that “Dinamita” has Manny Pacquiao’s number. And it’s on speed dial.

6.) Andre Ward (24-0, 13KO)- Last year’s Fighter of the year definitely deserves a spot on these rankings. When the current superstars retire and move on, expect Ward to carry the sport on his big, broad shoulders.

7.) Wladimir Klitschko (56-3, 39KOs)- Apparently, it takes more than a lot of hot air to topple Dr. Steelhammer. In his last outing, Wladimir dominated a surprisingly meek David Haye, who was never in the fight.

There seem to be no decent rivals in sight to challenge the holder of the IBF, WBO, IBO and WBA heavyweight belts. Whew!

8.) Brian Viloria (30-3, 17KOs)- Viloria’s conquest of the unassailable Giovani Segura is no small matter. That he did it via an impressive eighth-round TKO certainly propels him into these rankings.

MELINDO FIGHTS THIS SATURDAY. Local boxing hogs the spotlight this weekend as Milan Melindo (25-0, 9KOs) captains a cast of Pinoy fighters against a bevy of foreign opponents.

Milan is up against veteran Juan Esquer (27-9, 21KOs) as the main event on Pinoy Pride XI.

A remarkable observation about Milan is how he has increased his kayo percentage the past two years.

In 2009, he won both of his fights by decision, but in 2010 he won two out of three via the short route. In 2011 he was perfect, stopping both Rosendo Vega and Francisco Rosas.

A common opponent for both Esquer and Milan is Carlos Tamara. Esquer lost by decision, but Milan dominated Tamara when the latter came here to visit in 2010.

My prediction? Class always shows and “El Metodico” will be methodically breaking down Esquer in eight rounds.

Worth checking out is a young and upcoming knockout artist, Lorenzo Villanueva, who has been hailed as the Edwin Valero of the Philippines. This southpaw is currently undefeated and only one opponent has survived to hear the final bell.

He is slated to face Diego “Tyson” Ledesma of Mexico who comes in with a record of 184, 12KOs.

HE SAID IT. “I’d rather go with Bradley, because the Cotto thing is probably going to end the same way, I think,” —Freddie Roach (www.abs-cbn.com)

LAST ROUND. It’s on my high school buddy Siegfred Melleza, who celebrates his birthday this week. Cheers bro!

(jingo_quijano@yahoo.com)