Watchdog's PPV Boxing Criteria - Manny Pacquiao vs Ricky Hatton

Watchdog's PPV Boxing Criteria - Manny Pacquiao vs Ricky Hatton

Watchdog by Steve Hudgins (May 2, 2009) Doghouse Boxing (Photo © German Villasenor)

I don't think any one fight can be made in boxing today, that alone, is worth the price of a PPV. Unless of course, they can conjure up Dempsey vs Marciano or Joe Louis, but until that day comes, I want some quantity to go along with quality!

I say, if they want us to shell out 30, 40 sometimes 50 bucks per PPV, they should give us some bang for our buck! The card should be solid from top to bottom! Or at least it should be so top heavy with excellent

fights that they can get away with a showcase fight to kick off the festivities, but these 2 or 3 showcase fights and 1 decent to mega main event PPV's are for the birds! (My apologies to any of the birds I may have offended with that statement.)

SO HERE'S MY SYSTEM:

I preview and rate every fight that is scheduled to be televised on a PPV Boxing Card, and try to determine whether that card is worth purchasing or not based on my point system below.

Please note that at the end of each preview, I will mention what weight class the bout is being fought at and where each fighter ranks within that weight class. This is done by using "The Ring" ratings.

HERE'S HOW STEVE'S PPV CRITERIA WORKS!

POINTS:

6 = MEGA MATCHUP
5 = Excellent Matchup
4 = Good Matchup
3 = Decent Matchup
2 = OK Matchup
1 = Bad Matchup

If a fight is scheduled to be televised on the card, it gets at least 1 point. This helps to reward quantity.

POINT SYSTEM:

14 or higher = GET IT!

13 = If you can find someone to split it with you or the price of the PPV is 24.99 or less, GET IT!

12 = If you can find someone to split it with you or the price of the PPV is 19.99 or less CONSIDER getting it.

11 = If you can find a place that is showing it, or get enough people over to split it with you, so that you are not paying more than 10 dollars for the card, CONSIDER getting it.

10 or under = Save your money and sleep well at night knowing you didn't get ripped off!

AND AWAY WE GO!

May 2nd - PPV PRICE: $49.95

RICKY HATTON 45-1 (32) vs MANNY PACQUIAO 48-3-2 (37)
This may very well be the best matchup in all of boxing, not only in regards to significance, but also entertainment. Both of these guys like to fight. They’re both aggressive and most importantly, they’re both good! After a very shaky performance against Juan Lazcano, Hatton hired Floyd Mayweather Sr as his trainer and looked fantastic in destroying Paul Malignaggi. Of course, everyone knows how sensational Manny Pacquiao was in dismantling Oscar De La Hoya in his last bout. Hatton is the naturally bigger man. Pacquiao is faster. Both have solid chins and good punches. It really should be a very entertaining bout, as long as the referee doesn’t find a way to ruin it, which unfortunately, is a possibility. Refs had a tendency to do that nowadays. So keep that in mind if you’re considering purchasing this card.

*Ricky Hatton is the Jr. Welterweight Champion of the World (136-140 lbs) – Manny Pacquiao is rated #5 at Welterweight (141-147 lbs) – This bout is taking place at Jr. Welterweight (136-140 lbs)

SCORE = 6

HUMBERTO SOTO 47-7-2 (30) vs BENOIT GAUDET 20-1 (7)
Gaudet has never been in with someone the caliber of Soto. Soto is an aggressive, break you down, kind of a fighter who is constantly moving forward. Gaudet likes to fight moving backwards. He is a pretty sharp counter puncher and fights well off of the ropes. When he hits his opponent solidly his instinct is to attack. So there is a chance of some good exchanges in this fight, especially if Soto throws a lot of punches. But it’s hard to make much of a case for Gaudet. He’s a tall, thin fighter with light power and a questionable chin. His lone defeat was a 1st round KO at the hands of no-namer Henry Arjona. To Gaudet’s credit he won the immediate rematch in white wash fashion, but he was nearly KO’d later in his career against Alberto Garza. It seems unlikely that he can last the distance against a solid seasoned fighter like Soto. There’s a chance that we might get lucky and that there will be some good moments, but most likely this will be a one sided, methodical, beat down, KO win for Humberto Soto.

*Humberto Soto is rated #1 at Jr. Lightweight (127-130 lbs) – Benoit Gaudet is not rated*

SCORE = 1

DANIEL JACOBS 15-0 (14) vs MICHAEL WALKER 19-1-2 (12)
Hot prospect, James Kirkland was supposed to face Walker, but due to some legal trouble he is out and in steps another prospect, young KO artist Daniel Jacobs. Interestingly enough, Jacobs fought on ESPN2’s Friday Night Fights, just this past Friday Night. You don’t often see a guy fight twice in the span of 8 days, so kudos to him for that. Jacobs has been fighting soft touches for the most part, but last week stepped up the competition a bit against Jose Varela. Varela at one time went the distance against hard hitting Edison Miranda. Jacobs finished him in 2 rounds. Mike Walker is another step up for Jacobs. Walker is coming off a close decision victory over Antwun Echols. In the fight, Walker was very aggressive and it was an entertaining bout. Echols and Walker had fought to a draw previously. In between the Echols’ fights, Walker lost for the only time in his career via decision to David Lopez who is on a bit of a role as of late. This is easily the most competitive fight on the under card and it will be interesting to see how young prospect Daniels handles the pressure that Walker will likely attempt to apply.

*This fight is taking place at (155-160 lbs) Neither fighter is rated*

SCORE = 2

MATT KOROBOV 4-0 (4) vs ANTHONY BARTINELLI 20-12-2 (13)
In the better of the two, 4 round showcases being televised, Korobov looks to keep his 100 percent KO ratio in tact against Bartinelli. Korobov is stepping up a little by fighting an experienced fighter, but Bartinelli has 12 losses for a reason, he’s not very good. At least he was able to score 13 KO’s in his 20 victories. So he MAY have a punchers chance, which is more than can be said about the opening fight of the night.

*This fight is taking place at Middleweight (155-160 lbs) – Neither fighter is rated*

SCORE = 1

ERISLANDY LARA 4-0 (3) vs CHRIS GRAY 11-7 (1)
Cuban prospect Lara faces Chris Gray in a pure showcase fight. With only 1 KO in 11 wins, Gray doesn’t even have the power to get lucky.

*This fight is taking place at Middleweight (155-160 lbs) – Neither fighter is rated*

SCORE = 1

FINAL SCORE = 11

SUMMARY: Let me be frank. Great main event, but the undercard sucks. Jacobs/Walker has the potential to be decent, but the other 3 undercard fights appear to be complete mismatches. The promoters should be ashamed of this undercard. Fight fans deserve better than this. If you opt to purchase this card, just cross your fingers and hope the referee doesn’t ruin the main event!

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