Of Rios, Rousey and rage
TIMOTHY Bradley did exactly what he had to. He boxed beautifully and utilized his speed advantage over Brandon Rios quite well.
In the early rounds, his jab came in handy against his plodding opponent who kept on pressing forward but was unable to mount an effective offense.
Bradley also threw numerous combinations and seemed to be a step ahead of Rios at almost every turn.
Rios had his moments to be fair, but these were too few and far between to affect the tide and the inevitable outcome of the fight.
RIOS. The record books may prove to be unkind to Rios.
Though he finished his career with a handsome record of 33-3 with 24KOs, and became a holder of the WBA lightweight title, he will never be remembered and deified as a top-tier fighter.
He may never even make it to the Hall of Fame.
The best names on his list will be Anthony Peterson and Mike Alvarado and they are not exactly household names.
Moreover, he struggled against both of them--winning by DQ over Peterson and engaging in life and death struggles with arch rival Alvarado over the course of three fights.
But true warriors in the ring like Rios will always have a special place in the hearts of hardcore boxing fans.
We may not wax poetic over his career record but we will forever be awed by his feral approach to fights, his aggressive style and tremendous heart.
When he fought Manny Pacquiao in Macau, he was made to look like a clueless novice, but to us seated at ringside, we admired his fighting spirit as he never gave up trying.
Truthfully, I was fearful till the final bell that Rios would be able to land a Hail Mary shot as he just kept on coming.
His trilogy with Alvarado will forever be remembered as one of the most memorable in fistic history.
So, much respect to you Brandon Rios. Thanks for the memories!
ROUSEY-HOLM. Today, at UFC 193 Ronda Rousey will defend her bantamweight crown for the seventh time against former women’s boxing champ Holly Holm.
Holm is also undefeated as an MMA fighter but she hasn’t been in the cage with a fighter of Rousey’s caliber.
For her to stand a chance, Holm should take advantage of her striking advantage but it remains to be seen how long she can remain vertical.
RAGE. As I am writing this column, I can feel rage well up everytime my thoughts are consumed and distracted by the Paris killings.
The cowardly act of shooting hundreds of innocent people all because of some esoteric belief about preternatural glory in the afterlife seems so utterly senseless to me.
Gone is the exuberant mood I had the past few days ushered in by a fantabulous gift of Kona freeze-dried coffee by Atty. Joel Bontuyan.
The pendulum has keeled over so far to the other side, that I’m afraid I might not be good company in the coming days.
Tomorrow morning I am almost quite certain that I will not be able to look anyone directly in the eye for shame that the previous night, I will most definitely have participated in one callow act after another in my drunken misery.
So go #^*% yourselves , you terrorists. Our collective rage will damn your souls for an intractable eternity.
VERBATIM. “I don’t know, I was just having a drink you know…” --Holly Holm when interviewed by Joe Rogan after nearly coming to blows against Ronda Rousey at the weigh-in.
LAST ROUNDS. Are on my strapping hunk of a nephew Karl Antonius de Pio, my kumare Trina Zosa who recently celebrated their birthdays, and Mr. and Mrs. Ramon and Muy Tee Lim who are celebrating their 40th anniversary. Cheers!