I came across with this Indonesian while checking out upcoming fights in April. What struck me is the fact that he holds a very impressive record of 25-0-0-1 with 19 KOs.  His name is Daud Yordan.

I tried to delve more about his career and I found out that his story is quite interesting. He was about to attain global recognition not just once but twice. After winning his first 23 fights, knocking out 17 of those and mostly in Indonesia, he squared off with ‘The Ghost’ Robert Guerrero. Yordan gave Guerrero all he could handle in two rounds before the fight was stopped. A clash of heads caused a nasty cut over the right eye of Guerrero and wasn’t able to continue. The bout was declared as No Contest.

In fighting against Guerrero, Yordan showed his ring generalship to counter the former’s attacks. ‘The Ghost’ was quite surprised to find out that Yordan could take his punches and even launched his counters as well. Robert should have been lucky enough to escape that way.

Moreover, in December last year, Yordan was scheduled to take on another highly regarded Featherweight in Daniel Ponce De Leon. Golden Boy Promotions gave Yordan another break opposite Ponce de Leon as an undercard to the Mosley-Berto fight scheduled last January 30. However, the scheduled bout was cancelled as Berto begged off to attend to his family who were trapped in the earthquake in Haiti last January 12.It was the second time Yordan missed the ticket to stardom.

Maybe, this could be the right time for him as he takes on IBF and WBA superbantamweight champion Celestino Caballero on April 10 in Florida, USA. Caballero decided to move up in weight for the Interim WBA Featherweight title. Curiously, the regular WBA Featherweight title is currently held by Indonesian Chris John.  A victory over Caballero will put Yordan in the world boxing map following the footsteps of fellow Indonesian and former world champion Ellyas Pical and current champion Chris John.

Jeff’s brother Jay told me that he wouldn’t bother to watch the replay at all. Me too. It was not Manny’s fault. Nor the referee’s and the judges’. Numbers don’t lie. Manny threw a total of 1,231 punches and landed 246 of those. Joshua, on the other hand had a mere 399 punches thrown and made 108. So, what can you expect?

It looked like Clottey was there not to win but merely to survive 12 rounds with Pacquiao. It was definitely not exciting at all. Truly, Clottey made ‘The Event’ uneventful.

What makes sense to these words is the fact that the fight between the two boxing heroes Manny Pacquiao and Joshua Clottey is really worth the wait. I bet that this showdown would take us to the edge of our seats. For the first time, I’ll be watching it at the Gaisano Grand Citimall (formerly JS Gaisano) in Ilustre St., Davao City. I’ll be with my buddy Jeff, his fiancée Doodles, and Jeff’s brother Jay.

Now as the clock ticks near midnight, I am about to take that ‘sleep’ away.

It’s just three days away from a national holiday here in the Philippines as once again, boxing icon Manny Pacquiao takes on Joshua Clottey of Ghana on Saturday (Sunday PHI time). In the last three fights of Manny, I watched all of these in Gaisano Mall Cinema along J.P. Laurel Ave. here in Davao City. And early this week, I was thinking of trying it somewhere else for a change. But, just as I was about to decide, I saw an ad in Gaisano Grand Citimall in Ilustre St. (Formerly JS Gaisano Ilustre) that they are showing it live on their cinema. All you have to do is buy any combination of Head and Shoulders products and for every P150 of purchase, you have one ticket. Great deal, right? So, I didn’t  think twice anymore and grab a couple of tickets right away. The other one was supposedly intended for my big bro but he told me he could not go with me. And so is my father. Thus, I got an extra one here.

Well, for some reasons, the winners Pacquiao and Mayweather did not come to terms for their much anticipated showdown. Who’s to blame? I don’t know. Just blame it on the rain.

Now, Manny is locked to face Joshua Clottey on March 13 while ‘lil’ Floyd will face Shane Mosley by May 1. I hope we’ll see to end going back to final four after May 1.

Breaking down each fight, I think Manny could take Joshua’s best blows same as he did against Miguel Cotto. And Pacquiao’s speed, footwork and ring generalship will be too much for Clottey to handle. The only question that makes sense is if Pacquiao can knock Clottey out.

Meanwhile, the Mosley – Mayweather fight has long been overdue. As what I’ve mentioned in my previous post dated January 10 that this bout is a decade long in the making. At least, finally it becomes a reality.  In this fight, I pick Mosley to win over Mayweather in a Split Decision or a Majority Decision fashion. Mosley can equalize the speed of Mayweather  but Mayweather can not match Mosley’s power.

It’s still February but I bet that the best fight that we’ll most likely see is the Pacquiao vs. Mosley and not Pacquiao vs. Mayweather.  Manny – Floyd megashowdown may not happen at all

Photo Courtesy: Boxnews.com.ua

I am concerned with the mental state of Juan Manuel Marquez after reading the reports yesterday about a proposed third bout with Manny Pacquiao. As reported, Marquez would agree to take on Pacquiao on two conditions: Olympic-style drug testing and a 50-50 Purse split. Whew! What do you think?

Well, Marquez has already been into 56 fights in 16 years. Maybe, boxing has taken its toll on him especially on the mental aspect. Head trainer Nacho Beristain should take notice about the condition of his prized fighter after making unbelievable demands. Again, Marquez will take on Pacquiao if Olympic-style drug testing will  be used and a 50-50 purse split! To refresh our memory, let’s take a look at their routes after their second encounter last March 2008. Pacquiao took David Diaz to the canvass in the 9^th round in June 2008, retired the legendary Oscar dela Hoya on his stool on December of the same year. As if it was not enough, Manny sent Ricky Hatton to the dreamland in two rounds and brutally defeated Miguel Cotto in 2009. That’s four straight victories, all in convincing manners.

JMM, on the other hand, took on the old Joel Casamayor in September 2008 and the over rated Juan Diaz in February 2009. He scored KOs in those two fights. Come September 2009, he was turned upside down by Floyd Mayweather, Jr. all the way to an embarrassing defeat. In fact he never won even a single round against the loud mouth Floyd Jr. in all the Judges’ scorecards.

Ok, let’s rate it. Pacquiao went 4-0, all by way of KOs and Marquez 2-1, including his last fight which was an embarrassing loss. Now, there must be something wrong with JMM.

1. Manny Pacquiao vs. Juan Manuel Marquez III

Manny Pacquiao has been on a roll since escaping a narrow split decision victory over Juan Manuel Marquez in March 2008. Both have given boxing fans their money’s worth in two exciting bouts in 2004 and 2008. And there’s only one reason why I’d like to see this fight happening. I want to see Marquez brutally KOed by Pacquiao to stop his loud mouth from talking.

2. Paul Williams and Kelly Pavlik

In 2009, the proposed fight for these two was nearly sealed. In 2010, I hope to see them face to face to determine who’s the real king in the 154-160 weight categories.

3. Antonio Margarito vs. Miguel Angel Cotto II

Antonio Margarito hopes to have his license back this year after he was suspended for the ‘loaded gloves’ he had for the Mosley fight last year. Miguel Cotto, on the other hand hopes for redemption after a devastating defeat to Manny Pacquiao last November. The two have a ‘not so good past’ as Margarito pounded Miguel Cotto en route to a 11^th round TKO victory in July 2008. But Margarito’s win has become questionable because of the ‘loaded gloves’ incident. Now, I’d like to see if Margarito can do the same thing in a level playing field.

4. Shane Mosley vs. Floyd Mayweather Jr.

Shane Mosley vs. Floyd Mayweather, Jr. fight talks has been around for almost a decade. I think it’s time to make it a reality. Mosley says that it’s Mayweather who doesn’t want to fight him. Mayweather says otherwise. Now, I want to see their fists do the talking in the ring. I would rather see a Mosley-Mayweather clash than Pacquiao taking on Mayweather. It’s because a Mayweather fight for Pacquiao might be too risky for the phenomenal Filipino.

5. Carl Froch vs. Bernard Hopkins

The first time I saw Bernard Hopkins in the ring was when he fought Felix Trinidad of Puerto Rico. At that time, I was a die hard Trinidad fan because of his boxing skills and ring generalship. To my dismay, Hopkins gave Trinidad a brutal beating. Since then, I have been rooting for every opponent Hopkins is facing. I think Carl Froch has more than enough to knock Hopkins out.

Besides Morales, Marvin Sonsona also faces the same predicament. True, he was impressive with his victory over Jose Lopez last September, but he also showed his immaturity in his last fight against Alejandro Hernandez that ended in a Draw. Sonsona, still 19 years old is set to face Wilfredo Vazquez, Jr., the son and namesake of the legendary Puerto Rican who captured titles in three weight categories in the ‘80s and ‘90s. The fight takes place on February 27. Vazquez Jr. is 25 years old and has an impressive 17-0-1 with 14 KOs. Sonsona in contrast, has a 14-0-1 with 12 KOs. Again, like Ciso Morales, Sonsona is taking it too early.

If Morales and Sonsona are being rushed to the limelight, Gerry Penalosa on the other hand is grabbing another bout too late for his age. Peñalosa fights on the same card with Ciso Morales on February 13. If I were to decide for Gerry, I would tell him to hang up his gloves. I don’t think he has still something to prove in boxing. He had been in 63 grueling fights in a span of 20 years and won championships in two weight categories. At age 37, I think it’s right to call it a day. His place in the history of Philippine Sports  has long been written.

Photo Courtesy: Boxnews.com.ua

As what I’ve promised last July, I am going to share my own picks for the best fights for the second half of the year. Unfortunately however, second half of 2009 did not have much exciting bouts like the first six months. I could only cite three electrifying battles that I could retain in my memory lane. Like my previous post, I’ll do it chronologically.

1. Chris John vs. Rocky Juarez (September 19)

This was supposed to be a supporting bout to the Juan Manuel Marquez vs. Floyd Mayweather main event but it turned out to be the most exciting fight of the night. In the fight, Chris John of Indonesia was clearly ahead on the early rounds until he appeared to be fading in the later rounds. In fact, he was nearly knocked down in the last round.  John escaped with a Unanimous Decision though.

2. David Haye vs. Nikolay Valuev (November 7)

Briton David Haye is 6-foot-3 while the Russian Nikolay Valuev is a 7-footer. With that, this fight really made sense. Seldom you see in boxing two gigantic figures square off the ring. Nikolay Valuev is one among the most feared boxers because of his size. David Haye, however, displayed not just his heart but also skills and ring generalship to outpoint via Majority Decision Nikolay Valuev. Haye, in turn, became just the second boxer after Ruslan Chagaev to defeat Valuev in 52 fights.

3. Manny Pacquiao vs. Miguel Angel Cotto (November 14)

I witnessed how history unfolded. This was Pacquiao’s 55^th career fight as he ascended to the 147 division throne – the seventh division he conquered. As expected, Pacquiao and Cotto went toe-to-toe in the early going but Cotto could not bear the punishment Pacquiao inflicted. Cotto was knocked down in round 3 and in round 4. The fight was practically over halfway but Cotto’s big heart pushed him until the 12^th round when Referee Kenny Bayless finally put an end to Cotto’s agony. Manny Pacquiao is simply the best in this era.

So, this is it! 2009 has become a year that was. Most likely, I share the same thoughts as you when it comes to fights we want to see in 2010. Happy new year everyone!