-A Move to Middleweight and a 9th Division Could be a Possibility for Manny Pacquiao Pending Williams vs. Martinez II Results-
The Paul Williams vs. Sergio Martinez rematch continues boxing’s excellent closing session for the year. Conveniently, it’s being held just a week after the Pacquiao vs. Margarito junior middleweight title bout, which was contested at a catchweight of 150 lbs. Even more conveniently, Williams vs. Martinez II is also being held at a catchweight, 158 lbs. Considering that both men seem comfortable at the division limit of 160 lbs, and Martinez holds the real middleweight title of the world, it’s odd that the rematch would be fought at a weight less than the full division limit. Odd, that is, if you didn’t figure that each man was angling for a chance to land the Manny Pacquiao Sweepstakes, and secure a massive payday for fighting the sport’s pound for pound king and major attraction.
Before the Pacquiao vs. Margarito results came in, one ProBoxing-Fans.com writer wondered that if Pacquiao beat Margarito, and Martinez beat Williams, would we see Pacquiao-Martinez for the middleweight championship? In truth, while it may sound far off, it’s really not that hard to conjure up. Margarito weighed 165 lbs when he stepped into the ring against Pacquiao, and if Martinez and Williams were forced to cut down a few more pounds, it’s doubtful they would hydrate back up much past that.
I don’t see any reason for Williams vs. Martinez II to be fought at 158 lbs, besides the fact that each man can now raise their hands, and say, “Hey, Manny! Look at me! I have the middleweight championship of the world, and I would love to fight you at a catchweight for my belt!” Considering Pacquiao’s promotional muscle and pull, it’s entirely plausible that a fight between Pacquiao and either Martinez or Williams, both as much junior middleweight fighters as middleweight fighters, could be agreed to at say, I don’t know, 155 or 156 lbs. Pacquiao would come in at 150 lbs even, would weigh maybe around 153 lbs for fight night, and would have a shot at winning a title in a 9th weight class. Even more significantly, it would be the division’s real title, marking the 5th division in which he was not just as a titleholder, but was the winner of the real championship.
Adding even more interest to the potential contest (as if a 9th division title, a big time opponent and the real middleweight championship wasn’t enough), Margarito, Williams and Martinez have a intertwined history with one another. Margarito holds a win over a still developing Martinez, and Williams holds a win over Margarito in his breakout performance.
In some ways, a Pacquiao vs. Williams or Pacquiao vs. Martinez fight seems so ridiculous it’s hard to bring up as legitimate. On the other hand, it seems too obvious to ignore, and if Floyd Mayweather doesn’t come around, it could be the next best choice on Pacquiao’s docket. Pacquiao only gets up for big fights at this stage of his career, and this would represent his sternest challenge yet. A win against either man, bringing home the middleweight belt in the process, would secure a legacy not just as the best fighter of his generation, but as probably a top 5, at least top 10, boxer of all-time.
Pacquiao vs. De La Hoya sounded crazy, and then Pacquiao whitewashed him. Pacquiao vs. Cotto seemed to be too much, then Pacquiao broke his man down. Margarito was the biggest and strongest yet, and Pacquiao cruised past him. So will the winner of Williams vs. Martinez II be squaring off against Manny Pacquiao in 2011 for the middleweight championship? When you break it down, instead of brush it off, it seems entirely doable.
It would be a massive payday for everyone involved, and Pacquiao and Top Rank would have literally nothing to lose. If Pacquiao gets defeated, it doesn’t mean a thing, it was just finally too steep a mountain to climb against too big a man. That happened to boxers no less than Sugar Ray Robinson and Henry Armstrong. If he wins though, he’s further immortalized, and Mayweather is left even more distantly in the rearview mirror, wishing he had jumped at the opportunity to face Manny before he moved onward and upward towards bigger and better things.
