90s Tito vs 2008-2010 Pac. I've always maintained Tito would knock the hell out of Manny, even the version that destroyed Cotto.
Last couple of years have made people forgot how good Manny actually looked at his best welter fights. His movement would cause tito all kinds of trouble
I think more of the 140 version of Pac than the 147 version. There's not many junior welters in history who would beat the Pac that beat Hatton. There's a few, but not many. Whereas I'd pick a lot of welters throughout history to beat Pac at 147. If ANYTHING, people have forgotten how good Trinidad was at welter. He was a COMPLETELY different beast than Cotto. Not only much bigger firepower than Cotto, but a lot taller and rangier, with much quicker offensive reflexes. He catches Pac with something big eventually, and it's very doubtful that Pac's chin stands up to it.
Tito was a brutal puncher and fired deadly combinations, but he always needed the second to set up. With Roach's battle plan, I don't know if Pac would give him that
Logically, Tito should be favoured here. But I am having a tough time with the styles clash. I'm trying to picture them both in the ring with their styles so that I can analyze this properly and make a pick but I just can't. It's hard to tell how it would play out. You see Tito wasn't a counterpuncher which is typically the foil to Pacquiao's whirlwind of activity. Trinidad certainly hit hard enough to knock out pacquiao and he's certainly much bigger but Pacquiao with his speed of hand and foot and southpaw style, awkwardness and sheer activity creates an unpredictability in this fight especially with Titos pretty straight forward style
Your last sentence made me chuckle. Roach is absurdly overrated. Unless he could inject Manny with the defensive reflexes of a prime Whitaker, he ain't winning this fight. Trinidad would struggle early with Manny's speed, but once he gets warmed up and found his range, he'd land, and Manny would be in a world of fucked. I think you're also underrating Tito's ring smarts. History now portrays him as a dumb fighter, but he wasn't at all. Trinidad had a higher ring IQ than Cotto.
Tito was an excellent counter puncher, especially with the left hook. And with the way Manny drops his right hand while throwing the left would provide opportunities for Trinidad. Tito also had an excellent straight right hand. And with his height and reach, would most certainly land on Manny who is not of Wilfred Benitez defensive ilk. I see Manny doing his usual jumping in and firing multiple shots and leaving openings for Trinidad short hooks and uppercuts inside, and I just don't trust Manny's chin to take that for very long.
Tito never lost to a smaller guy. Never. The guy was 5'11, not some 5'6 midget like Cotto and Hatton. He was a much bigger man than Cotto and Hatton in general, and that's besides the fact that he was far more talented than both. And like PR said, he was an excellent counter puncher. This narrative of Trinidad being David Tua really has to end. Pac doesn't have the capabilities to beat Trinidad, mainly because he's too fuckin small. Same natural size? Yes, Pac's speed and power overwhelms Tito. But in actuality Tito would be too big and strong for Pac. And at this point, I think 09 Pac has become overrated. The welterweight version specifically.
This is absolutely true. 147 Tito was a super smart and patient boxer who could figure out the styles of all but the best boxers out there. At the same time we forget what a super relentless guy Paquiao was. The guy basically refused to be defeated and I think when you factor in his climb through the ranks and the names and dominating fashion with how he beat so many of those guys Paquiao has become so underrated it's ridiculous. I could see Paquiao winning the early rounds big but 147 Tito figures out his style mid way through and just starts connecting with too many flush shots. Like you said too big and strong. But pound for pound, Manny would have whopped him.
The idea is that Pac is going constantly move and flurry to stop Tito from setting up which is exactly what the plan was against Margarito. Pac was impressive in that fight but it's proof positive he gets KO'd by Trinidad. A vastly inferior version of Tito was able to walk through his stuff, land clean shots and force Pac to work. He was never able to stay away or keep Marg at bay. He got with at least a dozen clean shots to the head or body that would look like most likely would've been the beginning of the end of Tito was hitting him and this was against a guy with nowhere near Trinidads accuracy or hand speed. Pac is just too small and unable to be negative enough to beat Trinidad.
call the coroner to determine the cause of death after this one, based on the balut splatter pattern on the tecate logo
Yes, but this isn't a P4P matchup. There's no question that Manny was better P4P. But he damn sure wasn't better at 147. He's too damn small for Tito, period. And at NO point was Pac a defensive wiz, so at some point Trinidad is gonna find him consistently.
