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Photo © NBC
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In one of the better decisions we have seen in boxing recently, someone pulling the strings in the background decided to put two celebrated New England boys together this Sunday, February 12, 2006 at the Dunkin Donuts Center in Providence, Rhode Island. New England and the tri-state area in general is a central hub of boxing and fighters and this is a bout that should have happened a long time ago, yet thankfully it has finally arrived. Representing New Bedford, Mass, Scott ‘The Sandman’ Pemberton, 29-4-1 (24), is a New England staple and has been on the main course for quite awhile now for east coast boxing fans. Anyone who saw his bouts against Omar Sheika knows that Scottie comes to fight. A tall, rangy fighter, he recently suffered a KO loss against brutally strong powerhouse Jeff ‘Left Hook’ Lacy, 21-0 (17), who fights Joe Calzaghe in England for the IBF, IBO and WBO Super Middleweight titles on March 4th in the M.E.N. Arena in Manchester England. The Sandman’s opponent, Peter ‘The Pride of Providence’ Manfredo, Jr.’s, 24-3 (10), name is synonymous with New England and he has made Providence proud time and time again with his charisma, heart and determination. This fight should be a good one and ESPN is going to air it at 9:30 pm EST.
As everyone knows Manfredo continued to make his bones on the NBC reality/boxing program ‘The Contender’ while aiming higher on the boxing ladder of success. That helped his popularity grow and put his name on the map for those in the mainstream who really weren’t fans of boxing before. This recent bout is a subtle continuation of that journey, seeing as it is a ‘Contender Special’ aptly subtitled ‘East Coast Pride’. While ESPN’s involvement is acceptable, you have to question the link between ESPN and ‘The Contender’ series and come up with the only viable answer here. Money. Mark Burnett and his cronies control ‘The Contender’ series and it is him counting his chips and writing the checks so it makes sense that they would still have their hands in everyone’s pockets on this one. I am very happy though that they are giving Manfredo a good fight after they completely robbed him against Sergio ‘The Latin Snake’ Mora, 17-0 (3), who clearly lost against Peter when they fought on those horrible, horrible rematches and swindles last October. Peter Manfredo not only won their rematch in much of the public’s eyes (and rightfully so), but he has fought the better level of opposition than Mora throughout his career, and also was a much more established fighter at the time having fought on actual boxing broadcasts in the past rather than just a ‘reality’ based one like Mora, which relies more on scripts and less on impartiality and fairness or actual boxing. This was proven when they dropped the ball on those crooked rematch decisions.
Manfredo Jr. is in Freddie Roach’s stable now which can only be a good thing. Freddie Roach is a legend in his own right and his expertise is going to further what Peter will be able to accomplish. Roach being a former fighter who was hard as nails knows what it takes to make a winner and with this combination expect big things. Still managed by his father Peter Manfredo, Sr. (a former kickboxing champion), this is a solid team and the sky appears to be the limit so far. Peter is young still at 25 years old and has some experience behind him already. Interestingly, although he didn’t get to fight Anthony ‘The Bullet’ Bonsante, 26-7-3 (15), when they were on ‘The Contender’ series together, he did beat him (UD 12) on May 14, 2004 at the Rhode Island Convention Center when they met up for the NABO light middleweight title. ESPN did air that bout as well, long before there was ‘reality’ boxing to watch.
Pemberton, who is being trained by his former amateur coach Libby Medeiros for this fight, is no stranger to adversity. He’s a gritty ring veteran who shows up in peak condition and ready to fight. Coming off his Lacy defeat, he should still be in top form and the only question mark will really be what’s left in the tank for the 39-year-old fighter. He has proven in the past though to have resilience so his age hasn’t become a factor yet. These are different times we live in and older fighters have proven time and time again that age truly is nothing more than a number. Leija did it when he beat Bojado, a name that hasn’t been on anyone’s lips and even fewer radars ever since, and Bojado was the ‘next big thing’. Tapia did it for years on end, with a come forward style and likeability that made him a fan favorite in the hearts of everyone. B-Hop has shown us that he transcends father time and only improves with age in his craftiness and skill level. Sometimes common misconceptions are just that.
Pride is a valuable thing and the winner of this fight will have bragging rights for quite some time. There is no officially crowned ‘King of New England’, and if you asked some fans I’m sure that their opinions would be split right down the middle. Some would say ‘Irish’ Micky Ward. Others Vinny Pazienza. Others still, John Scully. Willie Pep comes to mind. But what is most crucial and important about this fight is that it is a crossroads and deciding fight for either man. Pemberton is on the tail end of his elaborate career so a win here would keep him in the mix if he can use his much longer reach (80”) to quell Manfredo’s offense. And if ‘The Pride of Providence’ should win then he would be in position for even greater things and more exposure garnering fights and bigger paydays as well. I won’t offer who I think is going to win because I’m not known as a writing prognosticator and I’m not going to start now. But I will say that I’m for Peter Manfredo, Jr. if that is any slight indication as to who I’m picking.
So do yourself a favor kids and make sure to watch this fight on Sunday. It’s in New England so you already know it’s gonna be wicked good.
Special thanks to DoghouseBoxing's Friend, Iceman John Scully for his help with Fact checking for this article. Thanks Champ! |
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By Jason Petock (February 10, 2006)
