Flash Elorde Ben Villaflor Rolando Navarette Manny Pacquiao All Filipinos, all southpaws, all fought in the super featherweight division. If they all fought each other who would come out on top overall? And why?
Navarette or Vilaflor go 0 - 3 here. I'd be more inclined to pick Vilaflor to KO Navarette if he stormed out early like the second Shibata bout. The guy was a monster puncher. But you could argue against it, and Navarette is the one I'm least familiar with here. Navarette 0 - 3 - Loses to Vilaflor IMO, and is just outclassed by both the ATG class of Elorde and Pac. Vilaflor 1 - 2 - KOs Navarette IMO, again is outclassed by the ATG class of Elorde and Pac. Elorde 2 - 1 - Here's where it gets interesting. Elorde is one of the best you'll see at 130, had all the mental tools, skilled tricks and physicality needed to be an ATG and beat anyone at this weight. However, he is up against the monster that is prime Manny Pacquiao, who had the lesser craft (still highly underrated at these weights) but supreme physicality. It would be a great, contrasting bout with the similar but different styles, Pac with his animalistic speed and rushes, Elorde with his masterful shifts, movement and boxing brain. Both men had very quick hands and were beautiful combo punchers. I could argue either to win, but tentatively side with Pac. I see Elorde aiming that left straight and Fitzsimmons shifting right to Pacs body repeatedly, severely troubling him. Pac 3 - 0 - As said, Pac was a beast at 130. Hard chin, harder punches and crazy speed of hand and foot, the man was a monster that few at 130 could even ope with, let alone beat. I see him beating the great Flash Elorde in an exciting decision, that maybe some think Elorde won, and demolishing the other two.
I have Manny number 4 at super featherweight (just rating fighters from the modern history of the division -1960 onwards) and Elorde at number 5. Not that that matters here as it’s H2H but just my view on their relative placement. But I tend to agree that Manny would come out on top and that Elorde-Pacquiao would be the final of this tournament. But the other two wouldn’t exactly roll over either. Navarette was a very strong and powerful fighter for the weight class and Villaflor could punch. I think they’d all be competitive with each other.
Agreed. I think they all have a fair chance of springing a defeat on the others. I’d probably say Navarette is the one I’d put at the bottom as @roughdiamond has. But he could still give the other three all kinds of problems, you’re right.
