Um… NO.

In case you have no idea how close we are to this huge Manny Pacquiao – Ricky Hatton fight, the event dubbed as ”The Battle of East and West” is on this Saturday and if you haven’t made your bets yet, I suggest you make some now.

Yep, Ricky ”The Hitman” Hatton will be at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada where he tries to finally save boxing from Manny Pacquiao and third world retardation. Hatton, unlike the other fighters Pacquiao faced before, is someone who is still in his prime. He is a technical fighter who can also brawl with Pacquiao if the fight suggests it.

Hatton is, by no means, a dehydrated Oscar De La Hoya and it will take Pacquiao more than an aborted duck fetus to keep up with this guy. Third world retardation has gone long enough in the sport of boxing and it’s about time that somebody puts an end to it.

Yes, boxing, thanks to Manny ”The Pacman” Pacquiao, has become retarded since he took the sport from its scientific and technical roots and turned it into a circus. You see, during the days of a young Mike Tyson or even an older Lennox Lewis, boxing was all about finding out who truly is the best in the business. Unfortunately for the sport, Pacquiao and his people are turning it into a fuck-fest where they just look for past world champions, wait for them to turn 40 and pit ‘em up against the Pacman just so the third world moron can mug the guy without resembling any semblance of scientific boxing.

It’s irritating. And what’s even worse is the fact that…

CHANGE. Everybody has sure been using that word a lot these days.

But this time, it’s not President-Elect Barack Obama talking about it but Roy Jones Jr., the former heavyweight, former light heavyweight champion of the world. And although he has no plans of ”changing” the economic situation in the United States from a political seat, he wants CHANGE on Saturday night, that is changing Joe Calzaghe’s STILL unblemished record.

You read it, the former pound-for-pound king is looking to hand Joe Calzaghe the very first loss of his career. Calzaghe has been perfect so far with a 45-0 record, 32 of them coming by way of knockout. To say that Calzaghe has one of the most intimidating records in boxing is now an understatement but for some reason, Roy Jones is not fazed one bit.

The 39-year-old Roy Jones Jr. believes he can CHANGE Calzaghe’s dominant run so far inside the squared circle. ”That’s what I’m about,” Jones said at a news conference before breaking into a grin. ”You better believe, whatever it takes, I’ve got it.”

Is this just wishful thinking for the guy once known as the best fighter in the world? Calzaghe seems determined to put a stamp on his legacy as a ‘’super power” in boxing. Some have already tried stopping this freight train and failed miserably. Last April 19, 2007, Bernard ”the Executioner” Hopkins did but ended up giving Calzaghe his 45th straight…

Can Pavlik finally put an end on Hopkins’ career?

That’s probably the question on every boxing fan’s mind coming to this huge fight on Saturday. At 43, Bernard ”the Executioner” Hopkins just keeps on coming back and Pavlik wants to finally put an end to what has been one of the most amazing runs in boxing history.

Besides, being the undefeated middleweight champion that he is, Kelly ”the Ghost” Pavlik definitely has the tools to end Hopkins’ stint inside the squared circle. Pavlik has continued to make quite a splash since beating Jermain Taylor for the middleweight belt and beating one of the modern legends in the business will further add into what is becoming quite an impressive boxing resume.

”Our game plan is to make him have to throw at least 65 punches a round,” Kelly Pavlik said from his home in Youngstown, Ohio. ”He never really averages that at all, but if he’s going to have any chance of winning it’s going to be his only choice.”

”I just go out and keep winning the rounds. If a knockout comes, great, especially against Hopkins, but our main goal is to go in there and win that fight.”

”Hopkins has a good chin and a good defense. A lot of fighters, they get into Hopkins’s game, and that’s…”

Well, what’s left of it anyway. And yes, he’ll try to salvage what’s left of his aging career when he meets the undefeated middleweight king.

Future Hall-of-Famer and once a two-division world champion, Bernard ”The Executioner” Hopkins will meet undefeated world middleweight champion Kelly ”The Ghost” Pavlik on October 18 at Atlantic City’s Boardwalk Hall in what is shaping up to be a good one, to say the least.

Hopkins, known as the one of the greatest middleweights of all time, has a 48-5-1 record with 32 wins coming from knockouts. He has held the world title as a middleweight and light heavyweight every year since 1995. Now over 40, he’s trying to rekindle the greatness he once had against Kelly ”The Ghost” Pavlik. Can he overcome and shock the world?

Dating back in 2006, Hopkins moved from middleweight to light heavyweight and quickly made some noise by beating Antonio Tarver. He continued his domination of the squared circle by winning a 170-pound bout against then title contender Winky Wright. But after losing his title to Jermain ”Bad Intentions” Taylor, Hopkins’ descend from the top began.

Although he lost again in his last bout as a light heavyweight, losing to Joe Calzaghe a few months ago, he is still determined to be on top of the sport again. Beating a world champion like Pavlik could do that.

In order to beat Pavlik, Hopkins needs two things…

In case you haven’t heard, yes, Pavlik and Hopkins are on this October.

The reigning middleweight champion of the world, Kelly ”The Ghost” Pavlik, is set to go one on one with Bernard ”The Executioner” Hopkins on October 18 at the Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City in what could be the fight that will definie just how good of a champion Pavlik is.

Still undefeated at a perfect 34-0, Kelly ”The Ghost” Pavlik moved up in weight to face Hopkins for the 170-pound titular showdown. Pavlik has been compared to an express train as he continues to awe boxing fans with his stellar performances courtesy of his supreme aggressive ring style, jaw-breaking punches and almost 90 percent knock-out ratio.

Of course, he already did something Hopkins failed at, TWICE, that’s beating Jermain ”Bad Intentions” Taylor to keep the middleweight title. So how can a champion like this guy beat up a 43-year-old man? Hmm…

For Kelly Pavlik to win this match, Pavlik must take advantage of his speed and quickness being the younger fighter. Hopkins is a slick veteran with a bunch of boxing tricks in his bag, that’s why Pavlik shouldn’t try to brawl with Hopkins but instead, be patient and wait for openings Hopkins just might give up. Pavlik has one way to fight, defense with straight-forward throwing punches.

When he is in range, he lets the big ones fly. He should not change that, that’s the style that catapulted him to the upper echelons of…

Can the Executioner slay a Ghost?

That’s probably the mindset promoters of this Bernard ”The Executioner” Hopkins vs Kelly ”The Ghost” Pavlik extravaganza are in. Hopkins, even at the late stages of his career, is still one of the best in the game right now but when he’s matched up against an undefeated Ghost like Pavlik, you have to ask yourself, how in the hell can you execute a freakin’ ghost?

And when you’re talking about the world middleweight champion Kelly ”The Ghost” Pavlik, trying to slay THE Ghost is more of an impossibility. After all, he is not the undisputed king of the middleweight division for nothing and after surprising the world by beating then champ, Jermain ”Bad Intentions” Taylor, Kelly Pavlik has arrived with a bang and by the looks of it, he’s here for the long haul.

STILL, if there’s one guy who can shock the world, it’s Bernard ”The Executioner” Hopkins. There are not many boxers who can claim they can stay on top of the game at 40. B-Hop has.

Hopkins is 43 for crying out loud people and he can still bitch-slap Manny Pacquiao faster than Pacquiao can eat duck fetus. When Hopkins’ mother, Shirley Hopkins, passed away in 2003…

And probably how hard will he knock the duck fetus off Pacquiao’s irritating mustache as well.

You read it, it’s that time of the year when yours truly will again hope for a ”Manny Pacquiao” retirement, praying for a boxing pro to finally put an end to this godforsaken joke that we all know has gone way waaay too far already.

On Thursday, the ”Golden Boy” Oscar De La Hoya will officially announce his scheduled bout with the third world moron on December 6. If De La Hoya pulls off a win over Pacman, that will be an early Christmas gift for people like me who loves ”real tactical boxing.”

Top Rank promoter Bob Arum still refuses to confirm what could be the biggest ass-kicking of a third world moron of the century. What he did told everybody is De La Hoya making a big announcement about who’s going to be his next opponent although we all know now that it’s going to be Pacquiao. Bob Arum, for some reason, is still promoting this third world joke from God knows where.

”We’ll know who is he is fighting tomorrow,” Bob Arum said from…

Well whadaya’ know, B-Hop still has some fight left in him after all.

You read it people, Bernard ‘The Executioner’ Hopkins, the 43-year-old boxing veteran who we thought has already walked away from the ring, will climb back to it this Saturday to face Joe Calzaghe this Saturday in a light heavyweight extravaganza.

This will be the first time Joe Calzaghe will fight in the United States in his 15-year boxing career. On that note, will that be an issue for Calzaghe once he sets foot in the ring with Hopkins in the States? Or will the age of 43 be an even bigger problem for Hopkins on Saturday?

Joe Calzaghe certainly thinks so. Calzaghe believes that him fighting in the United States for the first time against one of the greatest middleweight champions to ever fight inside a boxing ring won’t be a problem at all. Although he admits he’ll be out of his ”comfort zone,” he believes no 43-year-old can outbox him at this point of his career.

”I have to not just go there and win, I have to go there and dominate,” Joe Calzaghe said. Calzaghe also claimed that ”Popkins” is just too old to stay with him this Saturday although as expected, Hopkins disagrees.

Joe Calzaghe is coming into this one looking to…

I guess they just want to give us (those who care anyway…) the fight we almost missed to see.

Yep, Felix Trinidad will be making his return to the squared circle to fight the man once dubbed as ”the best pound for pound fighter in the world,” Roy Jones Jr. This fight was initially scheduled in 2001 but thanks to Bernard Hopkins knocking out Trinidad silly, it never happened.

Boxing promoter extraordinaire Don King, being the businessman that he is, announced that we will finally see this epic bout between the two greatest fighters of their era.

Two future Hall of Famers Felix Trinidad and Roy Jones Jr. will meet in a pay-per-view fight on January 26 at Madison Square Garden.

Let’s hope Felix doesn’t run into Bernard Hopkins this time around.

”We just made this fight. It’s a fight made in boxing heaven,” Don King said. ”We’re gonna start the year off with a bang.”

Although both Felix Trinidad and Roy Jones Jr. are…

For the Ring magazine light heavyweight championship of the world, a 35-year-old man fights a 41-year-old who is postponing retirement.

He he… In a battle of two old farts, 35-year-old Winky Wright will fight 41-year-old Bernard Hopkins this Saturday at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.

This is the first match the ”Executioner” Bernard Hopkins will be in since he announced his retirement after destroying Antonio Tarver, dubbed the ”best light heavyweight in the world.” Can Hopkins silence his critics again when he faces yet another opponent who’s obviously younger than him? (Well, not THAT much anyway…)

Winky Wright, the 35-year-old challenging B-Hop for his Ring magazine light heavyweight championship belt, fought the first 14 years of his career as a junior middleweight. He took the ”less-glamorous” road towards superstardom and the guy just simply took care of business weigh-in after weigh-in.

It simply doesn’t matter to Winky Wright what weight class he should be in, making 154 pounds, or thereabouts for non-title fights. Yep, he doesn’t complain much too. Asked about his upcoming fight with Hopkins, Wright simply had this to…