Nov. 18, 2010
GUTIERREZ ARCHIVERAIDERS PAGERAIDERS VIDEOPaul GutierrezCSNCalifornia.com
ALAMEDATommy Kelly is the biggest fan of the sweet science in the Raiders locker room. So while the defensive tackle was just making jokes -- we think -- his turn as a fantasy boxing matchmaker had us scratching our heads while thinking, hmmmmmmm.
Kelly thought, if Floyd Mayweather doesnt fight Manny Pacquiao, maybe Pacquiao could turn his attention to the East Bay and face Oaklands Andre Ward.
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Hmmmmmmm, indeed.
Pacquiao, the current pound-for-pound champ who has won world titles in eight weight classes, is coming off last weekend's demolition of Antonio Margarito that resulted in Margarito needing surgery on a broken orbital bone.
Ward, a gold medalist for the U.S. in the 2004 Olympics, defends his WBA Super World super middleweight title against Sakio Bika Nov. 27 at Oracle Arena.
Heres the thing, though: while the 5-feet-6 Pacquiao (52-3-2, 38 knockouts) has had no issue going up in weight, he is considerably smaller than the 6-1 Ward (22-0, 13 KOs).
Pacquiao, with a 67-inch reach, began his career in 1995, when he fought at 107 pounds. He was at a career-high 150 pounds for Margarito. Ward, meanwhile, has a 73-inch reach and walks into the ring on fight night well over 170 pounds.
Too much of a difference? Probably. But if nothing else, Kelly made the fight fan in us all think about something else for a minute besides the first-place Raiders upcoming trip to Pittsburgh.