BEWITCHED, BOTHERED, BEWILDERED BARRERA FALLS IN 11 By George Elsasser

A hit tune of the 1950s pretty much says it all ... came to me in a flashback, as I watched a "Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered" defending champion Marco Antonio Barrera battered into submission over eleven candles, by a nonstop punching machine in challenger Manny "Pac-Man" Pacquiao.

At first, the take here was simply a matter of the elite Mexican veteran making an adjustment to the young portsider with the quick hands ... and expected a complete turnaround was surely waiting in the wings.

Not so ... and as early as stanza three we get a preview of things to come ... a swarming Pacquiao connects with a zinger of a straight left hand ... and Barrera hits the canvas with a look of shock on his face.

Thru six rounds the one called "Pac-Man" widens the lead to 4-2 in rounds and thing get worse come number seven ... inadvertent head-butt and Barrera comes out with cut over left eye ... and the handwriting on the proverbial wall is there for the most avid of his fans - and the message isn’t pretty.

Finally, at two-minutes 56 seconds mark of eleven, with the defending champ down from still another flurry, the Barrera corner has seen enough - and the HBO viewers could hear the drums and music for its new find.

Post scripts:

I, for one, was way off the mark in the pre-fite pick department ... expected Barrera having no problems with Pacquiao - super-bantam champ or not- guess was the aggressive style would play perfectly into the Mexican's counters.

So what went wrong? Monday morning quarterbacking sees Barrera in a different light ... sometimes the veterans of 50, 60 or more trips to the office begin showing kinks in the armor - others simply wake up old.

Feelings now is Marco Antonio Barrera - class act and warrior exceptional - awakened an aged and over the hill former special one come the dawning of November 15, '03.

Semper fi,

GEL

11-15-2003