Of course, I am not talking about Manny Ramierez, I am talking the about the other big Manny in sports, Manny Pacquiao. And contrary to the former, this Manny has had nothing but love and adoration from the sporting world up until this week when he came up for a long list of excuses for not wanting to fight Mayweather on May 5th. You see up until now boxing’s number one guy Floyd Mayweather has been cast as the villain and being the one accused of ducking and stalling the much anticipated mega-fight between the two. As such, Manny has received the hero’s treatment with the media portraying him as the humble, hard-working protagonist who has been patiently waiting for his opportunity to step in the ring with the brash, money-tossing villain who they believe has been ducking him for over two years.
Unfortunately for those in the Manny camp, once you take off the rose-colored glasses reality gives produces a much clearer picture of who Manny Pacquiao is and what is standing is in the sport.
Myth#1- Manny is the best pound for pound fighter in the sport
Truth- He is not
I believe the inception of this myth was around the time Floyd Mayweather the consensus number one decided to walk-away from the sport undefeated and boxing’s number two man Manny Pacquiao was elevated to the top spot. The problem for Manny however, is that Floyd came back after a short retirement, and common sense would dictate that if the king is back, until he is formally dethroned, he is still the king (for example, Michael Jordan was still the best basketball player on the planet even though he left and came back). And while Pacquiao fanatics will cling to the fact that he has dominated the boxing world since Floyd’s retirement by beating-up on guys Floyd had already beaten (i.e. Oscar Dela Hoya, Ricky Hatton, Shane Mosley, Juan Manuel Marquez), this argument holds little water given the fact that it is a lot easier to cut down a tree that already been sawed in half.
Myth#2- Manny has always been the one to delay the mega-fight
Truth- One of the biggest reasons for delay has been the fact that Floyd Mayweather has insisted on random drug testing up to and including the day before the fight. Mayweather has stated that his desire to clean up the sport of boxing is the main reason for his insistence. Whether or not this is really the case, Mayweather has been accused of using the demand as a way to delay fighting Pacquio with the general consensus being who turns down potentially the largest pay-day in boxing history because of a commitment to random drug testing? And while Mayweather has been called every name in the book from a liar to a coward over his decision, there is also a flip side to this coin, who turns down potentially the largest pay-day in boxing history over taking a needle? Pacquiao’s camp has insisted that his refusal is due to a fear of needles so close to a fight, but doctors across the board have stated that drawing a small amount of blood close to a fight has no effect on performance. Therefore, the real focus should not be on why someone insists on a method of testing which is the standard of testing for many world class athletes (i.e. via the U.S. anti-doping agency), the focus should be on why someone is so desperately trying to avoid it. However, if you believe the reports had by boxing guru Teddy Atlas, maybe Manny has a lot to hide http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5OdXkQ1B4wY (around the 9 minute mark).
Myth#3- Manny would destroy Floyd if they ever they ever stepped in the ring
Truth- Unknown
Until the two boxers actually get in the ring there is no way to conclusively prove who would beat who in the ring. There are indicators like the fact that Manny struggled to beat Juan Manuel Marquez (not just once but three times), whereas Floyd was able to defeat him with ease which can make one tilt the odds in Floyd favor, but again nothing is for certain.
In sum, Mayweather v. Pacquiao remains as potentially the most lucrative fight in history, nothing, nothing new has changed that. However, what has changed given recently is the fact that Pacquiao fans must accept the reality that it is Pacquiao not Mayweather who has been ducking Floyd, not the other way around. To cite reasons like “cuts need more than 6 months to heahttp://espn.go.com/boxing/story/_/id/7433886/blame-bob-arum-no-manny-pacquiao-floyd-mayweather-fightl”, “we want a bigger venuehttp://espn.go.com/boxing/story/_/id/7453621/manny-pacquiao-camp-says-no-economic-sense-5-mayweather-fight”, “Who knows if Mayweather will be licensedhttp://espn.go.com/boxing/story/_/id/7433886/blame-bob-arum-no-manny-pacquiao-floyd-mayweather-fight” as reasons to not make a fight are some of the lamest reasons to walk away from upwards of 50 million dollars. Pacquiao’s may continue to sell B.S. while calling it apple sauce, the only difference is that after this week, no one will be buying it. They’ll be saving their money and buy Floyd’s next fight on May 5th.
