By Chester Rivers: Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Manny Pacquiao, however one would prefer, is a tiresome debate that refuses to go away. Both fan bases have accused the other fighter of being too afraid to fight so I decided to do my own research to uncover who is really ducking whom.
Fans of both fighters have accused the other of cherry picking. Which side is actually right? In boxing the cardinal rule of matching making is “styles make fights”. The style of both Floyd and Manny is antagonistic to the other’s style. Have you ever seen Floyd fight a pressure fighter that’s left handed with speed and power that punches from weird angles? On the other hand, have you ever seen Manny fight a mobile, slick fighter with a superior defense, accurate counter punching with and an excellent longer, sharper jab?
Both fighters tend to fight guys with styles that accommodate their own. Manny mostly fight opponents who come straight ahead with a weak defense that would allows him to bomb away as they come forward i.e Rios, Bradley, Magarito and Diaz. Floyd mostly fight opponents that are considered flat footed with slower reflexes that would allow him to punch then get out of the way i.e. Alvarez, Guerrero and Cotto. So who is really cherry picking? The true answer would be, BOTH!
Mayweather made headlines by suggesting Pacquiao must leave his promotional company, Top Rank, in order for the fight to happen. Pacquiao’s fans quickly jumped at the chance to call Mayweather a coward and his demands another attempt to avoid the fight. Were the fans correct? Knowing Floyd’s turbulent history with Top Rank’s top dog, Bob Arum, I would say Floyd’s demands weren’t cowardly but financially selfish. Many Pacquiao fans seem to forget that Moseley and Marquez had to renounce their affiliation with Golden Boy before signing to fight Pacquiao.
Whenever ask during a live interview will he ever fight Pacquiao? Mayweather always answers the same. He starts off by claiming he’s afraid of no one but the final decision is either Al Haymon’s or Leonard Ellerbe’s never his own. Pacquiao, who speaks English, always answers he want to fight Mayweather but when pressured for a date ironically his English becomes very broken and he suddenly doesn’t understand the question.
Was Manny using performance enhancing drugs? Random blood testing was the breaking for point for original fight negotiations. Manny supporters tend to use the argument, “Manny never tested positive before.” Mayweather fans normally counter with the question “if he’s clean he shouldn’t be afraid to take the test?” Was Manny really using steroids? No one but Manny can honestly answer that question so if he said no, for the sake of humanity and a lawsuit that I cannot afford, I’ll answer NO.
It’s time to face reality and realize this fight will likely never happen. Who will be at fault? I believe both fighters will be satisfied letting the fans decide by DUCKING each other in the ring.
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