By Mohamed Horomtallah: The disturbing and scary images of Manny Pacquiao motionless on the canvas are still on everybody’s mind. The brutal knocked down he suffered at the hands, or rather the perfectly timed right hand of Juan Manuel Marquez will have a big effect.
A knock out of that nature is not enjoyable because at the end of the day, no fighter deserves to be seriously hurt. Watching Pacquiao’s wife Jinkee in tears and panicked was hard and for a few minutes, the fans in attendance and those watching around the world were worried that a great fighter might be actually dead. Those minutes seemed to last forever…
Thank God, he finally stood up and tests at the hospital later did not reveal anything serious except a brutal defeat and a shattered ego. Yes, Manny Pacquiao has an ego, maybe not in everyday life, but definitely inside the ring. He’s a warrior and that loss will have a big effect on him.
They say that when you get knocked out cold in that fashion, you are never the same, that your confidence is gone and that fear invites itself inside your heart and your mind. I do not believe that Pacquiao will go down that road. On the contrary, I think he is still the same fighter only more dangerous and more aggressive next time he faces Marquez.
Not taking anything away from the great Mexican warrior who brought heart and honour along with his boxing skills but Pacquiao was starting to control the fight and make it very tough for Marquez who was in for a long, long night. Pacquiao let the wrong feelings control him and wanted to go for the kill before the 6th round was over certainly angered by the indecisiveness of their last three fights. He wanted to put the exclamation point and end the fight in a spectacular manner, with the referee jumping in to stop an overwhelmed Marquez. This lack of patience and overconfidence made him walk into that right hand…
In Pacquiao’s mind, he knows why he lost the fight and what he could’ve done had he not committed that fetal mistake. He knows that he was in total control and that all it will take in the fifth fight of this saga is for him to focus more and avoid walking into a monster shot. He knows now that a knock out comes naturally and not on demand.
Paquiao is in a unique position right now. They say that he’s lost it, that he’s at the end of his journey and that a new fight with Marquez will have the same outcome. This is a privileged position for a true champion and a warrior to be in in a sense that he can make a second coming with a great victory that will put him right up there with the legends of sports.
Pacquiao have a unique opportunity to be an even bigger star. His fifth fight with Marquez is as of right now the biggest fight in boxing and the world will stand still when the bell rings.
I believe Pacquiao will rise from his ashes like the Sphinx and will turn his defeat into his biggest victory and as fans of the sport of boxing, what more could we ask for?