Stop me if you’ve heard this one before, but Manny Pacquiao wants a rematch with Floyd Mayweather. And, again, stop me if you’ve also heard this, but Manny Pacquiao thinks he beat Floyd Mayweather in May. Looks like we’re traveling down this road again. Wheeeee!
In an interview with Jeff Powell of the Daily Mail, Pacquiao’s trainer Freddie Roach weighed in a possible fight with Mayweather. If you recall, Mayweather’s team has said his next fight against Andre Berto will be his last.
Which, come on, there’s not a single person with a functional brain who believes that. Especially when a 50th fight (to break Rock Marciano’s 49-0 record) will likely set all kinds of pay-per-view records.
But, anyway, back to Roach’s comments.
“No shoulder injury and Manny beats him,” declares Roach. Pacquiao keeps watching the video of the first fight and saying, “I still believe I won.”
First thing’s first: Manny did not win that fight. He won a couple of rounds and probably missed out on an opportunity in the fourth, but ultimately lost in somewhat convincing fashion. It’s a shame he was injured. Several fans (myself included) believed Manny posed the biggest threat to Floyd’s undefeated record. Despite being well past his prime, Manny’s ability to throw hundreds of punches in a fight proves cumbersome to Mayweather’s defensive tactics.
Alas, Manny’s shoulder was hanging on by a thread. He couldn’t generate power, speed, or anything resembling the Manny Pacquiao most people are accustomed to seeing. I can understand why he wants a rematch. Part of me feels a healthy Manny might catch Floyd napping in one of the later rounds. But that’s probably not going to happen. That’s probably not what Floyd is looking for in his 50th fight. He’ll go with a Canelo Alvarez or somebody with a track record who has no chance if beating him. That’s what we’ve come to expect from Floyd. That’s what we’ve come to expect from boxing in general.
What a sad state of affairs.
(via Larry Brown Sports)
