https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rKQ98yAOoZg
Manny Pacquiao has had rough few weeks. First he lost to Floyd Mayweather in a fight widely believed to the be biggest fight in nearly twenty years (and would go on to be widely panned as a boring affair). Then it was revealed Pacquiao entered the fight with a torn rotator cuff, a fact that was hidden from the public.
This disclosure has enraged fans, causing some to take action against Manny with their own uppercut.
In light of all this, an unlikely source has come to Pacquiao’s defense: Max Kellerman. Kellerman, who some claim was unfair during his interview with Manny after the Mayweather fight, used the pre-show of the Alvarez-Kirkland fight to strongly defend Pacquiao and his decision to continue against Mayweather:
“I think some people had the sense that Manny Pacquiao sold out for the money, and by fighting with a torn rotator cuff somehow perpetrated a fraud on the public. I strongly disagree with this. A dilemma is not a tough choice. A dilemma is a choice between two bad options. What was Manny Pacquiao supposed to do?
Three weeks to go before the fight when he was diagnosed with a torn rotator cuff that needed surgery, was he supposed to postpone the fight? So, 12 months off, he already was off for five months, he’s supposed to come back after shoulder surgery and a 17-plus month ring absence, to fight and try to beat Floyd Mayweather? Does that give him his best chance to win? When all the tickets have already been sold? The hotel rooms have been booked? The airfare etc. The eyes of the boxing world were hoping to see this fight and what did Manny Pacquiao do? He manned-up…
If people are mad at anybody for Pacquiao not being at his best, if that is the view, be mad at the Nevada State Athletic Commission, in my view, because just when the boxing world needed them to show sound judgement, they chose to stand on principle instead of cooperate with the spirit of the event.”
Kellerman is certainly not wrong, as any delay to the fight could have proven disastrous for such a highly-touted event. If this proves anything, it’s that Pacquiao is much tougher than anybody would have thought before his fight with Mayweather, and that Kellerman has no bias against the man.
(Via For The Win)
