Manny Paquiao talks about his injured shoulder in a press conference a day after the fight. |
THE ANTICIPATION was better than the results. The so-called "fight of the century" between Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather wasn't artistic and fell well below expectations.
Lumpia sales were at record levels at turo-turo shops in the San Francisco Bay Area as Filipino/Americans throughout the country held house parties and gathered at bars and restaurants to watch their countryman's big fight, hoping for an upset.
In the Philippines, May 2 was declared a national holiday. The Philippines' national electric company, Palawan Electric, urged Filipinos to stop using all electricity except lamps and refrigerators to prevent strain on the nation’s electric grid from the broadcast of the fight.
Mayweather won the fight but couldn't overcome his image woes. Pacquiao lost but for some inexplicable reason, he thought he should have won. Click here for round-by-round descriptions.
Fans in the Philippines braved a storm to watch an outdoor TV screen. More photos from the Philippines. |
Mayweather's defensive strategy, using his longer reach to keep Pacquiao away worked throughout the fight. Pacquiao couldn't get within reach to deliver the blows we are used to seeing come from his him. Where were the angles? Where was the footwork? Where were the flurries? Where was the left hook? Where was his right jab?
It was clearly not the Manny that we've come to expect.
As it turned out, he had a shoulder injury suffered during training. Officials denied his request for a pain-killing injection so he had to basically fight with one arm all night.
"It's part of the game," Pacquiao said. "I don't want to make alibis or complain or anything ... [but] it's hard to fight one-handed."
Despite the loss, Pacquiao earned $150 million. Mayweather was guaranteed $180 million win or lose, the largest purse ever for any sporting event. The total revenue reached $600 million, another record. Mayweather reportedly earned about $240 million.
Mayweather, with a record of 48-0 has to have one more win to match the 49-0 record made by legend Rocky Marciano. That should come in September of this year after which, he said, he would retire.
According to his trainer, Freddy Roach, Pacquiao will likely go down in weight, where he is closer to his true fighting weight.
In challenging Mayweather in the welterweight division Pacquiao had to gain pounds he clearly was not comfortable carrying. The Filipino fighter has won championships in eight weight divisions, the most of any boxer.
But, first, there's this problem with the shoulder ...
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