Why Manny Should Not Fight Mayweather

I am by no means a boxing aficionado, so my opinion is primarily from a social perspective.

Right now, there is no greater Filipino, and arguably Asian, face in the social consciousness of the United States than Manny Pacquiao. In the past few years he’s been taking the boxing world by storm, and this past November Pacquiao cemented his status in the history of boxing by defeating Miguel Cotto and becoming the first and only boxer thus far to win seven world titles in seven different weight divisions. Now, it would not be unheard of to hear his name mentioned when the greatest boxers in history are discussed, alongside names like Rocky Marciano and Muhammad Ali.

Filipinos around the world had a new hero to be celebrate, and one whom we were immensely proud of. He became a paradigm of the rags to riches tale, a tale of great importance and meaning to the United States and especially, given their poor population, the Philippines. Pacquiao had broken through the Western barrier, earning their fame and recognition, in such a way that arguably no other Filipino had done before (Ernie Reyes Jr. maybe? lol). As for the Philippines, I doubt you could drive through Manila for more than three minutes without seeing Manny’s face plastered on an advertisement from one of his, presumably jillion, endorsements. Aside from just fighting for the Philippines, he finds time to act, sing, and is getting gradually more involved in politics, a field in which he plants to enter once retiring from boxing. The public persona of the Manny Pacquiao is getting larger and larger.

But in our passion for having such an epic hero represent us as never before, it seems to me that Filipinos are getting just the tiniest bit overzealous to the point of ignorance and arrogance. For quite a while now, a confrontation between Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr. has been one that has been insisted upon and ultimately brought to fruition by fans, one that I‘m a little scared for considering what the consequences could mean for our hero. Of course, there is reason to be that enthusiastic, in a sense. Manny has come off as nothing short of invincible from his numerous wins and now-legendary status in boxing. Why wouldn’t he win against Mayweather? Well, maybe because he’s just not good enough.

From my (honestly few) conversations about the bout, and from things I’ve over-heard from people in public places, despite Pacquiao’s talented power and speed, Mayweather is possibly superior, if only slightly, at both. And, combined with his naturally larger stature, shouldn’t this be something the Filipino community be concerned about? Is Pacquiao’s signature unorthodox boxing style enough to win?

As a supporter of Pacquiao, what is there to be gained from this fight with Mayweather? The victory would mean a lot more for Mayweather than it would for Pacquiao. For Mayweather, he would be the one to topple a living legend. What’s there for Pacquiao and his fans? To say that, “Hey, he beat this guy too.”? Is that enough for fans to risk a loss?

For me, it’s not just the fear that Pacquiao could lose that has me considering that the fight should not take place. As mentioned earlier, it’s the fallout. Sure, Pacquiao will still be in history, still be the one and only to win seven titles in seven weight divisions. But the loss that could occur would not just be a number on his record. Were it to occur, it would significantly diminish everything Pacquiao has accomplished thus far. Here you have a hero that has just accomplished so much in the boxing world, only to be knocked out as he has been put to the forefront of Western audiences. The fact that he’s won seven titles in seven divisions would be considerably devalued in a lot of people’s minds.

Even after all that, to me the most devastating thing to happen should Pacquiao lose is just how much the Filipino community will feel deflated after defeat. We would essentially have our country’s hero defeated. And when the world is as weary and depressing as it can always be (especially if you’re poor and living in the squatters of the Philippines, I assume), that’s one of the last things we need. Pacquiao, with his recognition and victories, his epitomizing the riches to rags tale, gives hope and pride to a population that rarely has such a figure for one. To me, it’s not worth it to risk a loss for our homeland’s hero just to say that he is also capable of defeating Mayweather. And it’s not even about win or loss. What’s important is not that Pacquiao win; What’s important is what Pacquiao represents to his people, and what we need as a community.

**for those who want a cheesy fan boy analogy, think of the end of The Dark Knight, except replace Batman running away as Pacquiao, and replace what Commissioner Gordon says with, “He’s not the hero we deserve, but the hero we need.”

:P I know, I’m a geek.