The Pac Man could be obliged to box on after the fight next month which he has pronounced will mark his farewell to the ring.
Manny Pacquiao?s hitherto seamless transition from world championship prize-fighting to political leadership of the Philippines is suddenly not so gilded.
That path from boxing idolatry to People?s Presidency has become dangerously pot-holed by his drastic fall in the opinion polls prior to this summer?s Senate elections.
In the current ratings Pacquiao is no longer projected to win elevation from the Philippines Congress.
A seat in the Senate, until now a seeming shoe-in for this national idol, has been regarded as his next stepping stone to the Presidency.
Now, with just 12 places available, he finds himself down from eighth to 14th in the latest survey by leading pollsters Pulse Asia.
This follows the campaign appearance on television in which he described homosexuals as ?worse than animals,? a remark which invoked worldwide condemnation.
If that drop in popular support persists, Pacquiao?s only career alternative, at 37, may be to keep fighting.
While a U-turn from retirement would have been widely celebrated prior to the controversy, that may not now be as simple or as enriching as previously envisaged.
HBO, his American TV paymasters, have expressed their dismay at Pacquiao?s comments, adding that they are only going ahead with their broadcast of his April 9 fight with Tim Bradley in Las Vegas because of their contractual commitment to the boxers.
A joint telecast by HBO and Showtime which generated an all-time record 4.2million buys in the US was the prime driver of an unprecedented half-a-billion dollars in revenue for Pacquiao?s long-awaited bout with Floyd Mayweather.
There is sporadic speculation that the pair may come out of retirement for a rematch but that would now present a moral dilemma for the broadcasters.
Bob Arum, Pacquiao?s promoter of long-standing, has partially distanced himself from the more offensive of Pacquiao?s remarks. And instead of a glamour match against his newest star Terence Crawford, which he was projecting, Arum is now talking about the winner of this third fight between Pacquiao and Bradley taking on the less-celebrated Jessie Vargas.
Pacquiao has begged forgiveness for using the word ?animals? but he does not apologise for his ?Christian opposition? to gay marriage. That belief has been expected to win votes in the Philippines, where same-sex weddings are legally banned and the majority of the population are Catholic.
Now it is unclear if this is the reason for the unexpected fall in popularity of a national icon, who is a champion of the poor and has donated much of his fortune to the construction of homes, hospitals and schools for the under-privileged.
Pan Asia director Ana Maria Tabunda told the ABS CBN News channel in the Philippines that they do yet know why Pacquiao has suffered the biggest drop in popularity as the election approaches.
Several leading contenders for the Senate have returned lower ratings but the Pac Man?s fall of 12.1 per cent since the end of January is the most alarming.
Although Pacquiao still received a hero?s welcome when he returned home from Las Vegas after the Mayweather fight, there are suggestions that the defeat may have hurt the standing of a man whose political ambitions have been built on his status as the only eight-division world champion in boxing history.
If so, that could explain the Pac Man being one of a very few top professionals keen to exploit an Olympic rule change by boxing against the amateurs in this summer?s Rio Games.
He has expressed a patriotic willingness to bring home to the Philippines the gold medal which has always eluded his country.
Now the golden future he has been mapping out for himself may depend upon it.
Although quite how such a caring, generous and usually polite human being has got himself into this pickle is beyond me.
No boxer involved with Ricky Hatton is likely to be short on guts, determination or courage.
Lucas Browne, the big man from Down Under who is trained and promoted by the Manchester Hitman, demonstrated all those qualities in becoming the first Australian to win a world heavyweight title.
Having travelled to the Chechen capital of Grozny on Saturday night, Browne was very much the underdog against Ruslan Chagaev.
After being knocked down in the sixth, Browne was cut, bloodied and close to defeat ? until he landed a massive right hook in the 10th from which the Uzbek could not fully recover.
Browne is now the proud holder of the WBA ?regular? world title.
As a 36-year-old late starter, he is wise enough to acknowledge that he ?still has plenty to learn? before challenging the WBA?s senior heavyweight champion, Tyson Fury. Although he does say: ?If ever I land my big right on his chin I will knock him out.?
For Hatton ? who hails this victory as ?a huge statement for our company and boost for our gym? ? it comes as gratifying reward for all the time and hard work he has devoted to Browne?s development.
No sooner does the first Muhammad Ali exhibition in British history open than another comes along right behind it.
Talk about No 10 buses.
I Am The Greatest – a veritable treasure house of Ali artefacts, films and memorabilia chronicling his life inside and outside the ring, began a near-six-month run at London?s O2 Arena last Friday.
Next, for two months starting next Thursday, a collection of nostalgia-dripping photographs of the most recognisable person on the planet.
The Champ ? My Year With Muhammad Ali, offers unique portraits taken by Michael Gaffney while he was the great man?s personal photographer, between 1977 and 1978.
They are on display at the Proud Camden, in the Horse Hospital, Stables Market, Chalk Farm Road, London, NW1.
Admission there is free, although be ready to pay up to ?18 for entrance to the O2.
But both are well worth a visit.
