No-one who saw Manny Pacquiao in the 36 hours following the victory over Antonio Margarito which immortalised him as an eight-division world champion will be surprised that he has relinquished the light-middleweight title he won that November night in Dallas.
The PacMan spent that day-and-a-half curled into the foetal position on his bed.
There is a price to be paid for making history by fighting ever bigger, ever stronger, ever heavier men.
The cost of reinforcing his status as the greatest pound-for-pound boxer on the planet – perhaps of all time – was extracted from Pacquiao’s vital organs.
Although it was Margarito who ended up looking as if his face had lost an argument with a combine harvester, the body punches he landed in mid-fight inflicted internal agony from which the Filipino took some time to fully recover.
This is what happens when a fighter from the lighter weights takes on a world champion who is 17lbs the heavier as they enter the ring.
That light-middleweight contest was made at a catch-weight 150lbs but Margarito piled the weight back on between stepping off the scales and answering the first bell. By contrast, Pacquiao came in below the mutually agreed poundage.
In passing, this former flyweight’s inability to maintain even the 147lbs welterweight limit stands as a rebuttal of Floyd Mayweather’s insinuations that Pacquiao bulks up with the help of performance-enhancing drugs.
Nor is his pale frame as muscular as those of most boxers, Mayweather Jnr included.
Up next: Mosley is set to face Pacquiao
Freddie Roach, the fabled trainer of Pacquiao and Britain’s own Amir Khan, has always had misgivings about the catch-weight concept and the Margarito experience has convinced the PacMan that his mentor is right.
There had been speculation that Pacquiao was reluctant to pay the WBC sanction fee but the real reason for giving up that particular belt is to protect his health.
His advisor, Michael Koncz, confirms: ‘Boxing at 150lbs and higher is detrimental to Manny’s health and from now on he will fight at a maximum of 147 lbs.’
So much for the accusation that Margarito was an easy stepping-stone to a record which is unlikely ever to be equalled.
The pain Pacquiao went through has encouraged his next opponent, Sugar Shane Mosley, in the belief that attacks to the body can enable him to pull off what would be a major upset.
With that bout set at welterweight, Mosley is likely to be disappointed but the fascination with Pacquiao has already sold all but a thousand of the 16,000 seats at the MGM Grand Garden in Las Vegas……with the fight still three months away.
Mayweather, meanwhile, is marketing his new line in fizzy-pop drinks, preparing to face trials on assault and battery charges in Las Vegas and repeating allegations that Pacquiao is dodging drugs tests.
If the self-styled Money Man really wants to pursue his claim to be the pound-for-pound king, he needs to put his life in order and get into the ring with the PacMan. Sharpish. …………………………………………………………………………………
At last, Amir Khan has found an opponent for his home-coming fight at Manchester’s MEN Arena on April 16.
Paul McCloskey, Northern Ireland’s European champion, has returned to the negotiating table and finally agreed to challenge Khan for his world lightweight title.
Best of British: Bolton boxer Khan (left) will be the fans’ favourite when he fights in Manchester
McCloskey, along with Lamont Petersen, had previously baulked at the $300,000 on offer but has decided that the chance of a world title shot is too good to pass up.
Team Khan are viewing this defence of the WBA belt as a warm-up for the impending unification battle with America’s Tim Bradley in July but McCloskey will have other ideas. The Ulsterman is unbeaten and more talented than Petersen.
Khan’s world-class skills and lightning speed should prevail but – after his epic win over Argentine puncher Marcos Maidana – this promises to be another interesting test of his reinforced defences.
