“Attack him where he is unprepared, appear where you are not expected,” says Sun Tzu, who encourages combatants to deceive their enemy in the classic military book “The Art of War.” The ancient Chinese general adds: “The clever combatant imposes his will on the enemy, but does not allow the enemy’s will to be imposed on him.”
BOXING — Floyd Mayweather, Jr. is using seven dirty tactics against rival Manny Pacquiao ahead of their May 2nd superfight in Vegas.
1. Mayweather has hired strength coach Alex Ariza, Pacquiao’s former trainer.
Why? To mimic aspects of Pacquiao’s legendary training regimen. But more importantly, to gather information about his rival’s habits and tendencies.
2. Al Haymon (Floyd’s manager) is paying potential sparring partners to not spar with Pacquiao (according to the blogosphere).
Why? To diminish the quality of the Filipino boxer’s training camp.
3. Pacquiao is contractually required to do most of the publicity work (media interviews, etc.) so that, as Mayweather has said, he (Floyd) can do more training than his rival.
4. The drug testing protocol shows Mayweather (as the “A” side) dictating the terms of this fight (that is, Floyd is imposing his will on the enemy, as Sun Tzu would advise).
5. Mayweather controls access to tickets at the MGM Grand.
Why? So he can shut out Pacquiao’s rabid fans, and instead populate the arena with loyal Mayweather supporters. Every Mayweather punch will be greeted with more applause.
6. The fight is called Mayweather-Pacquiao (not Pacquiao-Mayweather), and Floyd gets preferential treatment in terms of promotions and publicity.
7. There’s a potential seventh dirty tactic. And that is to secretly pay members of Team Pacquiao and sparring partners to divulge Freddie Roach’s fight plan.
Why? According to Sun Tzu, spies and double-agents should be the highest-paid members of an army–or in this case, The Money Team.
