Champion boxer Manny Pacquiao, the Philippines? favourite sporting son, took time out preparing for the biggest fight in boxing history to plead for clemency for compatriot Mary Jane Veloso.
Pacquiao?s plea for clemency for Veloso has been successful, and she has been granted a stay of execution, accordimg to media reports.
But the other eight, including the two Australians Andrew Chan and Myurn Sukumaran, have been executed by firing squad.
What happens to Indonesia with regards to the international community in the future will be decided by history.
Now Pacquiao, who juggles his political and boxing careers with great aplomb, will return his attention to training for the world title fight in Las Vegas on Sunday afternoon AEST ? the unified WBA Super, and the WBC, WBO and The Ring titles.
The MGM Grand Gardens Arena has a seating capacity 16,800, and all seats were sold before you could blink, even though the average price per ticket was $10,500.
A friend of mine in Las Vegas has said ringside seats are available from scalpers at a cool $350,000.
The fight is likely to generate a net $400 million via pay TV and gate, by far the biggest purse in boxing history, with unbeaten Floyd Mayweather Jnr to bank 60 per cent or $240 million, and Pacquiao $160 million.
This fight has been flagged for five years,but there?s always been a hitch from somewhere. On February 20 this year both parties signed on the dotted line.
Mayweather?s team won the majority of pre-fight negotiation battles.
Mayweather must be named first in all promos and previews of the fight, and will have first choice of locker room, and corner.
In addition, Mayweather will come out second to the ring, and be introduced second by the ring announcer.
From that point on it will be a level playing field, with Mayweather owning the better career record with 47-0, including 26 knockouts.
That?s two short of unbeaten former world heavyweight champion Rocky Marciano?s world record 49 wins with 43 knockouts, also a record, with 87.76 per cent of wins inside the distance.
Marciano fought such legends as Joe Louis, whom he beat by knockout in the eighth of 10 rounds and Archie Moore by knockout in the ninth of 15 rounds. He twice beat Ezzard Charles by knockout in the ninth of 15, and a unanimous decision in the other, and twice beat Jersey Joe Walcott by knockout ? in the first of 15, and the 13th of 15.
Marciano was a magnificent athlete who reigned from September 1952 to April 1956 when he retired. He tragically died in a plane crash in bad weather on August 31, 1969, aged 46.
Mayweather reveres Marciano?s unblemished record, and contends Rocky is an inspiration.
That spells trouble for Pacquiao, who owns more nicknames than anyone else I know.
Pac-Man, The Destroyer, The Mexicutioner, the Fighting Pride of the Philippines, and finally the Fighting Congressman ? he has been a member of the Philippines Congress for two elections in 2010 and 2013.
But no nicknames will be of any use against the unbeaten Maywether when Pacquiao?s career track record is 57-5-2, with 38 knockouts.
He?s had most trouble with Juan Manual Marquez, with a loss by knockout in the sixth of 12 in 2011, and a draw in 2004.
Mayweather beat Marquez with a unanimous points decision over 12 rounds in 2009.
Floyd Mayweather Jnr is 38, and orthodox, Manny Pacquiao?s 36, and a southpaw.
This promises to be an epic.
