WWJD. You know, that one. What would Jesus do? I have no special insight in what He could or should do except that I know that you know that He knows whenver we skip Mass on Sunday. From what Grandma Marion told me, He marks it down in His Book when you?re absent also.
My subject today is strictly secular. I?m asking and offering a few thoughts about WWMD, meaning what would Manny do?
So here?s my Top Ten List Of Things Mr. Pacquiao needs to do in the wake of his unanimous but but often tedious victory over Marco Antonio Barrera:
Stop fighting the scales. Ace trainer Freddie Roach, being the Everlast Einstein he is, thinks otherwise. as he indicated in my fight day interview, but Manny is losing the fight to remain at 130 pounds. Roach doesn?t want him sliding up to 135 pounds because he fears Pacman will lose some of his punching power. He might but I think the decrease in the pop of his punches will be slight and the mental and physical strain of purging himself to make 130 pounds is a burden that the fighter does not need to have on his mind or his waist. What about viable opponents? No worries, mate, as you will see a mass exodus from super featherweight into the lightweight division if Manny moves up. Other guys will move up because they know Manny is the man who shakes the moneymaker.
Take the rest of the year off. Not only from boxing but from almost everything. Go to Malalcanang Palace and the other usual stops on the MP Victory Tour but then give most of your time to Jinkee and the kids and the balance to yourself. Gamble, play some hoops, down a few cervezas, shoot pool?go into relax mode because you won?t fight again until 2008.
Reward your team. Manny, it?s not my job to tell you how to spend your money but I?d say everyone on Team Pacquaio, from No Joke Coach Roach on down, deserves a nice holiday bonus. Play Santa Manny because you can afford it. You can?t put a price on loyalty, true, but the troops have earned some Xmas ?cheer? from their Bossman. The cagey Canadian, Michael Koncz, likes to run silent, run deep but he makes sure you make your appointed rounds outside the ring so make sure he gets some ?gravy? also. Put in some hours working on your English. You deserve to grab some endorsement and other commercial opportunities in the U.S. Best way to nail those down is improve your English, which is not so bad now, so that you can go on Jay Leno, David Letterman and the other big talk shows here. A persistent p.r. person might even make a successful ?pitch? to an Oprah Winfrey producer. I can just see you and Jinkee talking with Oprah about how you were once that skinny, poverty stricken 12-year-old kid selling cigarettes in the street.
Rethink your next opponent. It?s not mandatory that you fight Juan Manuel Marquez next. There are other options so let?s discuss them.
Michael ?Rocky? Kastidis has a world title and his charge ahead style and yours would make for an enthralling ring collision. Kastidis is also a terrific interview and, properly guided, he could really bang the publicity drum to help make this a megafight. Your co-promoter Golden Boy won?t mind since the handle the Awesome Aussie.
Winner of the Joan Guzman-Humberto Soto HBO bout of Nov. 17. If this fight is a thriller?and I think it will be with Guzman winning?then you will have a ready made opponent for let?s say March of next year. If Soto wins, you?ve got a Mexican foe who will come directly at you. If Guzman wins, you?ve got a style challenge, as Roach keeps saying, because of the Dominican?s hand and foot speed. Guzman is a Sycuan/GBP fighter and Soto is a Top Rank boxer so it should be relatively easy to make this bout.
Going back to Kastidis. It?s not a big story line but it would be part of the pre-fight fabric to say that you are going to avenge Czar Amonsot?s loss to Special K. It?s an angle good for a lot of sidebar type stories and, if Amonsot is unable to fight any longer, let your promoters put him on the payroll and pay him a decent fee to be part of the promotion. You like to do good deeds, Manny, and this would be a good deed for a courageous Pinoy fighter who was not blessed with your ring skills. You could give Czar a financial handup, not a handout. Stay away from politics and all that messy infighting. Filipino pols, like pols everywhere, hit low early and often. Put your political ambitions aside, at least temporarily, until your boxing career is kaput. Being a part-time public servant is a mental distraction you don?t need.
I saved this one for last. Demand more moolah from TR and GBP. You deserve it. You?re the straw that stirs the drink, baby. Going along to get along is not the way to squeeze more money out of your co-promoters. It?s time for you to play some big money hardball. The promoters may weep and whine but they?ll just milk HBO and others for more money. Stop being so grossly underpaid for your services, MP.
