The mega fight between Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather dissolving over extra drug testing is no doubt damaging to all parties. To certain sections of the press and fans both fighters will come off badly and the sport itself again looks bad because of ridiculous circumstances.
Thanks to the machinations of Mayweather and Golden Boy, several other boxers are now following suit in demanding extra testing to face Manny, and his reputation has no doubt been damaged. So much so in fact that he is apparently ready to sue both parties over the issue. There is an old saying, throw enough mud (or a four letter fecal substitute) and some sticks.
This is exactly the case for Manny, who some people will now think has something to hide. The consensus among the American fans I have spoken to or read about suggests that most support Manny rather than Floyd, although there are a few on the side of ‘Money’ and his demands. Whatever Floyd was trying to achieve with his supplementary testing has surely backfired if the fight is truly off for good though.
For Manny Pacquiao, all the problems around the negotiating table are just a taste of things to come. Manny aspires to be a politician after all, which by all accounts can be a dangerous thing in the Philippines.
Losing out on $40 million hurts worse (AP Photo)
Floyd for his part is the one looking like the coward to most of the fans who keep up to date with all the intricacies of the story. This is also made worse because Golden Boy are suffering as a result of their own hypocrisy over the blood testing, after the refused similar terms for one of their fighters in the past.
The fighter they refused extra tests for was none other than Shane Mosley, who has admitted to taking PED’s in the past. The full details of the story can be found here (Thanks to Joven for finding the story for me)
The problem for Pacquiao is that he has less of a media presence in the United States than Mayweather. While Mayweather will be on every T.V and radio show over the next few months telling everyone how Pacquiao refused to be tested and implies he is on steroids of some kind, Manny himself will be tied up with his political career and unable to defend himself.
This isn’t too much of an issue for people who follow the sport closely and can tell the difference between the facts and what Mayweather comes out with, the casual fans don’t. A sizable portion of the people who may have bought a pay per view featuring Manny against Floyd are going to come away from this debacle with the idea that Manny is a cheater and that Floyd is totally innocent and tried his best to make the fight happen.
It’s because of this kind of mass marketing and hyperbole, which Mayweather is very good at and Manny relies on his trainers and team for, than a Mayweather vs. Matthew Hatton fight might still do good numbers in the United States. (Actually it might sell quite a few in the UK as well, but mainly from fans of Ricky Hatton hoping little brother Matthew can pull off the upset)
Mayweather takes one on the nose (AP Photo)
The eventual fallout of the fight falling through and by the looks of things resulting legal battle will no doubt hurt both sides. First of all there are the losses that either side might face after Manny’s slander case gets to court. The actual amounts and specifics of the suit aren’t knows juet yet, but the claim will be in the millions. Then there are the losses in income that both will have from canceling a $40 million dollar pay day, there simply aren’t any other fights out there for either that can come close right now.
Overall though it will probably be Floyd rather than Manny who finds himself in the worse position a few months down the road. Being unwilling to fight certain fighters is Floyd’s big weakness at the moment, and most of the big money fights at welterweight are against fighters Mayweather doesn’t want to face.
Manny at least has the advantage of being open to fight anyone, not to mention still being the consensus number one in the pound for pound rankings. Not only does he have more options available to him, but he will be willing to accept many more than Floyd will as well.
My own inkling is that after both have one more fight they will eventually meet later in the year, especially if Manny loses his election and is forced to drop the politician’s game again for the foreseeable future. It would serve Mayweather and Golden Boy right if Manny refuses the fight in the future after all the nonsense that happened this time around though. And one thing is for certain, it will be Floyd and not Manny who needs the fight more in a few months time.
