THIS IS THE COURT OF PUBLIC OPINION
Pittsburgh, PA- All rise! The Court of Public Opinion is now in session, and we call the case of Floyd Mayweather, Jr. versus Manny Pacquiao on the issue of Mr. Mayweather’s demand for Mr. Pacquiao to take random blood tests before a proposed bout, if Mayweather defeats Shane Mosley on May 1. We have also considered Pacquiao’s counterclaim that this condition serves as a mere ruse for Mayweather to continue avoiding his most dangerous ring challenges. The Court has heard the parties’ arguments, rhetoric, banter and propaganda, and we will now address the issues and render our decision.
COUNT ONE: BLOOD VS. URINE TESTS
Mayweather reasonably contends that the state athletic commissions use antiquated testing methods that have been defeated by such boxing notables as Mosley and Evander Holyfield. He has the support of the World Anti-Doping Agency ( WADA), which contends that urinalysis is inferior to blood testing, since urine tests fail to catch such useful performance enhancers as Human Growth Hormone. WADA uses and advocates for random blood tests to test international competitors, including Olympians. However, until a European rugby player tested positive for HGH this past month, WADA had recorded zero positive HGH blood tests. Nevertheless, blood testing has at least an equivalent if not greater value than urine testing, and the commissions’ excuse that it is expensive rings hollow in a contest that will generate tens of millions of dollars and where the participants can reach any private agreements they wish.
COUNT TWO: NEEDLES
Mr. Pacquiao submits that a fear of blood draws renders him physically and psychologically weakened and thus at a competitive disadvantage, pointing to his last loss, to Erik Morales. Mayweather responds that Pacquiao has several tattoos, and a blood draw only takes a quickly-regenerated spoonful of blood. Your author feels compelled to share that I suffer from the same phobia as Pacquiao: Though a shot in the back of the arm, or anywhere else for that matter, provides nothing more than a mild inconvenience, even the smallest blood draw from any vein in my arm gives rise to cold sweats, dizziness and feinting. (Call me a wussy, but at least I can now say that I’m just like Pacquiao.) Still, given that Mr. Pacquiao stands to gain $25-50 million on this bout and, according to ex-BALCO head Victor Conte, no tests are necessary in the last days before the fight, a blood draw up until a week before the bout should allow him to fully recover mentally and physically well before fight night.
COUNT THREE: EXCUSES
Is Mayweather merely searching for an escape route by demanding random blood tests, or is Pacquiao, or perhaps Top Rank chief Bob Arum, looking for a way out of a loss, not just to Mayweather, but of stature and a rare wave of momentum? A review of their resumes reveals that, while Pacquiao has pitted himself against the cream of each weight class he’s graced, Mayweather has earned a reputation for ducking his most threatening challengers to face safer but profitable foes in order to pad his undefeated record. The Court of Public Opinion decides that, though Pacquiao would no doubt fight Mayweather, his promoter Arum would deprive the sport of this event in order to protect his meal ticket or just to spite Mayweather, and Pacquiao must be held responsible for the actions and decisions of his team. Mayweather cannot enjoy the so-called high road here, though, considering the pool of the elite with whom he has not shared the ring. Where perception is reality, he must be the one who blinks when his bluff is called.
COUNT FOUR: PROOF
Team Pacquiao accurately points out that absolutely no proof exists that he has used illegal PEDs. His sustained excellence throughout nine weight classes remains extraordinary but provides no actual evidence beyond mere unsubstantiated suspicion to date. His supposed super human power carried through the divisions is actually overstated, since his opponents had more to do with the outcomes – Oscar De La Hoya had a great chin but nothing else; Ricky Hatton had a questionable chin and an unquestionably porous defense; Miguel Cotto looked like he has post-Margarito; and Joshua Clottey had a steel frame but a soft will. And yet Pacquiao fails to mention, or to realize, why he’s under a cloud of suspicion – because he’s an elite athlete in a steroid era. Sure, there’s no proof he’s used, but here’s some proof for you: Barry Bonds. Alex Rodriguez. Roger Clemens. Mark McGwire. Sammy Sosa. Marion Jones. Tim Montgomery. Shawne Merriman. Floyd Landis. Mosley. Evander Holyfield. Are there any similarities amongst these athletes? They accomplished athletic feats that surpassed not only their peers but the greats of yesteryear, and they were cheats. The Court of Public Opinion has lost its faith in the great athlete’s purity.
THE VERDICT
The Court finds no merit in Pacquiao’s position that he can avoid the proposed blood testing without consequence, in this case a stain upon, or at least a question about, his reputation. Should Pacquiao still refuse to engage in the testing in spite of the damage he will suffer, the Court sees no merit in Mayweather’s contention that he can avoid a Pacquiao bout and emerge unscathed. Therefore, the claim and the counterclaim are both hereby dismissed, and the parties are directed to come to terms for a fight or risk forever tarnishing their careers and legacies. Court is adjourned.
