When Things Fall Apart; Manny Pacquiao

The megafight between Floyd Mayweather, Jr. and Manny Pacquiao has gone through a lot of ups and downs, with there being a lot of money on the table, almost too much, and both men's pride on the line. When Mayweather asked Manny to submit to more rigid drug testing was when things fell completely apart. Is it a matter of pride for Manny Pacquiao, who believes submitting to such drug tests an insult, or is he dodging being marked as a cheater and all of his career accomplishments ignored? Tommy Hackett looks at some of Manny's motivations, and why in the end we can still only blame Manny for this megafight not happening.

In fact, according to media reports like this one from Robbie Panglinan, Pacquiao was estranged from his father throughout his career. Rosalio Pacquiao in fact attended one of his son’s fights for the first time last year. He cannot claim credit a similar credit for Manny’s development — and neither can the world of amatuer and Olympic boxing. Its tight reign on a fighter’s weight management, its strict drug testing, and its sometimes puzzling scoring are all probably as foreign to Pacquiao as they are to many of his fans, who are reacting with horror to Mayweather’s demand, admittedly unprecedented, for Olympic style drug testing in a pro bout.

But I see it differently. It’s the right thing to do.

Perhaps its unfair to expect Pacquiao to step out of his comfort zone, shed a tablespoon of blood, and take the tests as Mayweather demands — giving boxing fans what we want. But life isn’t always fair, and that shouldn’t keep you from doing the right thing. It’s hard to imagine, given his upbringings, that Manny Pacquiao hasn’t already learned that.