SACRAMENTO, California—Face to face with a good guy like Manny Pacquiao, ESPN’s Keith Olbermann was in his best behavior Wednesday night while talking to the eight-division world boxing champ.
On his five-month-old late night TV show “Olbermann,” Olbermann did not pounce on Pacquiao’s tax problems.
Neither did he spoil the fun by reminding Manny of his defeats to Juan Manuel Marquez by knockout and to Timothy Bradley via a bum decision.
While in New York to promote his rematch with Bradley at MGM Grand Arena in Las Vegas on April 12, Pacman was thrown to the wolves to deal with the acerbic Olbermann, a political analyst until his return after 17 years to ESPN to pursue his first love as a sportscaster.
Olbermann, however, conducted a tame interview, that touched on Pacquiao’s forthcoming fight and his political career as a congressman back home.
I can venture a guess why the debate-obsessed Olbermann, known for his pointed wit and criticism of conservative public figures, chose to be gentle with Pacquiao.
The host would have been charmed, even disarmed anyway by the champ’s ever-smiling self and his short, straightforward way of expressing himself in the Queen’s language.
And so the uncharacteristically gracious Olbermann instead held the fighting Filipino congressman’s hand as he dealt yet again with the issue of his ghost fight with Floyd Mayweather Jr.
“I did not want one name to become the only thing we talked about tonight, so I held it till last,” Olbermann told Pacquiao.
“Are you gonna fight Floyd Mayweather at some point?”
“I want that fight but it’s up to him,” Pacquiao said.
“What I can say now is that our line is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. If he will call and say ‘yes,’ then the fight [will happen].”
“Operators are standing by as they say,” Olbermann interjected.
“And to the best of your knowledge is that why the fight has not happened, because he does not want to do it?”
“That’s what I believe,” Pacquiao said.
“As somebody who appreciates your sport, and you obviously have a whole view of the thing, is it a shame that you guys have not fought? Is that something that the fans need and the sports need and have been denied?”
“Thousands, millions of fans are waiting for that fight and (have) been asking me many questions about when will that fight happen,” Pacquiao explained.
“I tell them I am willing to fight him any time but the problem is him. Many reasons, many alibis, so…”
“Operators are standing by,” Olbermann deadpanned to finish Manny’s sentence.
It should be noted that as late as 2009, Mayweather and Pacquiao have not been able to reach a deal. Both sides have been blamed for the fight being a ghost fight until now.
But the biggest stumbling block had been Mayweather’s outlandish financial demands.
Indeed, Mayweather, true to his moniker is not called Money for nothing.