SACRAMENTO, California—The national attention span has been short for the country’s tough campaign in the Asian Games in Incheon, South Korea.
And with the fancied Gilas Pilipinas team spiraling out of the basketball medal round and crashing to its worst finish ever in the Asiad, the country’s focus on the 17th edition of the continent’s multisports extravaganza has all but vanished.
I am willing to bet my bottom dollar that Filipino sports fans everywhere have reverted back to what occupies their minds in the first place—the forthcoming fight of their boxing icon, Manny Pacquiao, with Chris Algieri in Macau on Nov. 23.
Few expect the movie star-handsome Algieri (20-0, 8 knockouts) to defeat Pacquiao (56-5-2, 38 KOs). Although unbeaten, Algieri, the former kickboxer who holds two college degrees, has not fought elite boxers like the fighting Filipino congressman—boxing’s only world titleholder in eight weight divisions.
But Algieri’s coming encounter with the future Hall of Famer is not a mere blip on the boxing radar because Chris could be the last boxer to face Pacquiao before the congressman from Sarangani finally tangles with the unbeaten Floyd “Money” Mayweather Jr.
Hands down, the Pacquiao-Mayweather fight will be the richest in boxing history, a collision of the sport’s fast-aging supernovas awaited by the ring universe for almost five years.
A recent Twitter tussle with Pacquiao notwithstanding, the Money man himself has been hinting that his next opponent could be Pacman—his ring nemesis—a possibility not lost on Showtime vice president Stephen Espinoza.
Espinoza who oversees Mayweather’s six-fight deal with Showtime says Pacquiao is “absolutely” his first choice as Floyd Jr’s. next foe. Mayweather has two more fights under contract with Showtime.
Mayweather easily defeated Argentina’s Marcos Maidana in their rematch at the MGM Grand Arena in Las Vegas earlier this month.
The Los Angeles Times recently reported that after that fight, Espinoza zeroed in on a variety of opponents for Floyd Jr. but said the “focus for a May opponent should begin with Pacquiao, who has failed to come to terms with Mayweather over personal grudges, purse splits and drug testing since talks were first initiated in 2009.”
“In terms of the actual substance of discussions, it (bout with Pacquiao) hasn’t progressed to anything that’s worth commenting on,” Espinoza told the Times.
“But if you’re saying, at this stage of their careers—with the finish line in sight—is there maybe more psychological pressure or interest to get that one fight out of the way that’s always eluded you? Absolutely.”