It’s a pity Manny Pacquiao didn’t know when to stop, the reason he now has to hunt for a fresh new opponent when he returns to the ring after undergoing surgery on his right shoulder in Los Angeles, California, earlier in the week.
While Floyd Mayweather Jr. himself refused to mind Pacquiao’s immediate claim that he won the failed fight of the century in Las Vegas, there next came other allegations trying to smear the victorious feat of the unbeaten American world welterweight champion.
It should be noted that Pacquiao’s claim of a victory had fueled the restiveness among his followers.
Mayweather himself initially brushed off the ludicrous claim. He next offered a rematch to the distraught Filipino boxing superhero, who had maligned his crafty rival as an abusive and arrogant champion during the run-up to their bout on May 2.
* * *
An unbelieving Pacquiao called the Mayweather offer of a rematch magical.
At the same time though, Pacquiao would not be kept from slurring the Mayweather victory, going as far as crying conspiracy in hitting at the Nevada State Athletic Commission.
Sticking to its guns, the commission easily put Pacquiao and his team on the ropes. All it had to do was show proof there was no notice of an injury in the official questionaire sheet given to Pacquiao before the bout.
It should be noted that Mayweather Jr., now 48-0, even complimented the emphatically outpointed Pacquiao as a great champion.
* * *
Then, in a big turnaround, Mayweather said he changed his mind.
“He lost. He knows he lost. I lost a lot of respect for him after this,” Mayweather said.
“Pacquiao is a sore loser, and he’s a coward,” Mayweather added. “If you lose, accept the loss.”
Without suggesting Pacquiao could’ve messed up his shoulder missing many wild shots, Mayweather maintained he could not detect any physical problem with his opponent during the fight.
“He was fast. His left hand was fast. His right hand was fast, and he was throwing them both fast and strong,” Mayweather said.
* * *
Anyway, other Pacquiao fans at home, who had initially hailed their idol for a heroic effort to unseat Mayweather, have reconsidered their admiration of the boxer dubbed as a national treasure.
“Nakakahiya, it’s a shame, he deserves to be sued,” rued burly June de Jesus, former NCAA basketball player with the Jose Rizal University who had revered Pacquiao as a living legend.
Meanwhile, Pacquiao chief adviser Michael Koncz, a known Bob Arum errand boy, would admit to the inadvertence by saying he didn’t know he had ticked the wrong box in the pre-fight questionnaire.
By leaving his fate in the hands of a certified scoundrel, Pacquiao, who continued to play the robot, also ended up squandering his legend. He pushed his luck too far.