Well, brehs, it's been a couple of days for me to let everything settle down and settle in. Call this my Post-Mortem review, if you will.
I went to a local bar to see the fight. Cost me about $25 just to get in. Took me off guard at first, but I understood why, and at the end of the night after getting some grub and meeting some kind folks, I had a fine time.
As for the fight itself, what can I say? No, it won't be remembered classically like the 4 Kings in the 80s or Ali-Frazier, but it was a moment to behold and remember for the history books. I think that Manny tried his absolute hardest to win, especially now given what we know about his shoulder, but in the end, Floyd is just too damn good and too damn difficult to hit, let alone outpoint and outbox for 12 rounds.
Floyd looked like a damn magician out there. From timing, to reflexes, to footwork, to in-ring awareness and IQ, it was one of the better displays of pure boxing I have ever seen. He found a way to stymie Manny's own unique footwork, and found a way to discourage him from opening up and control the fight at his pace. I think he's an absolute piece of shyt out of the ring, but there is no denying that the man is an absolute defensive wizard and a boxing genius in the ring. In the words of Good Ol' JR, Jim Ross: "I will give the Devil his due."
When I first heard of Manny's shoulder, I initially thought, "No excuses. Take the L like a man." But then again, I have never nowhere gone through the rigorous ringer of professional athletic training, let alone to be a professional prize fighter, so who the hell am I to easily disparage an injury such as this? I think Manny felt that if he delayed or postponed the fight till his shoulder healed, someone else (like Khan) would have easily taken the spot, and probably feared that Floyd would use this to help spin it into "He don't want the fight, so why should I care to fight him now?" It was a damned if you do, damned if you don't scenario, but I commend Manny for going through it, no matter what.
Looking at what happened, I'm not even sure if Manny would have beaten Floyd 5 years ago, especially when you take into consideration how badly he struggled with JMM just a mere year after the fight with Floyd broke down.
But still, Manny Pacquiao should not be ashamed of himself, or his place in history. He will still be recognized as a beloved, popular and historic figure in and out of the boxing ring. He'll just have one superior, and that is none other than one Floyd Joy Mayweather, Jr.
My hat's off to Money for yet another chapter in a legendary career. Now, with one fight remaining in his contract, all that's left to see is how this so far unblemished professional career all ends.
met everyone else and their momma tho. The strip was calm before and after the fight. The hype was only real at the closed circuits but after the 4th round everyone was pretty much quiet. You can tell it was a let down. The only winners were Vegas and mayweather.
