New York, NY– If you’re anything like me, you’ve probably spent the past few weeks enjoying a bit of a vacation from boxing. It’s not like the sport itself hasn’t noticed that competing with Wimbledon, the World Cup, BP and Barack Obama at the same time is pointless. And when the biggest name on the July fighting schedule is Zab Judah (38-6, 26 KOs), it’s time for a well-deserved break. But just because some fighters aren’t fighting doesn’t mean they aren’t working. Take a look at Manny Pacquiao (51-3-2, 38 KOs)— that is, Congressman Pacquiao—who was sworn in today.
JESSE VENTURA WITH A RECORD DEAL
The punchline writes itself: a slugger with a reputation for being a knockout artist, who also has a best-selling record career for some reason, has now gotten into politics. Sadly, there is no American equivalent– the closest we can get is former Minnesota governor Jesse Ventura, and Minnesotans got so sick of him that they replaced him with scrawny little Tim Pawlenty, banishing him to a career as conspiracy theory TV show host. But the fact that the universally recognized pound-for-pound best is suddenly a legislator– and suddenly has an enormous responsibility to take care of his mental faculties– will have an effect on American boxing, as it will on boxing across the planet.
RAISING THE STAKES BY A CONSTITUENCY
The Washington Post, who does not deserve to be linked to since firing their best writer— find the article (and the photo credit) yourselves– has an admittedly wonderful description of the inauguration ceremony Pacquiao participated in today:
“The 31-year-old Pacquiao, looking a bit uneasy in an elegant formal shirt and leather shoes, pledged on Monday before about 1,000 spectators in Alabel in the southern Sarangani province to be a good, God-fearing civil servant.
Talking to reporters later, Pacquiao said he was nervous that he could not accomplish much but he promised to try his best to ease the widespread poverty gripping his province, about 600 miles south of Manila.”
Endearing, to say the least. But let’s step away from the sky-is-the-limit narrative and think through the possible fight scenarios for a Congressman. Steroids or not, power punches hurt, so Pacquiao now has a responsibility to his constituents to stay away from knockout artists, which means no Pacquiao-Andre Berto (26-0, 20 KOs) or anything of the sort. If anything, his legal duties will have him challenging boxers that he may not be quick enough to hit, but certainly won’t have to worry about concussions with. Not exactly the recipe for a barn-burner.
MIA IN MANILA: THE SEQUEL
He also has a responsibility to stay close to Manila to do his job, significantly hindering his ability to train– and not just because he is going to have to be caucusing over economic stimulus bills. Thanks to the magic of HBO’s 24-7 series, it is common knowledge that Freddie Roach has had a bit of trouble training his fighter when he disappears into the whirlwind of his home nation, and prefers to keep him anchored in America. In fact, there have been times that Roach couldn’t even reach his fighter weeks before a match. Roach is no longer dealing with a rowdy fighter: he’s dealing with a nationally-elected politician who is expected to wine and dine with lobbyists, spend sleepless nights writing bill provisions, and caucusing with his colleagues. If Pacquiao was looking for a reason to shirk of his athletic work, there’s no better excuse than this.
WHO IS GOING TO CARE ABOUT DAVID HAYE?
That is not all to say that it is impossible, but Pacquiao’s evolution from the Justin Bieber of the Philippines to its Sen. Scott Brown is leaving little apparent room for his day job. And while those who follow the sport intensely (eg all of you reading Ringtalk right now) know that the world of boxing is much more colorful and interesting when you actually start to ignore Pacquiao, the mainstream seems to think he may be the only boxer that matters. Selling the rest of the world on David Haye (24-1, 22 KOs), Lucian Bute (26-0, 21 KOs), or Victor Ortiz (27-2-1, 21 KOs) is a Herculean feat. But not all is lost– we still have Amir Khan (32-1, 17 KOs), Nonito Donaire (23-1, 15 KOs) and the ever-popular Miguel Cotto (35-2, 28 KOs) to market in the post-apocalyptic Pacquiao world.
MAYWEATHER-PAC IS DEAD
But by far the most important repercussion of the rise of Politician Pacquiao is the following: Pacquiao-Floyd Mayweather (41-0, 25 KOs) is not going to happen, so you can all stop dreaming right now. There is no amount of money that would make this appealing to either party, as they both know it is the most dangerous fight for either, but their fanbases are loyal enough to pay for any fight they cook up. And now that Pacquiao has a serious stake in not fighting, his election is the last drop in an overflowing glass of excuses for these two to never find each other.