A JOVIAL and child-like Manny Pacquiao ribbed defending champion Floyd Mayweather, Jr. on ESPN’s “First Take” saying that beating the flamboyant and undefeated American fighter would be “good for boxing.”
“You know, there are athletes who allow success to get to their head,” the 36-year-old former street kid who holds the distinction as the only boxer to win eight world titles told ESPN’s Skip Bayless and Stephen A. Smith.
Pacquiao was obviously referring to Mayweather who is extremely proud of his unblemished professional boxing record and who has installed himself as “TBE” or The Best Ever.
In saying that beating Mayweather was good for boxing, Pacquiao, a deeply religious man who is also a preacher, obviously wanted to teach Mayweather and other successful boxers a lesson in humility.
He also said that Mayweather, two years older than the Filipino boxing icon, avoided fighting him for the last five years because “he is afraid of losing.”
It was a statement which elicited an unbelieving reaction from Smith, a known Mayweather supporter and fan.
“What? Did you just say on national television that Mayweather is afraid of you?,” Smith asked Pacquiao who in turn said “Yes” and laughed like a child.
While Pacquiao, carefully guided by questions from Bayless who obviously was rooting for the Filipino, relished every moment of the live interview, Smith appeared deeply bothered by the statements of Pacquiao warning the Filipino boxer that Mayweather was watching the program.
“I was more worried with Oscar De La Hoya and Miguel Cotto, than this fight,” Pacquiao said.
He later said that Antonio Margarito, who stood at 5-foot-11 towering over his 5-foot-6 frame, was even more dangerous because “he is big.”
When Smith asked Pacquiao why he believed he would deal Mayweather his first boxing loss, the Filipino said his speed would do the trick.
“Floyd has a good hand speed, but his feet are not the same as his hand speed. I have a quick hand speed and good footwork. It’s a combination, one of my advantages,” Pacquiao said.
“This is boxing. This is about who threw a lot of punches and connect the punches. He has good defense, but I have a very good plan,” he added.
Pacquiao’s positive assessment of his chances against the American champion has basis.
Mayweather almost lost to De La Hoya and had a hard time against Cotto, both of whom were stopped by Pacquiao.
In the case of British boxer Ricky Hatton, it took Mayweather a longer time to knock him out while Pacquiao only needed two rounds to send Hatton to retirement.
All these years, however, Mayweather has been mocking Pacquiao, especially after the Filipino lost by a shocking sixth round stoppage to nemesis Juan Manuel Marquez in their last fight.
Mayweather, however, continued to avoid the Pacquiao fight by offering so many excuses, including a demand for an Olympic standard drug testing.
He even went on to insinuate that Pacquiao was into drugs prompting the team of the Filipino champion to sue Mayweather for defamation, a suit which was settled out of court for a still undisclosed amount.
Following pressure from boxing fans and the giant TV networks and promotional outfits the two great boxers are affiliated with, Mayweather finally relented and agreed to the fight paving the way for the staging of the biggest boxing event, viewership and revenues wise, in the history of the sport.
Minutes after the announcement of the May 2 fight in Las Vegas, rooms in the MGM Grand where the bout will be staged were all sold out while a ticket to a seat in a comfortable section of the arena costs roughly P200,000.
As soon as the contract for the fight was signed, Pacquiao started his verbal jabs at the undefeated American in an apparent attempt to get back at Mayweather for the insults he had suffered all these years.
The ESPN interview which was posted on YouTube.com was one of the series of TV appearances where Pacquiao showed he was trying to get to the nerve of the flamboyant and conceited American champion who calls himself “Money.”
“I really wanted this fight to prove that Manny Pacquiao can easily beat the undefeated,” told ESPN during the interview where he showed his old happy self.
Pacquiao is known to be one of the boxers who really enjoy getting inside the ring to fight and whose style is so entertaining people would line up as early as in the morning of the fight night to see him in action.
He is very well remembered for the famous line he said to his handlers who all appeared nervous and jittery when he first fought Mexican boxing legend Marco Antonio Barrera:
“Why are you so afraid? I am the one fighting, not you,” he told his ashen-faced handlers.
Pacquiao went on to dominate Barrera in that fight which served as his ticket to stardom.
That was the fight which made him a household name earning the distinction of being the only boxer to win titles in eight boxing divisions starting from flyweight.
The fight against Mayweather could be Pacquiao’s ticket to boxing immortality.
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