Manny Pacquiao: PRISON, TIMOTHY BRADLEY, FLOYD MAYWEATHER JR & THE END OF AN IMAGE – Boxing News

By Geno McGahee

The long time feud between the two perceived best in the game, Floyd Mayweather, JR., and Manny Pacquiao has been a fight between good and bad, right and wrong. Floyd, with his “Money Mayweather” persona and legal troubles, mixed with his bravado and insults, sometimes not so politically correct, have made him the villain. Manny has been painted as a hero, a great guy, and with a country behind him and plenty of journalists that suck up to him and spread the word, he has been seen as the good guy. The line has since been blurred.

The Philippines supports Pacquiao…blindly at times, and we have seen other national heroes that have been supported even though they lacked greatly in character. Edwin Valero, a murderer and woman beater had Venezuela sobbing when he decided to kill himself.

A big part of the reason why Pacquiao is seen as the good guy is because of his style. He fights the way we like. He’s aggressive, gutsy, and doesn’t duck many people. He is quiet and respectful to his opposition, but much like Mayweather, JR., boxing personas are often created to sell tickets.

In a recent report on Yahoo Sports, by Martin Rogers, he notes that:

Pacquiao has been accused of housing a fugitive former politician under investigation in connection with a stolen car racket and, in a separate incident, could reportedly face two years imprisonment after tax officials started proceedings against him for contempt.

Inner turmoil in the Pacquiao camp, a lackluster showing against Juan Manuel Marquez and the legal troubles may spell disaster for the “PacMan” as he heads into his bout with Timothy Bradley.

When you look at the facts, Pacquiao is not the in ring monster that he is advertised to be…at least at the higher weight classes that he has fought in. His record is 54-3-2, 38 KO’s, but his last four fights have gone the distance. He hasn’t been able to put a real dent in a welterweight, which is why they have put him against the much smaller Bradley, 28-0, 12 KO’s, and make no mistake, Bradley is not a KO threat at all.

Even though much blame has been put on Floyd Mayweather, JR., for not agreeing to terms to make this Pacquiao fight happen, the blame is equal or more so on Bob Arum and Manny himself. Like it or not, Floyd is a bigger draw, he’s undefeated, and he’s been more impressive in the ring as of late. He deserves the lion’s share and he knows it. Arum would rather place Manny in somewhat easy fights to keep the money rolling in. Pacquiao is a star in a sport that has very few of them. When he loses to Floyd and he would, most likely, the PPV attraction goes bye-bye.

On June 9th, we will see Pacquiao step into the ring with Bradley, and the idea of a feather-fisted smaller guy charging at Pacquaio leads to one undeniable conclusion: disaster. Ricky Hatton tried it and was starched in less than 2 rounds. Bradley has been down and hurt before by guys that don’t hit anywhere near as hard as Manny, but the one thing that Bradley has going for him is timing.

The legal matters, turmoil at camp, noted physical issues, nonchalant recent approach to the game, and possible slowing reflexes creates a slight…very slight chance for a Bradley win. If he can avoid the punches early and get on the inside and just keep plugging away, he could take the decision, but the stars must be aligned properly and he must fight a perfect fight.

The squeaky clean image of Manny Pacquiao has been called into question, which is not a surprise. This is boxing. It’s about creating characters and giving the public what they want to see in order to sell tickets. The real Pacquiao may be being exposed now and we may have bad guy versus bad guy if the fight with Floyd ever happens, which it won’t. It will be fought in the media, as it has always been.