By Marc Livitz – Change is good…Complacency kills.
Neither of these well known socially accepted proverbs holds any weight if each of them is universally governed by the words of the great P.T. Barnum.
Oceans worth of fans still feel jilted from the fallout which resulted from the past three fights between a certain Emmanuel D. Pacquiao and a noteworthy Juan Manuel Marquez Mendez. To their credit, there is enough evidence however much it may be clouded by opinion and anger on each side to support their respective arguments.
Throughout the thirty six rounds contested between the two, we have been constantly reminded afterwards just how microscopic the differences have been in terms of how the scoring has played itself out. The knockdowns have made the difference, at least they have (or did) in the first and second contests, which took place in May 2005 and March 2008, respectively.
A show of hands, please. Who really wants to see a fourth meeting between the two?
Take into consideration for just a moment how age is certainly going to factor into the bout once the bell rings to commence round thirty seven on December 8 of this year. Manny Pacquiao will be closing in on his 34th birthday, while Marquez has already settled into the final year of his thirties.
Win?…pissed off at the result. Lose?…pissed off at the result. Draw?… pissed off at the result.
The outright redundancy surrounding part 4 is as clear as the crashing disgruntlement that was Superman IV.
Juan Manuel Marquez cannot ride off into the sunset unless he conclusively defeats the Filipino congressman this time. “Dinamita” Marquez had hinted at possible retirement even before the upcoming contest became a reality. He’s made certain demands concerning this fourth go-round, which is interesting in itself when his usual easy going stance is considered.
Recently posted reports have indicated that Juan Manuel would box with rested contentment should none of the three designated ringside judges hail from the great state of Nevada. In other words, pugilistic oldsters Duane Ford and Dave Moretti should take the night off and visit the nearest Luby’s Cafeteria.
The same Duane Ford who some have said has the evil eye focused on Marquez.
Wait, there’s more!
The same Duane Ford who strongly felt that Timothy Bradley gave Manny Pacquiao a boxing lesson last June.
If anyone thinks that a Marquez victory will indulge those who felt thrice slighted by his previous outings versus the “Pac Man”, then go ahead and get your bets in that the sun will rise in the west tomorrow.
The whole thing is just starting to look like nonsensical stuffing.
To make matters worse, or more to the point a brick filled glove to the face of Marquez, are the recent revelations that Pacquiao has come to his side of a financial agreement to face Floyd Mayweather, Jr. next spring.
Boxing fans don’t deserve to be force fed such utter garbage!
Each fighter (Marquez and Pacquiao) have their respective countries on their shoulders whenever they take to the ring. The true sports fan should at least hope for an even playing field. Whatever the outcome may be come December 8, rest assured that the gears are already in motion to secure the biggest (meaning: richest) fight in the history of the sport.
All of the planning and preparation of course go flying “Black Monday” style from the hundredth floor window should Marquez win and do so in the reality column this time. Manny could then contemplate what thirty five million dollars (which converts to much more in the Philippines) couldn’t buy for him and what forty five million in fact could.
Legions of boxing fans and writers alike continue to insist that Mayweather himself has been the hindrance and that he’s just in a frightened state at the possibility of losing. But when’s the last time anyone important took the state of loss felt by the paying fight fan into consideration?
Minions of loyal customers swore to the highest power in their lives that they’d never again be played like a fiddle and buy a pay-per-view boxing event. The debacle that was Manny Pacquiao versus Timothy Bradley would have made any fence-sitting fan feel that way.
Good news is the sport will survive either way. However, we must look forward to the day when fresher faces all around have taken a more trustworthy hold of it.
Let Pacquiao go forth with his plans to fight Mayweather. Many have already stopped caring. Should he lose to Marquez, we won’t have to care. Tunnel vision is infectious in many facets of life.
Likewise, someone is walking around virtually blind, sans a cane.