Throughout the career of Manny Pacquiao it has been easy to see him as the young Filipino boy one would meet on vacation. The one that is just as excited to see a Ferrari as he is to see a pair of Reeboks. The need of an ever positive outlook in a third world country is real. The everyday items that are taken for granted in an advanced country are precious objects to poverty stricken nations. Still, after a courageous performance in May, his outlook has seemingly turned from ever positive to constant condemnation of himself and his opponent Floyd Mayweather Jr..
The problem with Manny right now is that he is missing the forest for the trees. Instead of using the shoulder injury to prove determination and will, he is displaying it as an excuse for defeat. Just think–with an injured shoulder Pacquiao threw over 400 punches in 36 minutes. Feats of strength and resolve like that are reserved to the few champions of life and draw admiration from even the harshest of cynics. Why not focus on that rather than a path of self blame leading to excuses and lashing out? Given Manny’s recent response to a half-hearted Instagram post by Mayweather Jr., Pacquiao is definitely at the point of ridicule.
A juvenile jest at Pacquiao by Mayweather Jr. that should have easily been dismissed as mindless chatter, really did not warrant a response. Instead, it provoked an over the line verbal attack not only on Floyd, but his family too. In other words, a soft jab to the shoulder by Mayweather was returned with an uppercut to the groin by Pacquiao. He chose to remind Floyd of his families’ involvement in domestic violence, and taking it to this personal level was unsportsmanlike, regardless the provocation.
Whatever the perception of Manny Pacquiao has become since May 2nd, the fact remains he is a legend of his time with courageous heart. With an injured shoulder, he still threw over 400 punches at Mayweather Jr. The problem is, he only connected around 80 times, and the better fighter that night won. Simple as that.
Honest advice for Pacquiao on handling jokes by Floyd Mayweather Jr. in the future: Do what the young Filipino boy does when faced with third world problems. He simply smiles and moves on.
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Edited by Nat Wilkins of Brooklynfights.
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