Mayweather ducks against Pacquiao (Photo : Al Bello | Getty Images Sport)
After the most-anticipated fight in recent memory, a fight that took six years to put together, eight-division world champion Manny "Pacman" Pacquiao and undefeated pound-for-pound king Floyd "Money" Mayweather couldn't produce what was expected of them.
The fans came out in droves expecting a war, because well, it was Manny Pacquiao after all and no matter how much of a defensive genius Floyd Mayweather is, Pacquiao would surely drag him into a firefight right?
But what actually happened was the unexpected. Pacquiao underwhelmed.
The Filipino ring icon's lack of punch output can be explained however, and while some call it a valid explanation, others claim it's just an alibi. Pacquiao suffered a shoulder injury, a torn right rotator cuff, three weeks before the fight.
When that happened, Pacquiao's team was left with a major decision -- postpone the fight to a later date, allowing Pacquiao to heal and compete at a hundred percent but risk Mayweather calling the whole thing off, or, fight through the injury?
The camp was divided. Freddie Roach for one wanted the fight -- the biggest and richest in history -- moved to a later date, knowing his fighter wasn't going to be at his best. Others wanted the fight to go on as scheduled, there was just too much money at stake.
Ultimately, Pacquiao decided not to use the shoulder and just heal the rest of the way.
On fight night however, the pain still lingered and Pacquiao requested the Nevada State Athletic Commission for a shot of Toradol -- a substance that was allowed in competition -- to numb the pain. Pacquiao's request was denied because he had failed to disclose the shoulder injury prior.
As a result, Pacquiao reaggravated the shoulder in the fourth round of the fight, a round he was dominating with his trademark flurries and from that point on he simply lacked the firepower necessary to trouble Mayweather.
Of course, at less than optimal form, Pacquiao could never have beaten the man widely considered as the greatest defensive fighter of all time.
No ammo.
It begs the question though. Should Pacquiao have decided to postpone the biggest fight in the history of the sport?
He was potentially going to bag around $100-million, which was going to trickle down to his various people -- trainers, sparring partners, advisers, cooks, drivers, even the guy who does his laundry. They were all going to make record high paydays.
By choosing to move the fight to a later date, Pacquiao risked drawing Mayweather's ire and we all know at the snap of a finger, Mayweather could pull out on a whim. Pacquiao would then be forever blamed for the fight not happening.
Pacquiao -- as well as everybody pocket-riding -- would not have gotten paid. All the hard work would have gone down the drain.
The fans who waited years for the fight, shelled out the hard-earned cash to break revenue records, the flights and accommodations that were already booked and most likely not to be refunded -- those would all be for naught.
It was a risk that was all too real.
Pacquiao fought on, knowing he could not be at his best. There was no way he was letting anybody down by not fighting. Pacquiao felt he had no choice.
He had hoped that whatever he came into the ring with would be enough to beat Mayweather, but it just wasn't.
If you were Manny Pacquiao, what would you have done?
