Tuesday, May 5, 2015
Column 488
Floyd Mayweather – the greatest of all time?
I’ve been in two fights. When I was six years old my best friend, Paul Lewis, beat the shit out of me in my backyard. In college at West Point my best friend, Paul Schaffer, beat the shit out of me in a boxing ring. Today, both of my old friends are doctors. If I’d known back then what I know now – having watched Floyd Mayweather run like a little girl to avoid Manny Pacquiao I guess I would have won those fights. I might even be a rich man rather than some joker who writes about darts.
Manny Pacquiao is a member of the darting family, an avid fan and player, someone who has put up large amounts of money to help promote our sport. He has the respect of dart players worldwide. The disappointment at the result of Saturday night’s fight booms across the darting community.
Followers of Dartoid’s World will be familiar with the insightful, often controversial, and always humorous Old Dart Coach, Howie Reed. A former advertising executive and then, for eleven years, a professional cowboy (steer wrestler and bull rider), Howie first picked up a dart in 1976. In 1978, he began writing about the sport for the Northern California Darts Association. In the early 1980s his column, Howie’s World, became a staple in Bull’s Eye News – which was when I began to follow his unique turns of phrase. He did a stint with Darts World in the UK and the Challenge of Champions on ESPN with Chris Berman. Also during the 1980s, Howie captained the American Pacific Cup team, the Singapore team at the Asian Cup, assisted Canada at the Pacific Cup in Melbourne, and ran the Canadian National Championship for several years running. He produced the Pacific Cup in 1994 in Vancouver.
What readers may not know is that for 25 years Howie has been writing (as the Lord of the Manor) about boxing – first for Ring Sports, then the Pattaya Mail (1992-2008) and the Pattaya Times (2009-2010). Today, as a columnist for http://www.keeppunching.com he is one of the best known purveyors of pugilistic phrase in the world.
I’m proud to have my teacher – the best there is and the best there ever was – as a co-conspirator at Dartoid’s World.
And today, I am delighted to share Howie’s take on the Pacquiao-Mayweather fight…
Floyd Mayweather – the greatest of all time?
Most have heard or read the expression, “A picture is worth a thousand words.” The actual quote, from a 1911 newspaper article, is, “Use a picture. It’s worth a thousand words.” In 1913, an ad for the Piqua Auto Supply House of Piqua, Ohio used the phrase, “One look is worth a thousand words.”
With that in mind, please direct your eyes to the photo at the top of the page and ask yourself, “Is this the look of the greatest boxer of all time?” A majority of the 16,507-strong crowd at the MGM Grand voiced their opinion, as prior to the decision while Mayweather stood on the ropes he was met with a resounding chorus of boos.
If your answer is anything but a resounding “NO!”, you need a reality check.
Even though we’re just shy of 15 years into the century, Pacquiao-Mayweather wasn’t the “Fight of the Century.” “Hype of the Century” or “Fraud of the Century” might be more appropriate. Days before the fight, a writer for the AP wrote, “There figures to be more action on the “Food Network” – and it won’t cost you $99.95.” That could be true especially if a “Thrown Down with Bobby Flay” is on. Those do get intense.
It may not even have been the “Fight of May” if Canelo Alvarez (44-1-1, 33 KOs) and James Kirkland (32-1, 28 KOs) is a slam-bang affair next Saturday at Houston’s Minute Maid Park. The big question mark is Kirkland, who had only one fight in both 2013 and 2014.
By now, the entire duped world knows that Floyd Mayweather defeated Manny Pacquiao over 12 rounds at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas by unanimous decision. The judges scores were 118-110 and 116-112 twice. Evander Holyfield and Shane Mosley had it for Pacquiao, as did the Lord of the Manor. In his defense, he scored two rounds even, which could have gone to either boxer – which would have made Mayweather the winner. Some question the 118-110 score (or 10 rounds to 2) but it makes no difference.
Calling it a fight is very questionable as Mayweather had no intentions of making it a fight. In a bout with so little action in the ring, one has to rely on ancillary events to fill space. There were bunches…
The Lord of the Manor viewed the event from the Irish Times Pub (Patong Beach, Phuket, Thailand), which was chalker-block full. When informed that he had traveled from Las Vegas to Phuket to view the fight one customer astutely noted, “Probably cheaper than buying a ringside ticket in Vegas.” He was right, and the beer was cheaper too.
The crowd at the Irish Times was 99.9% for Pacquiao, with one exception. He was a young black man in red-white and blue t-shirt, baggy jean shorts, and NBA ball cap. He was silent during the fight but when the scores were read he jumped up and down clapping like he had just been notified that a long lost millionaire uncle had left him his fortune. One Brit watched, then shook his head with a shrug of his shoulders, silently noting, “What’s he on about?”
There can be no dispute that the entire production of the event was amateur. There’s now proof positive that the Las Vegas “The City that Knows How” didn’t have a clue. The event was delayed by 30 minutes because of the late rush of people wanting to buy the PPV. The main culprit seems to have been Toledo, Ohio. Is possible that the City Fathers were just trying to serve the people by not selling the fight? After all, they do live in Toledo.
As the time grew close to the opening bell, the Irish Times was silent when a Yank said, “At least there’s no Mexican fighting, so we don’t have to listen to the Mexican National Anthem.” The next sound from the TV was the Mexican National Anthem. Tommy, the Governor of the Irish Times, asked, “Why the f*** are they playing the Mexicana National Anthem?”
It’s a question that remains unanswered.
That brings us to the American National Anthem as KOd by Jaime Foxx. J’Marie Moore, daughter of legendary Archie, posted, “The best fight of the evening was Jaime Foxx and the National Anthem.”
With Thailand getting the Showtime feed, the voice of Mauro Ranallo provided a constant irritation – which is par for the course. At one point he said, “This excited crowd is certainly watching the fight of the century.” His timing was poor. The camera was showing a ringside crowd that had the look of relatives at the reading of an eccentric billionaire’s will. They had just learned they weren’t in the will, but the 26-year-old silicone-enhanced Misty Joe was.
Andrew Ward is considered as one of the best boxing commentators. In the past, he never sank to the level of Network shill. Strike that off his resume. After round 6 he said, “This fight is living up to the hype.” Shirley, you jest.
Post-fight, Pacquiao admitted that he fought one-handed pretty much from round 3. He had a tear in his right shoulder as the result of a training injury two weeks prior to the fight. “It was revealed that Pacquiao had been denied an anti-inflammatory shot by the Nevada State Athletic Commission prior even though the shot was approved by USADA during his training camp.” Why?
Steve Carp of the Las Vegas Review-Journal reports, “’Every fighter is given a (prefight) medical form to fill out,’ Nevada Athletic Commission chairman Francisco Aguilar said. ‘He disclosed the medications, but he didn’t disclose any injury. That’s why we denied his request.’”
Mr. Aguilar or someone on the Commission had to know why he was taking Lidocaine, Bupivacaine, and Celestone. As Nevada is a gaming state – did not disclosing the injury effect the betting? In the end, maybe it’s like the Clinton Foundation – “some guy just made a mistake with the paperwork.” Or Peter Falk’s brother Cloister showed one last time.
Also post-fight, Mayweather announced that he would be giving up all his world title belts saying, “I’m not trying to be greedy.”
The entire world knows that’s balderdash.
Mayweather promotes Mayweather. The promoter pays a sanctioning fee so with no title no sanctioning fee. More money for the boxer Mayweather and promoter Mayweather. Yeah Floyd, we get the “I’m not greedy.”
One rather cruel reporter wrote to fans, “You’re a chump, you did pay for it. You gave a decent amount of money to watch something that in retrospect, you might not watch if it was free. We’re sorry that you were dumb enough.”
That’s out of line. Granted there was more action in the two-minutes of the Kentucky Derby earlier in the day. “Why would sports fans want to buy into the hype?” They wanted to believe. Boxing dictators should keep in mind “Fool me once… shame on me. Fool me twice… not a chance bucko.”
The best line of the event came from Doug Harrison of the Bourbon Street bar and restaurant in Bangkok…
“If it weren’t for the ropes Mayweather would have ended up in California.”
Crack a San Miguel Light – the Corona of Southeast Asia – and fire up a fine cigar because Cherwit dee Khruo.
