Whether you are a Mayweather fan or a Pacquiao fan, that so-called Fight of the Century was the most boring fight of the century. Fans left and right didn’t feel they got their money’s worth, even if the fight ended up with the great achievement of Mayweather reaching a historic 48-0 record in professional boxing. The fans were willing to pay big bucks for this fight, but why were we still so disappointed with the fight? What did we expect with the money that we willingly spent for this Fight of the Century anyway?
So far, there’s only one thing that I keep hearing from people that made the fight a big disappointment, so big of a disappointment that after the fans witnessed this Fight of the Century, many believe that we are seeing the end of boxing! How depressing is that? With that much interest in boxing worldwide, seen by celebrities, generated hundreds of millions of dollars just a day ago, how could it be the end of boxing already? That one thing that everyone has observed with that fight and is saying over and over again that made the Fight of the Century a big disappointment is the fact that it lacked action, that it was so boring to be tagged the Fight of the Century! Even Oscar De La Joya, a boxing promoter who didn’t even have anything to do with the fight, had to apologize to all boxing fans of how sorry this fight was! We all know how boring the fight could get with Floyd Mayweather, Jr., but we also know exciting the fight could be with Manny Pacquiao. Even after a couple of losses in his recent fights, including a big knock out loss to Marquez, Manny Pacquiao was still believed to be “The One” who could actually penetrate Mayweather’s defenses that was made to perfection. The fans paid a fortune for this fight hoping that it would give them their monies’ worth, but I guess money can not buy everything, even if you put hundreds of millions in it, you can not make the fight you hoped it to be. Unless you make them to, unless the rules are changed.
It takes two to tango, we’ve heard of it before. If we paid to see a dance for $400 million dollar, that dance better be worth $400 million. Manny Pacquiao may want more action but if Mayweather doesn’t dance to that tune with Pacquiao and give the fans that satisfaction that they paid their monies worth, it won’t happen. Is it fair for us boxing fans who paid what they “promised” it to be? It certainly is not! If the fans knew what they were going to get ahead of time, that it would be a boring fight, then we would have paid accordingly. Boxing fans, including me, were willing to pay up to $99.99 for the fight, but if we knew that there would be a lot more of hugging than boxing, or things that would make the fight boring, then I probably who have paid $29.99 for it. It is only fair to pay for something that you know for sure you will get. They will surely get $400 million from all of the boxing fans, they better be sure to give the fans the $400 million worth fight that the fans expected, and not leave the fans like we we’ve been ripped off.
The NEW RULE to make sure that this should not happen again, for the sake of the life of the sport and its fans all over the world, and keep the interest alive while it’s still there, is to penalize hugging/grabbing. This will make boxing fights much less boring and would create more action. Action is what the fans want and are willing to pay for! They want to see boxers actually box and nothing else. No hugging, no grabbing, no anything that makes it boring which turns people off and which kills the sport. In basketball, the NBA’s Anti-Flopping Rule was adopted in 2012 after basketball fans were turned off, watching professional basketball players flopping, something that doesn’t even happen on street basketball. Flopping isn’t part of basketball and so is hugging or grabbing in boxing.
“Flopping isn’t part of basketball and so is hugging or grabbing in boxing.
The Fight of the Century won by Mayweather convincingly wasn’t even close enough to warrant a rematch. We already know what’s going to happen, the Sweet Science of Hugging perfected by Floyd Mayweather, Jr. will only dominate again and Manny Pacquiao still wouldn’t be able to figure it out. He will again think that he was winning the fight again, only to lose by decision unanimously, again. The fight will bore the fans to death, again. And it would just definitely put the nail to the coffin for the sport of boxing. The only thing I could think of that could put a spark of interest for a rematch between Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather, if the fans will be guaranteed action, if they will be guaranteed their monies’ worth. No more “promises”, because both camps “promised” an action packed fight because that’s what the fans want to hear before the fight, without really the intent of delivering it. If the boxing fans will not be felt duped again, with a guarantee that there will be in fact action with the new Anti-Hugging Rule, not just promises, then a boxing rematch with “no more hugging” to create “more action” that the boxing fans are craving for in the first place, it might just create a new kind of interest for a rematch. For the sake of the sport of boxing, let us make the boxers do more boxing than hugging.