Floyd Mayweather – Three Strikes and Still Not Out

We’re in this together all the way until our cable bill arrives. One hundred dead presidents to see what was supposed to be the fight to not only put boxing back on the sporting map, but to keep it there as well. It’s only a matter of days until we hear just how many pay per view buys were registered to view last Saturday’s long awaited matchup between Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao. The fight itself met nowhere near the expectations of well, millions of the paying public.

Should last weekend’s bout undoubtedly eclipse all previous records, which were incidentally set by two other fights also involving the aforementioned Mayweather, then hopefully we’ve all learned a good lesson. Just as he did in his 2007 and 2013 contests with Oscar de la Hoya and Saul “Canelo” Alvarez, respectively, Mayweather did what he does best. He kept a talented fighter from finding any kind of rhythm and picked his battles within the ring very carefully. To the trained pugilistic eye, such efforts are perhaps sublime displays of defensive genius, yet to the majority of the those who forked over the cash to watch, he stunk up the joint and refused to fight.

Should we have collectively known better? How many of us did the smart thing and had a fight night party but demanded that our guests do the right thing and pitch in? Regardless of where we stand on the matter, the majority of the sporting public is beyond livid at what transpired last Saturday evening in Las Vegas.

Floyd’s May 5, 2007 contest with then superstar De La Hoya was coined, “The World Awaits”. Although Oscar may have had the better of the man formerly of Grand Rapids, Michigan throughout much of the earlier rounds of the bout, he faded and in many circles gave the fight away.

Mayweather ended up winning by essentially one mere point thanks to the one out of three judges who gave the twelfth and final round to him. Think of where the sport would be today had the bout been declared a draw. Just as he did a few nights ago, Floyd won by waiting, finding and sniping. Collectively speaking, a high price tag on a pay per view telecast should be about much more than just the bout itself. It should allow the thought of feeling hosed made easier by the memories of a hard fought bout rather than shades of a stale can of sardines. Shame us once. Maybe we didn’t know better.

Fast forward to 2013, as this article is simply trying just a bit to dissect the top three money making bouts in boxing history. “The One”, which should have been called, “Just One” actually had oceans of mislead fans believing that Saul “Canelo” Alvarez, who was just 23 years old, had a shot of dethroning defensive master Mayweather. That bout, as we all know, was a complete wash, yet it was perfectly packaged at the right crowd who is still waiting for their next Julio Cesar Chavez, Ruben Olivares or Chucho Castillo. In some ways, it was a cruel joke played by those who were all too eager to pull away on the nationalistic necktie in order to turn a dollar. Actually, lots and lots of dollars. Did we learn two years ago? Only an inexplicably myopic scorecard turned in by the now and thankfully retired ringside judge C.J. Ross had Canelo even remotely close in the contest. Shame us twice…not to be confused with Seamus Twice of Ireland.

Any bout that had as many headaches, he/she said’s and mental paper cuts as the finality that was Mayweather versus Pacquiao could only expect itself to implode in one way or another. The event was announced at the end of February and that was about it for a good while. The city of Las Vegas saw most of its hotel rooms fly off the shelves at a most obscene rate in terms of a nightly charge. Alas, though. No tickets. No tickets. No tickets.

The bout that had the world at its knees should have been held somewhere such as AT&T Stadium in Arlington, TX., Sun Life Stadium in Miami or the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California. But oh, no. It had to be in the glorified hockey arena that sits in the back of the MGM Grand in Vegas. Millions of souls waiting for the chance to see the fight live and all but the wealthy few are shown the longest digit of the hand in response. Lastly, the pay per view price tag of one hundred American. It’s a one time, one off event and those involved just have to get paid. All signs sure to point to our collective willingness to help.

Ticket brokers blew the roof off of decency and sold tickets at a highly inflated price. Some individuals even went lower and scalped weigh in tickets for upwards of two to three hundred dollars.

The bell rang after 9pm on Saturday evening and what many thought would happen, well, happened. Credit to Mayweather in terms of his performance. If he’s talented enough to effectively shut down a fighter the caliber of Manny Pacquiao, then he is to be commended for his efforts. He made it look easy. Manny’s bum wing only made him slower.

Enough, already though. Shame us three times. Floyd will be back and we’ll buy into it again, at least to some degree. Three strikes and still not out.

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