by David P. Greisman - They are two superstars who have long occupied the same section of space but ran in different orbits. They were binary stars never to collide, lest one be consumed by the other.
That was the reality we had come to live with after five years without a fight between Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao, not only the two best welterweights but also two of the best boxers in the world now, of this generation and of all time.
There had been discussions and negotiations, demands and deadlines, stumbling blocks and publicity stunts, all of which produced nothing but failure and frustration, first at the end of 2009, then once again in the middle of 2010. Since then, their orbits seemed to take them farther and farther away from each other. Their egos were large enough that the rest of the boxing world would revolve around them. They didn’t have to face each other.
Until now. The gravity of the situation has changed.
Mayweather and Pacquiao will meet May 2 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas for the fortunate 15,000 or so who will shell out thousands or tens of thousands or potentially even more for the privilege of being there. There will be additional tickets sold for closed circuit broadcasts in Vegas, all for the privilege of being nearby.
And there will be millions who pay more than they’ve ever paid to watch a single broadcast on their television screens, all because this is the one fight that boxing fans have long wanted to happen, the one fight that boxing fans long felt never would happen, the one fight that even the most casual of followers has long asked about — a fight that is finally here.
It is real. And that seems so surreal.
We never seemed any closer to Mayweather-Pacquiao than we had been half a decade ago, even when the major disagreement that had served as obstacle and obstruction was finally removed. Mayweather had sought more stringent drug testing, a demand that seemed accusatory in nature but has increasingly become what the sporting world expects of its athletes. Pacquiao has since dropped any requests for testing constraints and cutoff dates; he hired a testing agency for his recent bouts. Neither man is testing year-round with results posted transparently or reported to athletic commissions. Nevertheless, what was once an issue had since ceased to be. [Click Here To Read More]
That was the reality we had come to live with after five years without a fight between Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao, not only the two best welterweights but also two of the best boxers in the world now, of this generation and of all time.
There had been discussions and negotiations, demands and deadlines, stumbling blocks and publicity stunts, all of which produced nothing but failure and frustration, first at the end of 2009, then once again in the middle of 2010. Since then, their orbits seemed to take them farther and farther away from each other. Their egos were large enough that the rest of the boxing world would revolve around them. They didn’t have to face each other.
Until now. The gravity of the situation has changed.
Mayweather and Pacquiao will meet May 2 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas for the fortunate 15,000 or so who will shell out thousands or tens of thousands or potentially even more for the privilege of being there. There will be additional tickets sold for closed circuit broadcasts in Vegas, all for the privilege of being nearby.
And there will be millions who pay more than they’ve ever paid to watch a single broadcast on their television screens, all because this is the one fight that boxing fans have long wanted to happen, the one fight that boxing fans long felt never would happen, the one fight that even the most casual of followers has long asked about — a fight that is finally here.
It is real. And that seems so surreal.
We never seemed any closer to Mayweather-Pacquiao than we had been half a decade ago, even when the major disagreement that had served as obstacle and obstruction was finally removed. Mayweather had sought more stringent drug testing, a demand that seemed accusatory in nature but has increasingly become what the sporting world expects of its athletes. Pacquiao has since dropped any requests for testing constraints and cutoff dates; he hired a testing agency for his recent bouts. Neither man is testing year-round with results posted transparently or reported to athletic commissions. Nevertheless, what was once an issue had since ceased to be. [Click Here To Read More]
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