JGL Eye

By JOSEPH G. LARIOSA

C HICAGO, Illinois (JGLi) – Basketball is a big sport among the vertically-challenged Philippine natives. But Manny Pacquiao single-handedly relegated the team sport to the sidelines with his individual sport, using the blinding speed of his hands and his agile footwork.

And Pacquiao, by winning the improbable seventh title in as many divisions, had elevated in his beloved country the brutal sport over the top all by himself even as he ensconced himself as the greatest boxer in Asia, if not in the world. And hopefully, boxing will be up there to stay for a long time.

His convincing technical knockout of Puerto-Rican champion Miguel Cotto 55 seconds into the last and final 12th round of the welterweight championship last Nov. 14 in Las Vegas, Nevada left no doubt that his win was not an aberration either.

Manny avenged the two-time loss of Filipino two-time world boxing champion Gabriel “Flash” Elorde in the 1960s to three-time world champion Puerto-Rican Carlos Ortiz.

And Pacquiao broke the long-time jinx that any Filipino boxer before him could accomplish by his true grit and his prayer.

Even if he retires, Manny Pacquiao will not miss the accolades, the respect and the cheers that defined his spectacular career because he can transition to become an actor, a rock star and/or a celebrity endorser that can serve him well into his old age.

His victory was so unbelievable for the camp of his prospective opponent that it is discrediting Pacquiao’s super ability by insinuating that the Pacman might be using enhancing performance drugs, like steroid, to gain an edge in the sport.

DRUG-TEST RESULTS

I don’t blame the once-estranged father of Floyd Mayweather, Jr., for floating a trial balloon of a drug-use accusation. He should instead demand from the Nevada boxing commission the results of the tests of the previous fights of Pacquiao if they yielded any positive results of the use of banned substances.

I’m sure the young Mayweather, who came out of retirement just to reclaim from Pacquiao the accolade as the undisputed best pound-for-pound boxer in the world, would welcome the public-relations stunt pulled by his father if it only put Pacquiao on a defensive.

And if I were in the shoes of Team Pacquiao, I will welcome the entreaty of the big-mouthed former trainer of former world champion Ricky Hatton by returning the favor and also demanding from the same Commission the same substance-test results of Mayweather’s previous fights in the state.

I just hope it will not come back to haunt the Mayweathers.

The good thing about Pacquiao’s post-fight comment was his own admission that he is not a Superman. He told ring announcer Larry Merchant that his historic seventh title in seven different weight classes is enough for him to put some distance between him and others, who might follow in his footsteps.

Pacquiao’s legacy as I have pointed out in my previous column is now secure after he had beaten Cotto.

Pacquiao knows that fighting past his prime like others before him, including Flash Elorde, is not the wave of the future for the sportsmen, like him, if we go by conventional wisdom.

He knows that a lot of sports greats, like Muhammad Ali, were attracted by the color of money to continue fighting although they were only shadows of their own selves.

An over-the-hill champion will gain nothing in fighting a peaking fighter.

MANNY SHOULD LOOK UP TO THE GREAT ALI'S DECLINE

A fter his last fight with Joe Frazier in the trilogy, Ali was in decline. Yet, Ali still fought Leon Spinks, only to lose. Ali fought a rematch and retired after defeating Spinks.

Doctors later discovered after he hanged up his gloves that Ali had “neurological damage, a short-term memory (loss) and trouble with touching his nose with his hands,” according to boxing writer Tom Donelson.

Manny should not wait for this health problem to happen to him.

He should quit while ahead. Comebackers like Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Brett Favre and George Foreman, had learned they could not stay for long at the top. Reality has a way of forcing these returning athletes to have their feet back on the ground and not on "Cloud Nine."

Manny Pacquiao should not wait for his health to deteriorate by fighting more bouts. He should quit while ahead.

A fter all, Manny will not be missing the accolades, the respect and the cheers that defined his spectacular career because he can transition to become an actor, a rock star and/or a celebrity endorser that can serve him well into his old age.

He can even land jobs as a sports broadcaster or trainer and avoid looking for a job from the bottom of the pile in a crowded job market and relive the back story of his pre-fight days.

The human body is not in a position to be in tip-top condition forever. And somehow, the body wears out like a broken car and younger players take over from super athletes, who have no other recourse but to retire.

Hopefully, Manny will not lose all his millions to gambling – cockfight betting – and other vices and lawsuits by being picky with his advisers, choices and decisions.  (lariosa_jos@sbcglobal.net)

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