This was supposed to see print last week but for some merry mix-up on my new "location", the material was not properly sent. It's not easy nearing the golden years (SAC people, you now have an idea of my antiquity). So to the followers of "Feel The Game" (surprise, I have some!), from now on, we'll see print on Fridays.
The topic is stale but to avoid "writer's block" and with some serious editing, here's my "bahaw" piece.
Boring is the understatement of the year. The Pacman-Clottey match was an insult to boxing fans. I can't believe Clottey could be so “wala'y-Ghana” and very shy of himself that he kept covering. Can't blame the whole of that African nation for being upset. Ghanaian boxing hall of famer Azumah Nelson went even further in blaming trainer Lenny de Jesus for the non-existent offense. The opposite actually happened as in the later rounds, he was pleading and begging his fighter to throw punches.
Clottey has the size, skill and power to give Pacman a really good match but he was unwilling to engage. His punches suffered a recession resulting in economical jabs. He just fought to survive, not to win the match. He deprived fans of quality entertainment and the $3 million paycheck he got is pure anomaly.
And the alibi? Clottey claimed he had diarrhea on fight night and if his statements were to be seriously taken, he took a trip to the loo at least twelve times. Yeah, right. He was strutting and dancing like a homey on his entrance and on top of the ring. With the body shots he got from Pacman, he would have dropped those watery load by the second round. Dugay rang nakaigit, unless he had several layers of diapers that made him survive the barrage to his midsection, the shits not withstanding.
Enter Floyd Mayweather, Jr. He continues to be unimpressed with our man saying our fighter is one-dimensional, all offense, no defense. Simple analogy. You're facing a walking punching bag as an opponent, what do you need defense for? Fire at will, boy. It's boxing, not hide-and-seek.
He can't take our boy's popularity that he said, "The only reason why he's (Pacman) popular is because he's an ethnic minority and from the Philippines, so it's something special. If he was from Africa he would be just another boxer."
Rewind to several hundred years. Ethnicity killed the invader. Remember the no-holds-barred match in Mactan Island between that guy now immortalized by a fish and a bearded foreigner? Lapu-lapu was wearing only t-backs versus Magellan in full body armor. Pacman, our ethnic minority, dropped everyone from "superior" races en route to seven different division titles. Floyd should have taken a closer look at his skin and realize that his roots are from the slave trade of yes, Africa. If not for his blabbermouth, he would be as ordinary as the pail that boxers spit on at the end of every round.
He still suspects that our man is into some performance-enhancing drugs. Is VitWater already a regulated drug? Or maybe it’s the Knorr cubes Jinkee puts in her tinola which makes Pacman cry "Knockout!" after downing a bowl. It could be Alaxan FR for bra-ba-li-whatever that makes him indestructible. If Floyd looked closer at the back of Pacman's shorts - our man is powered by Motolite. Yes, pangmatagalan.
Now if only the marketing people of these companies read "Feel The Game", they already got free plugs.
Like what he does best inside the ring, Mayweather Jr. runs away from Pacman, so their fight most likely won't materialize. If it does, it could be a track meet.
We can read between the lines. Behind all the stupid talks, Floyd is plainly afraid, jealous and envious. We will soon hear from Floyd, Sr. and see what his geriatric mouth can offer.
The figures are worth all the jealousy and envy. Although pay-per-view revenues were lesser than the de la Hoya and Cotto matches, still 700,000-plus ppv hits at $49.95 per is no loose change. Pacman is guaranteed 70 percent of that. The recent match (50,994 fans) was the third biggest crowd in American indoor boxing, next only to the 63,350 fans who witnessed the Muhammad Ali-Leon Spinks rematch in 1978 at Louisiana Stadium and the 1993 Pernel Whitaker-Julio Cezar Chavez fight at the Alamo Dome with 59,995 fans. Every athlete or entertainer would be overwhelmed with this kind of audiences.
Then we have this flak, again, on the singing of the national anthem. Talks are circulating that Arnel Pineda could be fined or perhaps spend jail for his rendition. A recorded piece, in its original marching version played by a marching band will solve everything. But since we like theatrics, why not let some of the big shots at the National Historical Institute sing Lupang Hinirang the next time Pacman fights. Better yet, let Nanay Dionisia sing instead. It’s only fitting. No Mommy, no Manny. No Pacmom, no Pacman. I rest my case.
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Salutations and greetings to the newly appointed Cebu Ports Authority Commissioner Michael C. Mendoza. A huge task for a literally huge guy. You can do it bai. Good luck! And the same goes to all my party mates seeking reelection.