Colin Powell: May the best man win

MANILA, Philippines - It’s not easy to catch a retired four-star general in the United States Army and former Secretary of State with his guard down.

Colin Powell, also the former National Security Advisor and former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, made sure everybody knew that.

Caught in an ambush interview by entertainment and celebrity news giant TMZ, Powell was asked about his thoughts on the Mayweather-Pacquiao superfight.

The veteran of many wars laughed at the question.

“You must think I’m nuts,” said the 77-year-old Powell as he crossed an icy street and headed for a waiting SUV.

Pressed for an answer, he seemed to favor no one.

Neither Mayweather, the undefeated American superstar, nor Pacquiao, the fighting congressman from the Philippines.

“The best person. The best man,” said Powell, raising his right hand, still smiling.

He was reminded by the reporter that tickets to the May 2 showdown in Las Vegas are hard to come by. He was asked if he’d be there to watch.

“No, no, no, no, no,” he said, “I’ll watch the report.”