The Pacquiao boycott nonsense

I think we’ve all heard enough about the nonsense of proposing to boycott Manny Pacquiao’s fight against Shane Mosley. Things have gone a little too far, and calls for a boycott are really unrealistic. It would be understandable if boxing were a matter of national security, where civil disobedience reminiscent of Pres. Cory Aquino would be warranted. But seriously, when it comes to an individual and professional sport like boxing, asking for a boycott is tantamount to throwing a tantrum and asking for the world’s attention. Even if one were to not watch the fight, do you think you won’t hear about the results?

The initiative to boycott Pacquiao’s fights actually started in July of last year, when some bloggers and columnists proposed a move to not watch succeeding fights of the eight-time world champion and fights of Floyd Mayweather until the two of them fought each other. Again, this is a matter of personal preference. Sharing your opinion with other people is one thing, but imposing upon the public to share your actions is another. There will only be two results: you’ll find out about the fight from someone else, and you won’t even make a dent in the ratings or income of Pacquiao, anyway. It’s like screaming for another EDSA Revolution every time you disagre with what the country’s Chief Executive does.

The proposal gained a little momentum when Pacquiao agreed to the catchweight fight against Antonio Margarito. Columnists and bloggers of various boxing websites and boxing blog sites started suggesting a boycott for the reasons that it was a catchweight fight and that fans (actually, columnists) felt that Margarito wasn’t the best possible opponent for Pacquiao. Some of them took their biases like an axe to Pacquiao’s cherry tree, and clearly went overboard.

Now, there is even a Facebook page devoted to boycotting the Pacquiao-Mosley setto, and rants uploaded on YouTube complaining about the match-up. Let’s face it, that’s a little extreme. Granted, we live in a democracy where freedom to express one’s opinion is a hard-earned, basic freedom, but calling to the public to hurt someone’s livelihood is not fair. You can choose to not watch the fight. Go ahead. Many television program hosts around the globe have implored complaining viewers to not watch their programs, and programs with mature themes or violent and rude content issue warnings to prevent children from inadvertently watching them. But a boycott for a boxing match?

Pacquiao himself has issued statements rebutting the boycott plotters, many of whom are actually American writers who obviously cannot stand his success. The nadir was Yahoo’s Kevin Iole calling the fight “garbage” in a scathing piece on Dec. 22. He even claims that Top Rank chairman Bob Arum had already decided that Mosley, who is going through a recent, nasty and unfinished split with Golden Boy Promotions, would be Pacquiao’s next opponent even before he flew to the Philippines to discuss Pacman’s future.

“Arum ostensibly made the trip to discuss the financial demands of each of three potential opponents with Pacquiao, but it was a sham,” Iole wrote. “Juan Manuel Marquez and Andre Berto never had a chance. It was going to be Shane Mosley when Arum stepped on the plane in Las Vegas, it was Shane Mosley when Arum landed in the Philippines.”

Of course, it is common for sports writers to sometimes believe their opinion is shared by the majority of sports fans, and they sometimes get carried away. As far back as the Depression era, beat writers like Sporty Lewis took hammer and tongs to comebacking boxers like Jim Braddock, as portrayed in the film “Cinderella Man.” That has not changed. Writers are given a platform, and they are at liberty to disagree with what they see.

What fans are actually upset about is the perceived disrespect for the boxing fan displayed by Arum. In one breath, he claimed that Mosley was once a great fighter, but not anymore, and that nobody would want to see him fight. A few months later, Sugar Shane is the most viable opponent for Pacquiao, over Juan Manuel Marquez and Andre Berto.

Apparently, Mosley needs the money, too, and Arum considers him “a nice guy”. Well and good, but what does his charitable instinct have to do with putting Mosley up against Pacquiao?

This writer said on Jan. 3 that Marquez would be the most exciting available for Pacquiao, contrary to what Arum would have us believe.

Marquez has been on top of his game, and only lost to Mayweather (his only loss since Pacquiao despite moving up in weight and facing quality opposition) since the latter was too cowardly to meet him at the same weight. On my television program “Hardball” I echoed the sentiment of many fans that I would definitely watch Pacquiao fight Mosley. I would watch any world-class Filipino athlete not just as my profession, but as a fan. But it is not the fight I want to see, and the ratings will be great, but not spectacular.

Some sportswriters and fans are frustrated that they cannot influence the managerial decisions guiding Pacquiao’s career, especially those of us who know that sometimes, hype is unwarranted and it’s an attempt at brainwashing. Be that as it may, there is really no reason to call for a boycott. Pacquiao is free to agree to fight anyone he wants and risk life and limb doing so, just as we are free to decide whether we want to watch it or not. A boycott is nonsense.