This has been a big story over the last 24 hours. Bernard Hopkins stated that he finds it very strange that Manny Pacquiao has never faced a top African-American fighter. He hints that maybe Pacquiao’s team knows he would have trouble with that style. The quotes have spark huge debates about Manny’s choice of opponents, especially after his advisor Michael Koncz stated that Pacquiao’s career is now more about monedey than legacy.
“The selection of opponents for Manny has nothing to do with race, creed or color. It’s all about business,” Koncz explained to ESPN. “And they can cry all that they want. It’s all about economics, now, with Manny’s career. we have the luxury of doing that because Manny has proven to the world that he’s got nothing left to prove. If there are any boxing people out there who doubt him, then, to hell with them.”
View the entire ESPN debate below between Chris Broussard and Skip Bayless.
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You know me, I’m just happy anytime boxing gets some mainstream press. On this actual topic, I can see some truth behind each side’s argument.
Hopkins is correct in saying that there is a lack of African-American fighters on Pacquiao’s resume. But Koncz’s point also rings true. How many slick, black fighters have a sizable fanbase that could equal the financial returns Pacquaio got for facing Ricky Hatton, Miguel Cotto, and Antonio Margarito? The answer is only one, and that’s Floyd Mayweather. Still, Koncz’s stance is hurt by the fact his man recently fought Joshua Clottey, who has no real following in the United States.
During Manny’s lower weight run, there’s a few fighters that he bypassed who fit Hopkins’ description. Erik Morales fought slick, black southpaw Zahir Raheem immediately after defeating Pacquiao in 2005. Morales was outclassed and lost a wide decision. Because of Raheem’s style, size, and low economic profile, Pacquiao’s team went for the Morales rematch and never seriously considered Raheem as an opponent. In 2008, Pacquiao made his jump to lightweight. Instead of facing the number one guy at the weight, Nate Campbell, Pacquiao opted for a weaker titleholder in David Diaz. The business excuse can’t be used there, since Campbell was both a more challenging and well-known fighter than Diaz.
I believe it’s a styles thing more so than racial. Slick boxers are revered by boxing purists, but rarely become superstars. Floyd Mayweather is AN anomaly. Even when defeating them, they are very hard to look good against. After beating Cotto, Pacquiao’s camp dismissed Yuri Foreman as a potential opponent at 154 pounds. Foreman is a Jewish fighter and far from black. So as he’s moved up in weight, I believe Pacquiao’s team has preferred more stationary, come forward fighters.
People think they’re a lot different, but on the business end Mayweather and Pacquiao have both been careful in the opponents they’ve selected since reaching superstardom. Some of their predecessors like Sugar Ray Leonard were the same way. Bottom line is, there are no black fighters from 140-154 pounds that can be favored over Pacquiao except Floyd Mayweather. So when talking about black fighters, Floyd is the only name that needs to be on Pacquiao’s hit list.
Beats, Boxing and Mayhem 