Injuries should talk, not money

The megafight the world was waiting for is finally done and dusted, with American welterweight Floyd Mayweather’s reputation as the best pound-for-pound of his generation and unbeaten record of 48- 0 as a professional boxer safely intact. Although beaten, Filipino Manny Pacquiao has nothing to be ashamed of – his response in the aftermath of the $400-million Las Vegas match was very disappointing, citing an injured shoulder as an excuse for not living up to expectations during his unanimous defeat on points.

Pacman claims to have suffered the injury three weeks before the fight during training and that it was severe enough for him to consider postponing the fight. His decision to carry on was clearly the wrong one – and now he is crying about it.

Even the famous “Rumble in the Jungle” for the world heavyweight crown between Muhammad Ali and George Foreman in 1974 in the former Zaire was postponed for over a month after Foreman had to recover from a cut near his right eye.

If the pressure of the massive amounts of money on offer influenced Pacquiao’s decision, then the mega purse defeated the purpose.