Leave old Mann to pipe and slippers
PULL PLUG ON BENN FIGHT FARCE
MANNY PACQUIAO looks set to return to the ring. When will boxing ever learn?
If a governing body anywhere in the world gives him a licence to face Conor Benn, then it is nothing short of disgraceful.
People will argue that Mike Tyson is ‘fighting’ Jake Paul and he’s 57.
But that’s a load of nonsense and will be an exhibition event for influencers to show up to and post about being there, while Netflix can capture the views of the idiots who might think it’s a real fight.
Pacquiao is being lined up for a real return against Benn, a fighter who still currently doesn’t have the all clear to box in the UK because of two adverse analytical findings in doping tests and an appeal process ongoing on his suspension being lifted.
The Filipino is 45 and hasn’t fought in three years and it was two before that bout as well, so he has stepped through the ropes once in half a decade.
Who wins out of this?
Maybe the promoter and the broadcasters who will cash in on punters desperate for the novelty of seeing this bona fide boxing legend compete once more. Pacquiao maybe will bolster his bank balance, but at what cost to his long-term health?
As for Benn, does he, at 27, need to be facing a retired fighter who lost his last outing against Yordenis Ugas in 2021?
He is looking to clear his name over those VADA tests as he continues to protest his innocence. Why does he need the bad PR of luring an old man away from his pipe and slippers?
If he wins, everyone will just say, ‘So what?.’ He’d have beaten a fighter who was well past his best when he retired in 2021
NETFLIX NONSENSE: Mike Tyson (top right) is meeting Jake Paul and is now inactive. This isn’t the real ‘Pacman.’ The win would be worthless.
If he loses? Well, his career might never recover, even if he’s given the all clear on the doping accusations. But the real problem is boxing’s lack of care for its former fighters. Pacquiao may have squandered money on a failed campaign to become president of the Philippines or have tax bills still to pay off in the US.
But is there no way we can make this sport better to ensure that a fighter who started out at flyweight doesn’t have to come out of retirement at 45 to take on a man now campaigning at light-middleweight for money?