Boxing hero Manny Pacquiao whose bout with unbeaten Floyd Mayweather at the MGM Grand Arena on May 2 maybe the biggest fight of his life. True to form, the Filipino boxing icon exudes a solid confidence resulting from many rounds of squaring off with grizzled boxers of varied styles.
The two megafighters are fighting maybe for different reasons. Mayweather, who holds an impeccable unbeaten record will not allow anybody to grab the honor and distinction away from him. And he too is fighting for the “right reason” as a prizefighter. He has set his eyes for the million right incentives to go through the rigors and danger of the 12-round event. The kitty is hefty and enough motivation for him, maybe. It took five years of taunting, bitter word exchanges and skillful negotiations before an agreement was reach for the ”fight of the century.”
While some releases had it that the Filipino boxing hero of many talents has been quoted as seeing this skirmish with Mayweather as “a bout like any other fight”, to those following him closely, the fight is more than that to his countrymen.
On Pacquiao’s shoulders fall the nobler task of proving what the Filipinos are capable of doing. He symbolizes the tenacity and resilience of his race. The money factor which in many instance brought him in “trouble” might not be the biggest consideration, as it sometimes bring in conflict with people whose job is to look for people who make too much and want the government to have a fair share from his blood, sweat and tear.
The great fist extravaganza that will make Las Vegas come to life once more will bring to the fore once again Pacquiao’s sterling qualities that enabled him to be where he is right night now and with the world taking notice of a tiny county in the Pacific peopled by over a hundred million inhabitants.
The determined Pacquiao is the rallying figure in a county calamities love to visit and the whose inhabitants become adept at going with the punches. The small boxing real estate called the ring will become sort of stage to showcase what Filipinos are capable of doing, against all odds.
In a short span of a little over 30 minutes, if the fight would last that long, millions of people around the world will witness how symbolically the guy” from an obscure province in the Philippines would rally and lead his charge in one of the importance epochs of their existence.
The May 2 fight is by no means just one of those bouts. It’s a make or break event for him and for what he symbolizes. Its going to be one like no other.