The
COVID-19 pandemic shut down the entire sport of boxing (as well as most
others) between March and July 2020. Even since then, for the most
part, events have had to take place with zero or minimal fans in
attendance, taking away one of the most significant elements of the
entire experience: a vociferous, passionate crowd of fight fanatics
blowing the roof off the building.
Of course, this is also a sport with a rich history of being its own
worst enemy, so these unprecedented obstacles weren't enough. Politics
has continued to delay or even completely prevent some of the big fights
fans want to see, and nothing has summed up that frustration more than
the past week's developments in the long-running saga surrounding
Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury's proposed undisputed heavyweight title
fight.
With an apparent green-light to make the fight official since
December, fans were nonetheless subjected to five months of non-updates,
finger-pointing, and, if it was their lucky day, maybe a tiny
development to move the bout 1% closer to actually happening than the
day before.
And, of course, for as long it took us to finally hear all parties proclaim "August 14 in Saudi Arabia", it took just a day or so for all of that to evaporate.
Deontay Wilder, the ex-WBC champion dethroned by Tyson Fury in
February 2020, was contractually due a trilogy bout. In an ideal world,
that would have happened in December, around the same time Joshua took
care of his business by finishing mandatory challenger Kubrat Pulev.
Instead, multiple proposed dates and venues came to nothing because
pandemic gate receipts would have been modest.
Fury, Bob Arum and everyone else simply moved on, assuming they could
do precisely that. It turns out, they couldn't. And now, fans start
from square one on the heavyweight runaround.
It would be one thing if these games were restricted to the
heavyweight ranks, but they aren't. These delays and false dawns can be
found up and down the scales, creating a widespread issue that sends
more and more fans over to check out amateur spectacles such as Logan
and Jake Paul's fights because at least they actually happen.
For example, the lightweight division has all the tools to be the
hottest show in combat sports, but we continue to wait for Teofimo
Lopez, Devin Haney, Ryan Garcia, and Gervonta 'Tank' Davis to face off
with each other, all the while filled with dread that some of them will
simply move to different weights instead.
And for a while now, the welterweight ranks have been a solid source
of frustration. Despite having such talent as Terence Crawford and Errol
Spence Jr., fans have found themselves wondering aloud, "why are we
waiting?" for a true 'clash of the titans' month after month. Until now.
After over a year of settling for small victories for the viewing
public thanks to lockdown and one of the biggest downer weeks in recent
memory for those of us who want the big, exciting fights, Manny Pacquiao confirmed his first fight in 25 months. And it's an absolute dream.
The aforementioned Spence Jr., reigning WBC and IBF 147lbs champion,
will put the belts up in what could be the final title tilt for
'Pac-Man'. It's exactly the kind of fight the 31-year-old needs to take
his resume to the next level. It's precisely the kind of fight befitting
what could be the only eight-weight world champion's swan song before
fully focusing on his post as Senator of his native Philippines. And
it's exactly the kind of super-fight we as fans have been craving after
over a year of near-famine.
Pacquiao's trainer Freddie Roach admitted last year the plan is for Pacquiao to fight "once or twice" in 2021,
and then, come 2022, he will be 100% politician and 0% active boxer.
With his in-ring return now set for August 21, there's a very strong
chance "once or twice" is indeed just the once.
Pacquiao will remember the frustrations of making the big fights
happen, having been one half of the biggest wild goose chase prior to AJ
vs. Fury in 2010 while trying to make the Floyd Mayweather Jr. fight
happen. Mayweather took the bout five years later when it was a much,
much safer endeavor. If Pacquiao cared about safety, he would have inked
the Mikey Garcia contract or insisted on a sideshow with Conor McGregor
despite the Irishman's UFC 257 humbling against Dustin Poirier.
The parting gift from one of the greatest to ever lace up the gloves
to long-suffering boxing fans is one of the biggest, toughest, most
intriguing encounters available. Either he will cement his legacy with
another big win for even more gold, or he will pass the torch in a
defeat that can nonetheless resuscitate a stammering division and bring
it closer to back when a prime Pacquiao was a permanent fixture.
Because of the overall lack of government found in other sports that
require teams and players to face off in routine tournaments each year,
boxing has always been a profession driven by selfishness. As a
result, Pacquiao's latest (and perhaps last) fight selection is utterly
refreshing in its selflessness, and yet very on-brand for the man who
has donated millions of his career earnings over the years and continues
to do so to help the people of his home country through the horror of
COVID-19.
If this is indeed 'it' for Pacquiao, win lose or draw, we are going
to miss him. The Joshua-Fury farce and more mean boxing will miss a
fighter, a man, the stature of Pacquiao even more. We can only hope that
his decision to go all-in and challenge Spence inspires others to
remember how pivotal fan satisfaction is to the sport.
