As a big fan of the sport first and foremost, it's extremely sad to see a once special fighter, start fading as he ages. I just hate to see a guy like Pacquiao hit a wall like he did Saturday night.. It's certainly not the image we want to remember great fighters. Pacquiao's career may not be over and he wasn't looking bad up to the KO, but many of us know deep inside that he'll most likely never be the same from now on. I couldn't stand seeing Mike Tyson looking so vulnerable in the ring, or a fairly diminished version of Roy Jones often being gun shy since his first KO. I certainly don't want to see Pacman becoming the next great fighter to look so ordinary... I just wish all the great fighters could end their careers like Marquez may have closed his on Saturday night !
It is always sad to see the great ones decline; especially when they were a guy you liked. Recently, it hurt to watch Mosely and I will start getting a sick feeling in my stomach when I hear Pac or Cotto signing up for another big one. Unfortunately there's no league to essentially force them into retirement. As long as they can convince themselves they can still fight, they will too often keep going.
Daniel Zaragoza knocked Carlos Zarate out, Erik Morales knocked Daniel Zaragoza out, Manny Pacquiao knocked Erik Morales out, Juan Manuel Marquez knocked Manny Pacquiao out and Mattysse or Rios may knock Juan Manuel Marquez out. That's how things goes in boxing, so you cannot honestly root for a fighter to score knockouts but to never get knocked out, can't have it both ways I'm afraid. Punishment received is as much part of the game as punishment handed out, and one fan base's sadness is another's happiness, that's just how the hurt game goes. A fighter's fan is forged in victory and reap, a boxing fan in forged in suffering and tears.
It some how happens to them all. Every single one. It will happen to Marquez, Mayweather etc because, it always does. Off the top of my head I cant remember one great fighter who left at the right time. That is the business. A young buck will make his career off of a name like said above. it hurts to see it. But we will always keep coming back...
Rocky Marciano. Lennox Lewis. But of course niether of those guys could make 20 mil for a fight coming off a loss. Pacquiao can. Mayweather can. Some one will convince them to do when they are well past it and they will suffer the consequences. Its the sad nature of the beast. Pac was fighting good but you and me and everyone who knows boxing knows that was nearing the end before this fight and it is the end now. The fighter I most liken pac to is Roberto Duran. Duran had one last hora against Iran Barkley. But first he had to suffer through hard and horrible losses to Benitez, Hagler and Hearns. Not to mention a couple of losses to some bum journeymen. I really don't want to see pac walk that road. Pac is a credit to humanity and he's got so much to offer to his people outside of the ring that it would be a shame to see him not walk away when the time was right.
When Juan knocked Manny down in the 3rd RD, After I finishing pissing myself my immediate first thought was wow! Now the Pacfans feel the way I did watching Frankie Randall drop JCC with a single right hand down the pipe. ^It was NEVER the same after that night.
