Manny Pacquiao – The sport of boxing is about as exciting as an old retired history professor reading from a book about the Spanish Inquisition on C Span. The London Olympics — where America did not capture a single medal — shows where the future talent lies: somewhere other than here. And the best two fighters on the planet will not come together in the ring.
But they did almost meet in jail.
Only in boxing. . .
According to Floyd Mayweather Sr., father of the undefeated fighter by the same name, Manny Pacquiao wanted to visit his rival while he was incarcerated for a misdemeanor domestic battery charge.
The older Mayweather said during an interview with “On The Ropes” podcast that he was approached by Pacquiao, the Filipino icon, about going to see Mayweather while he was behind bars at the Clark Country Detention Center, where Floyd Jr. was serving a 90-day sentence. He was released a month early for good behavior.
“Pacquiao told me he wanted to see little Floyd, when little Floyd was in jail,” Mayweather Sr. said. “I guess he was training over there and he told me that he wanted to do see little Floyd in jail. He said he did not know if he could get in or not, and I told him I did not know if I could get in either.”
The father left it at that. He did not say if Pacquiao pursued finding out how to get on the boxer’s visitors list.
The idea of Pacquiao meeting Mayweather in jail but not in the right would have been a sad irony – especially if they never fight.
But then, maybe such a meeting would have facilitated them actually meeting in a boxing ring before their skills diminish.
It still could happen, but it will not be this year, as Pacquiao plans to fight someone other than Mayweather on Nov. 10.
