SPORTS SHORTS 32: RICHARD CLARKE WRITES MANNY PACQUIAO VS. MCGREGOR, MAYWEATHER THEN PRESIDENCY
By Maloney L. Samaco
PhilBoxing.com
Fri, 22 Jan 2021
Richard Clarke of Givemesport.com wrote an article "Boxing: Manny Pacquiao vs McGregor, Mayweather then presidency: Why it just might happen" dated January 19, 2021. "It is almost certain that Manny Pacquiao’s biggest fight of 2022 will be for the presidency of the Philippines."
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The 42-year-old fighter from General Santos and Sarangani Province was elected senator in 2016. He also served as representative from 2010-2016. While serving the Senate, he won the WBO welterweight title against Jesse Vargas, then lost it to Jeff Horn in a controversial unanimous decision, which seemed to signal the end of his career. But he won the WBA regular welterweight title from Lucas Matthysse of Argentina and defended it against Adrien Broner. He then won the WBA super title of the division from Keith Thurman.
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During the pandemic months, Pacquiao’s trainer Freddie Roach and former promoter Bob Arum have disclosed that the senator told them he will engage only in a couple of fights before hanging his gloves for good and get into politics again.
He is now finalizing a deal to fight Conor McGregor in another crossover bout that media reports have estimated to earn around $250 million. Pacquiao has signed a contract with Audie Attar’s Paradigm Sports Management, long-time McGregor's agent so a fight between them would be easier to realize.
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"With a record of 62 wins, seven defeats and two draws, Pacquiao has paid his dues to boxing many times over. He has fought the best, jumped weight divisions, unified belts and come back from defeats. He owes no one and has always offered the fans value. It will be a harsh judge that criticises him for a couple of mega bouts that serve his pension pot more than his prestige at this stage of his career," continued Clarke.
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McGregor’s fight with Floyd Mayweather in 2017 sold an estimated 4.3 million pay-per-view buys, earning $600 million. This was only topped by Pacquiao vs Mayweather which gained 4.6 million two years earlier. At 43, one year older than Pacquiao, Mayweather has always teased a comeback competitive fight. Pacquiao would always be seduced to revenge against Mayweather and with fifty uppers Mike Tyson and Roy Jones Junior selling 1.6 million pay-per-view buys, generating $80 million in an exhibition.
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"Bouts against a UFC fighter and a retired legend in 2021 would not please the purists as Pacquiao is an active, legitimate world champion, but, in many ways, it would be a fitting farewell for a true Filipino legend... Becoming the first sitting president to fight professionally, let alone for a world title? Participating in another ‘Thrilla in Manilla’ with some of the proceeds going to the Filipino people? That would be one hell of an inauguration and sound the final bell for one of the best boxers the squared ring has ever seen," Clarke concluded.
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Teofimo Lopez aired his thoughts on fighting George Kambosos and Devin Haney during an interview Monday on “The Ak & Barak Show" on DAZN. "We’re talking about it right now,” Lopez told co-hosts Barak Bess and Akin Reyes regarding the Kambosos bout. “Is it a fight that I want? No. What I want is Devin. Who I want is Devin. So, I told ‘em if things go south with Kambosos, which it may look like that’s probably what’s gonna happen, I already spoke with my manager [David McWater] and [promoter] Bob [Arum]. So, what we talked about is that if this doesn’t go through, the next guy I want is Devin. So, he’ll be getting something. We’re already gonna be talking to Eddie Hearn about it as well.”
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Oozing with confidence, Lopez previously considered Haney as the next opponent to settle everything once and for all. He has retaliated to Haney’s trash talk and will fight him to prove that he, not Haney, is the real WBC lightweight champion. Haney (25-0, 15 KOs), age 22 years of San Francisco, California, is the WBC world lightweight champion. Lopez (16-0, 12 KOs), age 23 years of Brooklyn, New York, is the WBC’s franchise champion because he defeated Vasiliy Lomachenko (14-2, 10 KOs), who was declared WBC franchise champion after beating Luke Campbell by unanimous decision to win the then-vacant WBC world lightweight title in August 31, 2019.
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As reported by Tiebreaker Times, Kobe Paras will miss the FIBA Asia Cup Clark window at the Inspire Sports Academy in Calamba, Laguna. The 6-foot-6 player wil be out of the final window of the 2021 FIBA Asia Cup Qualifiers scheduled on February 18 to 22 in Clark, Pampanga. Paras reportedly informed his teammates and team officials of his plan citing “personal reasons” as the rationale for his absence.
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At the Manama, Bahrain window against Thailand, Paras, a natural swingman, came out of his comfort zone by playing the power forward position. "We played him out of position because we really needed his size and strength around the basket, and he wasn’t comfortable at all, so that was a burden he carried for us and never complained once,” Gilas program director Tab Baldwin told Coaches Unfiltered.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Maloney L. Samaco.
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