While Manny Pacquiao is one of the best, most respected fighters in boxing today, he is also one of the most controversial.
Pac-Man's most recent form of controversy came in his bout against Timothy Bradley back in June. In a fight that was clearly all Pacquiao, the three judges at ringside saw a much different fight.
Instead of giving the decision to the more dominant fighter, the judges handed the victory to Bradley in what was one of the most controversial, head-scratching results in the history of boxing.
Beyond his previous fight, there are other reasons why Pac-Man is always a hot topic.
Throughout his career, Pacquiao has moved from different weight classes with the kind of success that few, if any, have ever seen in boxing. His incredible ability to get bigger and not lose any power or speed has left many critics wondering how he does it.
On top of that, Pacquiao has the kind of stamina that is second to none. From the first minute of a fight to the last, Pac-Man doesn't seem to lose his speed or power and remains aggressive while continuously moving forward from round to round.
Many have speculated that Pac-Man is using performance-enhancing drugs to do all this. That has been a narrative that has been pushed by his detractors, namely fellow boxing great, Floyd Mayweather Jr. In fact, Mayweather's belief has been a major deterrent for his taking a fight with Pac-Man.
Mayweather Jr. shared his thoughts on Pacquiao's alleged PED use, per Rick Reeno of BoxingScene.com.
In that piece by Reeno, Mayweather explains how the size of Pac-Man's head has grown and that it's a big indicator that the Filipino is using drugs. Also, Mayweather questions how Pac-Man has the ability to move up in weight and still dominate his opponents.
Those reasons might seem silly to some, but it is an idea that has caught on with many fans around the sport. Supporters of Pac-Man will often argue that Mayweather Jr. is just scared to fight the Filipino and is ducking Pacquiao in order to avoid losing the first fight of his undefeated career.
To this day, there has been no proof of Pac-Man using PEDs. In fact, one of the stipulations Mayweather has to take the fight—a pre-fight drug test—has already been accepted by Pacquiao, per Dan Rafael of ESPN.com.
"No problem," Pacquiao said. "Whatever he wants to do."
Even when Pacquiao previously had softened his stance on random testing, there was still an issue about doing a blood test on the day of the fight. But Pacquiao said Thursday he now would be OK with that, too.
"No problem," he said. "Even the night of the fight. No problem."
In that same piece by Rafael, Pacquiao even agreed to give Mayweather a bigger share of the fight's profits, which was another sticking point of Mayweather. Even with all that, Mayweather has yet to accept the fight and that will only add fuel to the fire that Mayweather is ducking Pacquiao.
Whatever you believe, controversy will continue to swirl around one of the greatest fighters ever to grace the ring, whether legit or not. Not to mention, as long as this fight remains a discussion as opposed to a reality, that alone will keep Pacquiao's name in the collective mouths of boxing fans.
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