Bleacher Report - Boxing: Floyd Mayweather Will Regret Never Fighting Manny Pacquiao in His Prime

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Floyd Mayweather Will Regret Never Fighting Manny Pacquiao in His Prime Jul 7th 2013, 22:48, by Mike Hoag Floyd Mayweather Jr. may think Manny Pacquiao is a “has-been,” but what does that make him for never stepping in the squared circle with his arch-rival? “Pacquiao’s a has-been, his career is over,” Mayweather said, according to ESPN.co.uk. “[Juan] Manuel Marquez is a legend. I commend him.” With Pac-Man coming off two straight losses, it’s hard to argue against Mayweather’s assertion about the current state of his 34-year-old rival’s abilities. At this stage in the game, though, his remarks are callous and cheap. His comments ring low like the resounding bell of another of his uneventful yet technical masterpieces in the ring. Pacquiao may appear to be on the outs after dominating the world for so many years, but there is still fight in the tenacious southpaw from the Philippines. If he can recover and have his arms raised in victory against Brandon Rios in November, the possibility of these two finally doing battle could become a reality. By then, is that even something that most would welcome? Has the ship sailed on perhaps the greatest boxing match of our generation—of any generation? No one can take away the impressive and dominant career of Mayweather. He is certainly one of the greatest to ever lace up gloves and earn respect in the squared circle. That goes without saying. But there is a little part of us all that will look back at this stretch in the history books and shake our heads at what could have been. Did Mayweather intentionally avoid fighting Pacquiao or was it the other way around? Recently, Pacquiao's camp demanded mandatory drug testing prior to his next bout against Rios. Pac-Man balked at that same practice in 2010, preventing the superfight from ever going down. If this is truly the end for Pac-Man we will have been cheated out of something truly incredible. All the squabbling over drug testing and purse splitting has slowly but surely ruined the potentially greatest sporting event of our time. Even if they do step in a ring to once and for all settle things, it’s not going to be enough. Neither will be where they were a handful of years ago—at the pinnacle of their respective careers. So, yes, the ship has certainly sailed on the idea of seeing the two greatest competitors in the world do battle. Mayweather, Pacquiao and all of us will be left to wonder “what if.” Both stars can probably live with themselves and their accomplishments, but we shouldn’t ever forget what we missed out on. Deep down, while growing old and gray, Mayweather won't either. Read more Boxing news on BleacherReport.com

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