One of the biggest storylines surrounding the Manny "Pac-Man" Pacquiao vs. Brandon "Bam Bam" Rios fight on Saturday relates to the status of Pacquiao's career. Many believe Pac-Man should retire if he loses a third straight fight, but truth be told, there's no reason for him to fight again regardless of how he fares.
As things currently stand, Pacquiao is one of the greatest fighters of his generation. It wasn't long ago that he was considered the unquestioned best boxer of the era, but losses to Timothy Bradley and Juan Manuel Marquez allowed undefeated legend Floyd Mayweather to surpass him.
Even so, Pacquiao has plenty to hang his hat on. He is the first and only boxer to win titles in eight different weight divisions, and he has beaten some of the best fighters of the past 20 years. Among them are Erik Morales, Oscar De La Hoya, Ricky Hatton, Miguel Cotto, Antonio Margarito, Shane Mosley and Marquez. With that in mind, there is little left for him to accomplish.
With a career record of 54-5-2 entering Saturday's bout against Rios, Pacquiao has nothing left to prove. Titles mean little at this point, and there are very few legitimate challenges left. Mayweather is the obvious one that most fans will point to; however, if it hasn't happened by this point, it's incredibly unlikely that it will ever happen.
Perhaps it isn't fair to count Pacquiao out, but logic suggests that Mayweather would wipe the floor with him anyway. "Money" is fighting at a completely different level right now, and it isn't a stretch to suggest that he'd have a fairly easy time with Pacquiao. If Pac-Man hangs around well past his prime only to get destroyed by Mayweather, that would be extremely embarrassing and it could damage his legacy.
Pacquiao has been very defensive about retirement talk leading up to the Rios fight, and he told Sky Sports that he wouldn't retire even if he lost to Rios.
Trainer Freddie Roach hasn't been quite as defiant, though. It seems like he sees the writing on the wall. Roach told ESPN UK that retirement would definitely be an option for Pacquiao if the fight against Rios doesn't go well.
Roach didn't say anything about whether or not Pac-Man would retire in the event of a victory, but that wouldn't be a bad option. So many athletes walk away from their sport with their tail between their legs because they tried to compete for too long. Going out on top with a win is ideal, and Pacquiao has a chance to do that.
Assuming he wins, what incentive does he have to keep fighting? Money is the obvious answer, but Pacquiao already has a ton of it. It's probably extremely difficult to turn down millions of dollars for a few months of work, but Pacquiao has his legacy, his health and his outside endeavors to take under consideration as well.
Pac-Man also doesn't appear to be as outwardly enthusiastic about boxing as he once was. It's impossible to tell what he's thinking, but ESPN boxing expert Teddy Atlas believes he may have lost his desire, according to First Take.
If that is truly the case, then there is no point in carrying on the charade. He has already given boxing fans countless fantastic fights, and it isn't worth putting his body in danger to continue to entertain when he can no longer compete at the same level.
This also applies to the more unlikely scenario of Pacquiao losing. Should Rios find a way to beat him, Pacquiao will have lost three straight fights. That fact may push Pacquiao to continue fighting in an effort to erase those losses from the fans' minds, but that is a very dangerous game since the losses could continue to mount.
Nobody would blame Pacquiao for walking away after a loss, and it would definitely be his best option due to the fact that his legacy would still be firmly intact.
In addition to all of that, Pacquiao is a politician in his native Philippines, so he has more important work to tend to. If there were still big mountains left for Pacquiao to climb in boxing, then that would be one thing, but that isn't the case.
Pacquiao's resume is complete whether he wins or loses on Saturday, and there is no reason to alter it any further.
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