Mayweather vs. Pacquiao: Boxing Needs Megafight to Live Up to Hype

The notion that boxing is dead or, perhaps less dramatically, that the sport is irrelevant is neither fair nor true. The notion that boxing isn't nearly as important to American culture as it once was or that the rise in popularity of the UFC has stolen much of boxing's spotlight among fighting fans is hard to dispute, however. 

But Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao could change that. And all they have to do is deliver a fight as epic and compelling as the anticipation and hype that preceded it. 

But can they?

Think, for a moment, about what it has taken to get this fight. We've had years of "will they, won't they?" rumors about this megafight that make Ross and Rachel's on-and-off-again relationship on Friends seem dull by comparison.

And now, the two best pound-to-pound boxers in recent years are finally meeting, though both fighters are past their prime. That hasn't seemed to affect Mayweather quite as much as Pacquiao, but if this fight is a dud it won't be remembered as a megafight; it will be remembered as the fight that happened several years too late. 

And boy, will a lot of folks be disappointed.

We're talking about the most anticipated fight of this century, young as it is. We're talking about a fight that will cost fans $100 on pay-per-view if they want to see it in high definition. We're talking about boxing's best publicist (who just happens to be undefeated) taking on Pacquiao the politician, each with a huge crowd of fans wrapped around their finger. 

Of course, there are also the folks that will be watching Mayweather simply to root against him. Or perhaps those who will be boycotting the fight altogether, like ESPN's Keith Olbermann.

Of course, the Pacquiao camp hasn't exactly shied away from exploiting Mayweather's villain image, per  Maureen Callahan of the New York Post:

"

“Good against evil” is how Pacquiao’s camp is billing the fight, claiming God is on their side. Asked to respond last Thursday, Mayweather laughed.

“That’s a terrible question,” he said. “God loves us all.”

He went on to describe first meeting Pacquiao at a Miami Heat game last February.

“He looked shocked when he saw how much bigger and taller I am than him,” Mayweather said. “I’ve beaten everyone for 17 years. I know what I can do.”

"

It's all a bit ridiculous and the sort of "made for reality television" fodder that we all eat up. And thus, the perception that this fight will be truly epic only grows. This could be the the sort of moment that folks sit their grandkids down one day to talk about. Living up to that is going to be difficult. Perhaps impossible.

Ah, but if it does, the sport of boxing could be transformed.

Young fans could be be introduced to the sweet science, transfixed by Mayweather's clinical punching, agility and boxing IQ, and enthralled by Pacquiao's power and the unique angles he approaches from to land his punches. Old fans of the sport who have seen the joy sucked out of the heavyweight division by the dominance of the Klitschko Brothers could have their passion for the sport reinvigorated by a fight of this magnitude. Defectors of the UFC could be reminded of the compelling battle of wills that takes place when two fighters lace up the gloves and the bell rings. 

Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports

This could be this generation's "Down goes Frazier!" moment for the sport. Or, it could be the most overhyped, capitalistic, soulless money grab in the history of sport (let's be honest, it's already the most capitalistic, soulless money grab in the history of sport). 

It has to matter. It has to be worthy of the spectacle that preceded the actual bell ringing. It has to remind folks of the sport that once inspired the beautiful prose of W.C. Heinz, that gave us Joe Louis and Muhammad Ali and, hell, Rocky. Boxing was once a metaphor for man's instinct to survive, to fight rather than to take flight, to never give in. Now, it has become a metaphor for American excess and the self-promotion anybody who spends five minutes on Facebook or Twitter is all too familiar with. 

Boxing needs Mayweather vs. Pacquiao to be more than that. It needs Mayweather vs. Pacquiao to be the very best of what the sport can offer. Because if this fight can't provide that—if the two biggest stars of the past decade can't provide that—then who the hell can?