Manny Pacquiao: Pac-Man Must Dominate to Quiet the Haters

Things sure have gotten bad for Manny Pacquiao in a hurry. 

A year ago, Pac-Man was the most popular fighter in the world and could do no wrong, no matter what he said or did. 

Now, Pacquiao is certainly still popular, but after his less-than-stellar fight against Juan Manuel Marquez, things have started to snowball in the negative direction for the boxer from the Philippines. 

In addition to the "he's washed up" talk that surfaced after that fight, Pac-Man has plenty of other things working against him.

Firstly, Pacquiao told a reporter that God asked him to retire after his June 9 fight with Timothy Bradley. There's certainly nothing wrong with that, but it brought up questions about how committed Pac-Man still was to boxing.

Does he still have the drive necessary if he is talking about retirement? Does he still love the sport?

But that was just the beginning of the "I'm done with Pacquiao" snowball.

What really gained Pacquiao his biggest critics was his anti-gay comments earlier this month, which were obviously not well received. 

Unspectacular fight against Marquez: strike one. Talk of retirement and a questionable focus towards the sport that has gained him fame: strike two. Controversial comments: strike three.

And just like that, Pac-Man has gone from one of the most popular figures in the world to, in some people's eyes, not even the most popular boxer in his upcoming fight.

It's a slippery slope Pacquiao is on, but if he manages to avoid the upset and beat Desert Storm next month, he'll silence his critics. 

For now. 

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