Inside Mayweather vs. Pacquiao: Top Takeaways, Highlights and Episode 3 Recap
Showtime saved the best episode of Inside Mayweather vs. Pacquiao for the final presentation before the bout this Saturday. There will be an epilogue on May 9, but Wednesday night's episode was the last opportunity to whet our appetites for the biggest fight in the history of the sport on Saturday, May 2.
Much of the bravado from the first two episodes was gone, and it was replaced by a more honest and human experience.
The End is Near
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Being Floyd Mayweather is taxing, even when you're Floyd Mayweather. The pound-for-pound king consistently reminds us in the third episode of IMVP that he has only two fights left in his career. The training and pressures to keep the money train running for himself and those who depend on him seem to be wearing on Mayweather.
Money wants to be in charge. He seems to want to help people, but the lifestyle he's chosen may be getting old for him. He's 38 years old, and he's already made more money than just about anyone could ever imagine.
While he certainly wants to beat Pacquiao and is putting in the work to get it done, Mayweather looks like a man who wants a permanent break from the grind. Toward the end of the episode, an open letter Mayweather sent to his entire team is read.
He concludes it by saying, "Everything has a beginning and an end."
He seems to want to prepare his team for the time when he's not fighting any more. For many of them, that may mean a lot of off time, and perhaps a lack of purpose. Mayweather is probably also speaking this way because he realizes this is the first fight where a win is not as much of a foregone conclusion as it has been in the past.
More Pacquiao
Pacquiao was featured more in this episode than in any other. Mayweather undoubtedly has a ton of respect for him as a fighter. It's the reason he's training so hard and eliminating some of the fluff that usually surrounds his camps.
This bout will bring out the fighter in Mayweather that most opponents are unable to uncover. That's the reason this could be one of the most exciting fights in his career.
It was refreshing to see the Showtime broadcast a little less biased than in the previous two episodes. Pacquiao was respected for the champion he is, but at the end of the day, Mayweather is still confident in his abilities.
Common Opponents
The best part of the show was the segment where all three of Mayweather and Pacquiao's mutual opponents spoke about the bout. Juan Manuel Marquez, Ricky Hatton and Shane Mosley had their time discussing their experience facing Money and Pac-Man.
Marquez and Hatton picked Mayweather to win, citing his defense and long arms as a factor. Mosley didn't really offer a prediction, but he did say, "Mayweather is the smarter fighter in the ring, but Pacquiao fights harder."
Having had more success against Mayweather than he did against Pacquiao, it's understandable Mosley would feel this way.
To be honest, I didn't want this part of the show to end. It was the highlight of the series thus far. If you didn't get a chance to see this one on its first run, reserve 30 minutes to catch it on demand or on YouTube. It was worth the time.
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