Manny Pacquiao vs. Floyd Mayweather: Come Out, Come Out, Wherever You Are

It has to suck being Floyd Mayweather on a day like today. 

His ultimate nemesis, Manny Pacquiao, is currently sitting atop the world and the pound-for-pound rankings after a spectacular performance in a unanimous decision win over the much bigger Antonio Margarito.

It seems everyone has forgotten that Pacquiao’s initial stance on drug testing is the main reason this fight fell through the first time they tried to negotiate terms. Instead, everyone is pointing a finger at Mayweather for being a coward who’s too scared to fight anyone with an ounce of skill.

So how do you suppose the Pretty Boy spends his time on a day like today when everyone is talking about the Pacman’s greatness?

Does he stay in bed all day drowning in a sea of tears because nobody seems to like him? Maybe he stayed up all night trying to come up with several new excuses as to why he won’t fight Manny. Or maybe he’s studying last night’s fight because he’s finally determined to prove all of his critics wrong.

Let’s hope he’s doing the last option.

Truth be told, Mayweather is the only boxer in the world who could potentially out-skill Pacquiao.

So why won’t he man up and fight!?

The answer is simple. He’s a not a risk-taker. He never has been and he never will be.

Why people hate Mayweather is the reason so many of those same people love Pacquiao. Pacman could have run around the ring after the seventh round of last night’s fight. He could have played it safe, picked his shots and bored fans to death while casually heading towards a unanimous decision.

Instead, the Filipino didn’t hold anything back and continued to put on a show for everyone who paid to watch him fight. Even if that meant risking everything by getting caught on the ropes against a much bigger man.

As boxing fans, we all have our favorite fighters. Some of us love the risk-takers like Pacquiao and some love the technical beauty of the sweet science that Mayweather so marvelously brings to the ring.

But we all have one thing in common: We all want to see these two fight each other sometime in 2011.

Why are we left debating this potential mega-fight like it’s some sort of fantasy dream-match that can never happen?

This isn’t Mike Tyson vs. Muhammad Ali, it’s not Rocky Marciano vs. Jack Dempsey and it isn’t Sugar Ray Robinson vs. Sugar Ray Leonard.

We’re talking about Manny Pacquiao vs. Floyd Mayweather. These are two of boxing’s all-time greats who happen to be from the same generation, in the prime of their careers, with absolutely no reason not to fight each other.

It’s time for the boxing gods to work their magic and make this fight happen. The sport of boxing needs it now more than ever.

There’s no time for excuses—this fight needs to happen as soon as possible. If Pacquiao and Mayweather can’t come to terms this time around, they might as well both retire from the sport immediately.

Nobody cares to see these two fight anyone else but each other.