Mayweather el Terrible

CHEAP SHOT If this is a basketball game, he would have been given a technical, or worse an eviction.

Mayweather is still undefeated. This time, however, he defeated us all. Anyone who has seen his fight against Victor Ortiz last Saturday (Sunday morning in Manila) for the WBC Welterweight crown could probably tell that the fight was anything but clean. And in typical Mayweather fashion, it ended with a mouthful of controversy only Floyd, in all of contemporary boxing, could pull it off, but it was more a victory by default than in putting up a great fight. 

Stepping into the ring right after a 16 month layoff, Mayweather was on his way to victory well into the 4^th round when Ortiz allegedly gave him a head-butt after he was cornered by a flurry of punches from the former pound-for-pound king, enabling Joe Cortez, the referee, to issue a deduction from Ortiz. Ortiz, however, apologized and hugged Mayweather, and appeared to be remorseful over the act, but just as they withdrew from that ceremonial apology, Mayweather abruptly threw a couple of shots at Ortiz’s head, sending the champion on the canvass and gave Mayweather, as he earlier predicted, a knockout victory. 

In what seemed to be a bizarre ending, Mayweather then was questioned during his post fight interview on the ring that his last two shots at Ortiz seemed to be done not in the spirit of boxing. Mayweather responded, “In the ring, you have to protect yourself at all times. After it happened, we touched gloves and we were back to fighting and then I threw the left hook and right hand after the break. You just gotta protect yourself at all times." Merchant, on his end, clearly disappointed, questioned him further about his tactics, leaving Mayweather to thrash the 80-year old commentator with expletives and names as the interview had degenerated into a verbal confrontation. To which Merchant responded with, “If I was 50 years younger, I would kick your ass.”

He's not perfect?

With the victory, however, Mayweather is still undefeated after 42 fights, and made a stunning $25 million for his seemingly smooth win over a much heavier Ortiz. The amount could still go up as soon as the pay-per view rates pour in, and that his much-awaited fight with Manny Pacquiao in May could be in the books, provided that Pacquiao scores a win with Juan Manuel Marquez in November. Mayweather improved his record with 42-0, 26KOs, while Ortiz settled with 29-3-2, 22KOs. And even without the controversy, Mayweather’s dominance over Ortiz through his experience and obvious hand speed proved to be the difference as he controlled much of the fight until he suffered a head-butt late into the 4^th round, eventually ensuing a bizarre twist.

The fight could have gone the distance if only Mayweather did something tricky. Ortiz was poised late in that fateful round to do some damage over Mayweather, as he appeared to have landed some solid punches, prior to the head-butt incident, on the challenger, helpless on the ropes. But with Mayweather’s one trick pony, Ortiz wasn’t able to protect himself and lost his crown in what seemed to be an odd, illegal and allegedly fixed victory for Mayweather. Although according to boxing experts, Mayweather’s infamous one-two punch on Ortiz following their unnecessary ceremonial was anything but illegal, in lieu, of course, of one of boxing’s oldest adage that the boxer should always protect himself at all times. 

But as a fan of boxing, and to any student of the game, that episode was far from any protection whatsoever. I bet those who have seen the fight could attest that it was done in bad taste, and that we were all annoyed and angry at how lousy and dirty the fight had been. It was not something that would promote a positive note going forward to a Pacquiao-Mayweather fight. If that was the kind of boxing Mayweather tried to pursue on his way to Pacquiao, then Pacquiao is in for a dogfight. 

In his bout with Ortiz, you could sense that as soon as the fight progresses Mayweather is carefully lurking in the shadows, gathering his momentum for an opportunity to do some deceitful wiles in case his opponent unravels, and when Ortiz finally made the mistake of overindulging in his apology, Mayweather immediately unleashed the final blow, in front of a referee as controversial as he is and in full view of an Ortiz crowd. There was something sinister in this fight that are oh-so obvious after the replay. You could sense the smile off Mayweather’s face when he was questioned by Merchant, and even to the point of attempting to block the replay because the victory was somehow stale, and that the manner in which Mayweather secured the victory was upsetting even to those who are not into boxing.

There were three people involved in this rather tasteless fight, and by examining their gestures, responses and attitudes, one wonders if this fight did actually happen, or it is something that they have already fixed and that they were only there for the show-me-the-money. These are just my speculations though, outgrowths of my disappointment towards the fight. It left me with so many questions instead of answers in regards to Mayweather’s chances of pairing with his much-touted rival Manny Pacquiao. And I have started my speculation with the person who had already been acquainted with Pacquiao on the ring, Joe Cortez, the referee who engineered Pacquiao’s most controversial draw. 

What’s wrong with Cortez?

Protecting each other?

Pacquiao’s first fight with Juan Manuel Marquez is still keeping score until now. Thanks to Joe Cortez, that fight, if I’m not mistaken, is still hounding Pacquiao wherever he is, and continues to boost Marquez’s confidence almost in the same feel as with Mayweather as the best boxer in the world. Now, Joe is in the limelight again, another controversy to add to his string of questionable decisions on the ring. Last Saturday, he presided over the Welterweight crown with his usual gait, apparently staring at Ortiz more than his mouthy opponent. Joe was doing fine right from the get-go, until he somehow cop out late in the 4^th, just as Mayweather unleashed a surreptitious blow to the seemingly dazed Ortiz on the way to a stoppage.

After Ortiz had allegedly issued a head-butt over Mayweather, Cortez then dragged Ortiz away from Mayweather and fined the champion with a deduction. Cortez appeared to be signaling the corners for the penalty, while Ortiz and Mayweather engaged into an apology series with hugs and kisses. Ortiz seemed down and out with his head-butt episode that he repeatedly went over to Mayweather and apologized for some more. But just as soon as he withdrew from his hug from Mayweather, he immediately received a vicious left punch on the head from Mayweather and followed it with a heavy right, eventually sending him to the canvass. What boggles me though was Joe Cortez, if Ortiz seemed over-indulgent in his apology to Mayweather, Joe seemed bloody about his sights on the corners that he appeared to have deliberately shied away as the pummeling took place.

"Time was in, the fighter needed to keep his guard up. Mayweather did nothing illegal," Cortez said. I don’t know about that. If he had a pretty good look about that incident, especially when Ortiz withdrew from Mayweather after a lousy hug, he should have positioned himself in front of Ortiz, barricaded his arm perhaps between the two fighters or at least send the two boxers away from each other in opposite direction since, according to observers, he was still looking at that ringside, oblivious of Mayweather's initial punch. And just as Ortiz was about to crash on the canvass, Cortez seemed surprised at the incident. You could replay the episode as long as you want; it appeared that Cortez did not oversee the fight as he should. And that annoys me the most, sometimes protecting yourself at all times in a boxing match means that the referee should also guarantee some safety measures to the boxers. Looking surprised is not something that would encourage a clean fight or even a fair one; it only means ineptitude and incompetence. Cortez became the ultimate ringside spectator instead of the reliable referee of the game. So it is not Merchant who should be fired, as Mayweather alleged, Cortez should. His not looking at that incident was so deliberate to me that I honestly believe it might have been fixed.  

What happened to Ortiz?

It's all legal

Let’s not forget, Ortiz was the champion going into the fight. And not only that, he also has that crowd to back up his confidence against an equally proud opponent. Although admittedly he did have a hard time trying to prove himself against Mayweather, who was so fast and accurate compared to his sporadic bombing but with less accuracy. Not until the 4^th round did Ortiz gained a little momentum when he appeared to corner Mayweather beside the ropes and almost got the former pound-for-pound king under his hands. But because having found a tiny spot to knock Mayweather out, Ortiz allegedly rammed his Mohawk into Mayweather’s and was fined in return.

That was just the beginning. After the ramming, Ortiz completely lost his groove, and mind as well, as his remorsefulness caught the better of him, and he was not able to protect himself eventually from the onslaught of that tricky punch Mayweather let loose upon his instigating head. From that point on, Ortiz had to contend with his mushiness to appease a visibly hungry Mayweather, who was out to prove that he can knock Ortiz out as he previously predicted. The challenger clearly took advantage of his opponent’s utter lack of experience under the bright lights of MGM Grand Garden Arena and the pressure of big time boxing. It was as if Ortiz had trashed the show by committing that intentional act, and that at the behest of Mayweather simply managed to cop out, like his referee, because the only thing that would calm Mayweather down is to agree on his own terms. 

But why apologize that much? Ortiz was so pathetic in that much of what transpired in the latter stages of the fight looked more like a deal gone bad between him and Mayweather. It looked so suspicious that Ortiz can only offer his unsuspecting head after bulldozing it to Mayweather. “I came to entertain the fans and I think they were entertained. There was a miscommunication with the referee, and neither he nor I are perfect," was all Ortiz could say after the fight. Yes, there appeared to be a miscommunication between him and the referee, a rather intentional shot that made the whole fight sketchy, so Mayweather could benefit in the end. It appeared that Ortiz only went for the money, because if he is really intent at giving a shot at the title, he would have gone nuts after Mayweather took him by surprise. Who knows, the head-butting incident was just part of the entertainment plan that both he and Mayweather wanted to show, in concurrence, of course, with Cortez’s seemingly surprised take. Ortiz’s incessant smile at the end of the fight was so deliberate to me that I honestly believe it might have been fixed.

What now, Floyd?

Here's one for you, sucker!

You would not blame someone if he judges the fight to be rigged, including, of course, his row with his equally verbal dad on HBO 24/7; that too is still under suspicion now that the Ortiz case is played over and over in the news. Maybe we should give Mayweather a tinge of credit for making his bout with Ortiz a little interesting, because prior to that incident on round four, the fight was almost in Mayweather’s boring reach as his counterpart looked more like a challenger under his wings, desperately trying to prove a point. But this is the kind of fight that elevated Mayweather into the upper reaches of the boxing world, now registering a stunning 42.0 magnitude in the Richter’s scale. Without it, however, he would have resorted to some publicity stunt in order to boost his apparently descending career, both in and out of the ring. 

He gave Ortiz the stuff he is made of: a scheming vile of cow dung, to use Jim Carrey’s words in Liar Liar, but with a hand and speed of a wayward bull. Although Ortiz came out heavier than him during the weigh-in, he nonetheless proved to be a lot faster and technically superior than the static Ortiz, who could only muster a head-butt in response to Mayweather’s taunting from the moment they have agreed to fight. And as has been said, Mayweather was calculating enough to unleash his magnum opus to Ortiz at the time when the latter somehow lost his mind and the referee had lost his grip. "He did something dirty," Mayweather said. "His corner said I was dirty, and he did something dirty. All along, his corner was saying I was dirty, but I won the fight." Somehow it seemed like that was what Mayweather had been waiting, a cue perhaps, waiting for his opponent to commit a mistake so he could justify what he really intends to do. 

But considering that he was leading in the scorecards anyway, it is necessary to do such a cowardly act just to secure a victory and remain undefeated? I mean all these legality talks are so insulting to the intelligence and numbing to those who witnessed the “crime”. It is even mind-boggling to me that as soon as Mayweather knocked Ortiz out, Mayweather seemed to concur immediately with the TV commentator exactly the phrase, “You have to protect yourself at all times”, like some sort of a script that has been passed around, particularly in Mayweather’s corner, even before the fight had started. And somehow I have a suspicion that Merchant was not included in the scheme, because up to that point the plan ran smoothly as has been originally conceived. Not only it was a sucker punch for Ortiz, but it was a sucker punch also to the entire boxing business. The utter lack of protest after the fight was so deliberate to me that I honestly believed it might have been fixed.

Foul-Weather 

We have seen the best and the worst of Mayweather in this fight. If this should serve as a vantage point between him and Pacquiao, then it is safe to say that it will not be a safe fight after all. One sports analyst even called it as the ultimate battle between good and evil, between the best defensive fighter in the world and the best offensive boxer there is. What happened at Las Vegas Saturday night was just a prelude of what might possible be expected should Pacman and Money go toe-to-toe. What Mayweather displayed between round one until the earlier part of round four to Ortiz should give us a decent look on how Mayweather fares against Pacquiao. But because most boxers, and I bet even Mayweather knows this, are almost always judged by their last fight, his take on Ortiz would only add to his already lingering pressure of facing Pacquiao next year.

Larry Merchant, the venerable ringside commentator, must have been so upset about the fight when he interviewed Mayweather immediately after the controversial 4^th round, and came out incensed even before he could finish the interview. As a veteran reporter of boxing for more than 30 years, he must have felt that what Mayweather did, even though legal according to boxing pundits and well-meaning commentators, is still an affront to the spirit of boxing, per se. And I agree with that, no question about it. I may not have understood boxing the way Merchant does, but like him, I too felt a sense of imbalance after Mayweather took the limelight away from everybody. By all indications, it simply was a cowardly act, hiding behind the cowardly phrase---you have to protect yourself at all times.

A fair shake

This should not have surprised us all. From the moment Mayweather elevated professional boxing by introducing an Olympic style blood testing specifically for Pacquiao, we should have construed his unblemished record as something coercive and cowardly. In fact, during the course of his 24/7 documentary with Ortiz, Mayweather seemed bent of answering every question with a lot of allusion to Pacquiao and his blood testing tirade that it seemed like an insult to Ortiz being a no-show even before they stepped into the ring. His inappropriate responses with his bout with Ortiz were quite uncalled for in that he somehow ended one interview with something like taking the test. At this point, however, Mayweather, with all of his Vegas antics, has accomplished nothing but verbal abuses and histrionics to Pacquaio, which he somehow mastered as a sort of jealous rage and defense mechanism that he is supposedly greater than Pacquiao.

From the moment Pacquiao stole the pound-for-pound bolt from him, there was no stopping of discrediting the southpaw from General Santos City even at the expense of Marquez, Mosley and Ortiz, Mayweather’s last three opponents. It was all Pacquiao from there. But he couldn’t face Pacquiao without the guarantees of blood testing and the equal distribution of goods thereafter, that he wants a fair share, or possibly even greater than the Pacquiao myth, because according to him he is the undefeated one and arguably the best pound-for-pound boxer in the world.

But what he did last Saturday would arguably disprove that claim and it’s eventually reparation. The fight might be rigged, but nonetheless Mayweather simply applied his WWE experience of cheap shots and trickery, and thus ultimately steal the spirit of the game from Dempsey all the way through to Pacquaio, in what might be the most tasteless title fight ever to cross the ring. Even Pacquiao, who had been mocked repeatedly not because of his boxing prowess, but because of his meager education and his sometimes lack of finesse as compared to Mayweather’s on-and-off sophistication, simply commented over Yahoo Sports that Mayweather’s shot at Ortiz as “legal but unprofessional”. If this somehow double-edge ruling could unleash through the fiddly hands of Mayweather in just four rounds, then boxing is not really sold out in protecting its own players, and quite possibly from itself. 

And so all three people directly involved in that fight simply collapsed under the circumstances. Lapses of judgment on the part of Cortez even from the time of the first Pacquiao-Marquez fight had found a recurring theme in his last assignment. Ortiz, on the other hand, suffered a nervous breakdown immediately after scoring a heart-stopping barrage on Mayweather. While Mayweather simply took the cudgels and pummeled it to the sport (through the anemic face of Ortiz) that pampered him to a fault, burying it afterwards with “you have to protect yourself at all times”. 

Like this?

I was cursing in front of the television when I saw the epilogue of that fight. My overbearing excitement of Eric Morales, the original El Terrible, winning over a younger, stronger fighter in Cano, immediately died down when both of Mayweather’s hands somehow deliberately choked my excitement on my way to asphyxiation. I felt helpless, just like the rest of us who watch the fight in disbelief, but couldn’t do anything about it, knowing that something fishy has unfolded right inside the ring, or even outside of it. It was so terrible of Mayweather to resort to that kind of victory despite being obviously ahead in points against his visibly rattled opponent. He kept telling Larry Merchant that he was actually not given a fair shake and that it was Ortiz who was the dirty one, not him. But Ortiz said, “I'm not a dirty fighter and I apologize for the head-butt.” With Mayweather winning his seventh title in five different classes, and being given a chance to prove himself again regardless of his settlements outside the ring of battery and assault, and with Pacquiao willingly succumbing to his request of a blood sample, not to mention his choices of what seemed to be a resume of weak and star-struck opponents at his disposal, the latest of which is Ortiz, we wonder then what kind of shake did he mean? 

He is still undefeated not only because he sucker punched all of his 42 opponents and fooled them into believing the significance of his sound and fury, but that he has always managed to protect himself even when the fight is over. Somehow, that sounds so terrible.