Manny Steward: Public won't buy Mosley-Pac fight

[milmascaras1]

fan johnny,

since when was the p4p list a world title? can you enlighten me on that?

[fan johnny]

fan johnny,

since when was the p4p list a world title? can you enlighten me on that?

Who said that is was? The context I use is a metaphor. Of course P4P ranking are purely hypothetical. Yes it was originally just a discussion game that has been evolving into something else. However, to be called P4P king has tangible value.

Ricky Hatton and Shane Mosley covet it. Floyd envy's Pacquiao's beloved popularity. Although Pacquiao exhibits humility, he is basking in it. ("My accomplishments compared to him", "facial gesture") Even Martinez and Williams want the recognition. The list goes on and on. It's no longer enough to be a unified champion, but the goal seems to be crowned the P4P king. With it come enormous popularity and recognition. Name branding and enforcements. Let us not forget multi-million dollar fights and so forth.

The joke is, the alphabet belts are like trinkets or tournament trophies that just collect dust. Writers, main stream media and the like all observe this from boxing fans and experts of the sport. (Many fans and experts truly believe the belts have lost their value.) Perhaps they take note of lack of respect given to many of the champions that obtain these belts as compared to those who are climbing the P4P lists. All the negative talk about the sanctioning bodies has a profound effect on the sport. The sport of boxing is evolving and the P4P rankings are playing a big role. So being #1 on the P4P list seems to have replaced the recognition that was once given to "The Heavyweight Champion of the World" i.e. "The Greatest Champion of them All".

This is my interpretation of what is happening in boxing and why I disagree with Stewart's opinion that people won't by a Mosley / Pacquiao fight. People will buy it because Shane Mosley is a very big name in boxing and Pacquiao is on the top of the list. It's a championship game. Not the eliminator.