Here at Blood Money Boxing, we welcome the opinions of our family, friends, supporters, and fans. We recently received an insightful comment in our recent “Mayweather is TBE & Here’s Why” piece that addressed the recent Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao match. It was a philosophically thoughtful comment that draws comparisons with the author’s personal journey and Manny Pacquiao. We have shared it here for all to read. Enjoy!

By Toka Valu

Apologies for the succeeding philosophical jargon, but this piece brought to mind some profound things. Though I hate to admit, I have definitely gained a greater appreciation for Floyd Mayweather. To me, boxing taps an instinct in the human nature that feeds our “need” to see more violence/more blood. Having said that, (from a personal point of view) the very fact that Floyd intentionally utilizes the skills given to him, the platform afforded him and the resources he accesses to resist the Boxing powers that be/the neat “boxer” category, is very profound to me. This means each of his fights becomes a tally against the boxing world’s norms – a world that has taken decades to establish and like most profit-generating industries, benefits (economically) a very select few. Kind of like “using the master’s tools to destroy the house his slaves were exploited to build” – don’t remember where I read that quote and maybe I’m reaching here…but that does make the Ali comparison more sensible. I don’t recall another boxer who actively resisted (though in a different way) the systemic structures that sought to enforce his conformity. Not sure if Mayweather has ever alluded to this as part of his intentions, but his public notoriety garners this comparison regardless.

Now, in purely boxing technical terms, I was disappointed to see my guy, Pacman, look flustered trying to catch Money May. I’m not gonna take into any more detail than that (the memory is too similar to the feeling of having lost at Superbowl 49 – oh, the feels!) but I will say that Money May looked (though I had healthy doses of hater-ade that night) phenomenal that evening. My dude Pacman had a few good looks but was ultimately, not his “old self” enough to overwhelm Money May for greater effect.

I still love the Pacman. I can relate to a life of coming from a small island nation and having to figure the world out for yourself by connecting with a few good people, keeping your head on straight, knowing what you’re good at, and a pocketful of faith that things will work themselves out. Pacman has already solidified his legacy as one of the sport’s greatest and I knew that coming into the fight. What I didn’t expect was to have this greater appreciation for his opponent who, whether he thinks of himself as such, offers an intriguing study of resistance in the bright and shadowed world of Boxing.

Peace be da journey,

Tokz