Op-Ed: It's all for the love of Manny...oops....um....Money.

The first round of the boxing "Final Four" has pre-tourney favorite Pacquiao moving past Team Hatton. On July 18 the other semi-final will decide who will move onto the boxing championship, unless of course "Money" can use Money to take Manny out of it.

Though I can hardly lend any merit to the idea that Mayweather has been dodging top competition, it is common knowledge that as of late he has been more likely to take a top contender from the lower weight classes, rather than to face a threat like Mosley or other big men with P4P accolades. Before the article continues, a few things must be understood. Mayweather is not a paper champion,he is one of the best to have stepped into the ring as of late. The main argument that is confronted here today is the obstacle to the finalization of the resuscitation of boxing. That obstacle being the fear that Mayweather may price himself out of consideration. A true fan of boxing enjoys watching men climb from the ranks, explore the weight classes, engage tougher and more threatening opponents progressively and take all comers. It seems that Mayweather, as of late, lacks only one of the aforementioned credentials. In the event that Marquez scores the upset of the year (and recent years) there is surely going to be a Pacquiao match just around the proverbial corner. Marquez can say all he would like about Mayweather being number 1, but he knows, we know, and he knows that we know that he will not complete his legacy unless he beats Pacquiao, the current P4P King. Marquez can claim that he believes that he won the fight and he can get all the promoters in the world to back his claim, but if he had won either or both fights, there would be just as much debate that Pacquiao won either or both. The simple fact remains that the only errant scorecard that effected either outcome was in the first fight that scored the bout 113 to 113 giving Marquez a draw. The previously mentioned scorecard was the crucial scoring differential that secured the tie. According to common suggestion by the governing bodies and accepted regulation, a round in which an opponent is knocked down 3 times should be scored 6-10. The 113-113 final scorecard had it tallied as 7 to 10, in spite of the 3 knockdowns. If scoring is properly tallied, Marquez is swept in the dramatic series. You add that fact onto the evidence pile next to the pre-existing fact that he has never managed to knockdown Pacquiao, that Pacquiao dropped him four times in the two fights, and it means Marquez knows that he has business to settle with the Filipino slugger. So a victory means a trilogy for the ages. Done and Done. Now, in regards to a Mayweather victory, the likeliness of the winner taking on Pacquiao becomes a lot less likely for a few different reasons, none of them being that Mayweather is scared or intimidated in any way, shape, or form. Mayweather always feels that he deserves the lion's share of the purse, and often prices himself out of consideration. Even in light of the fact that his biggest purses have come against men who followed the BYOB (Bring your own base) rules to perfection. Most of Mayweather's fights have seen disappointing numbers, competitors see this, as does everyone, including Floyd. If Floyd manages to win this fight and sells out again based on Marquez's fanatical base, he will continue down the path of demanding more then he is worth and forcing potential dream matches to take a more economical path. HOWEVER, if boxing fans simply watch the fight at a bar with a predetermined schedule of Marquez VS. Mayweather and PBF can win only to find he has returned, or even dropped further than his natural PPV numbers, his lust for *Money* will force him to enter into the ring with the current P4P king. Youtube, Sports Center, and the average Sports Bars will be alive and well on July 18th, highlights will be easy to come by, Hell, I will even make sure to have them up here for you. Do Boxing a big favor and insure the fight that needs to happen comes to fruition. Regardless of the winner, Boxing needs them in the ring with Pacquiao, the man who has resuscitated the sport the hard way.