Great win Manny Pacquiao, now retire please

What Manny Pacquiao achieved this past Saturday night in Sin City was miraculous.

He beat an undefeated fighter 10 years his junior, and dodged an even tougher opponent, "Father Time." Nobody can beat the latter. It’s laid waste to many legends, and comes to all eventually, even Manny Pacquiao.

A few years ago, Bernard Hopkins toppled out of the ring against Joe Smith. The crowd in attendance gasped. He was losing the fight, but hanging in there, until time, and powerful Joe Smith, came knockin’.

I’ll never forget watching the great Willie Mays stumbling in an attempt to catch a fly ball. No matter that 10 years before he would have made the play with ease. He was 41 at the time. His greatness had ebbed.

It was painful to watch.

Boxing, with all its inherent brutality, can be the most punishing sport of all. In 1951, two larger than life figures faced each other. One was way past his prime, while the other was just entering his. The fight went down at the legendary Madison Square Garden in New York.

Former world champion Joe Louis had held the heavyweight crown for a little over 11 years. He was universally loved and admired. He was 37 years old, and had engaged in 72 fights in a 17-year professional career. His opponent was the hungry, hard-punching, undefeated heavyweight, Rocky Marciano.

Louis was the sentimental favorite. Sentiments normally don’t win fights. Louis had moments of success. He jabbed Marciano silly. But his legs, and once-powerful right hand, let him down.

Marciano kept after Louis, flooring him in round eight. A few seconds later, as Louis languished on the ropes with a blank expression on his face, Marciano delivered the coup de grace. Many hardened sports writers, who had written about Louis for years, wept as they penned his boxing obituary.

Fourteen years later, Sugar Ray Robinson faced number-one middleweight contender Joey Archer. Robinson, universally regarded as the greatest fighter in boxing history, was 45 on fight night. He looked good physically, could still move a little, but his once-brilliant reflexes had dulled. His accuracy, once so deadly, was gone.

Archer floored Robinson in round four and staggered him a few times. His victory was without question. After getting pummeled by Larry Holmes in 1980, and despite being told by many close friends to retire, Muhammad Ali fought contender Trevor Berbick in the Bahamas. Many fans wondered why. “The Greatest” was 39, and years past his prime. He hung with Berbick in the opening rounds, popping him with his once-stinging jab, but ran out of gas and guile as the fight wore on. Berbick won the bout by decision.

I’ve no desire to see this happen to Manny Pacquiao. His career has been exemplary. He’s defeated some of the best fighters of his era including Marco Antonio Barrera, Erik Morales, Juan Manuel Marquez, Oscar De la Hoya, Ricky Hatton, Miguel Cotto, Shane Mosley, and Timothy Bradley.

And now Keith Thurman.

I don’t want to see him lose again. I’ve seen it a few times, the deadliest of which was when he was flattened by Marquez in 2008. I saw him beat up by Jeff Horn a few years ago. I have no desire to watch him tangle with elite guns Terence Crawford, or Errol Spence.

There were times in the Thurman fight where he labored, looking every inch the older fighter, but still with the ability to dig down deep and summon his energies.

Pacquiao is one for the ages.

Going out now would be a perfect way to end his career, but we know it won’t happen. He obviously loves boxing. It’s what he was born to do. I want a happy ending.

Pacquiao said after the fight that he’d likely return next year. There’s talk that he could fight the winner of the Spence vs. Shawn Porter fight, happening in September.

So my asking him to retire will fall on deaf ears, while Father Time inches closer and closer.