Pacquiao vs. Morales: A Flurry of Greetings

Yesterday was the day most Filipinos anticipated most. It was the Grand Finale between Manny Pacquiao and Erik Morales. Almost everyone woke up early in the morning on a Sunday (some even earlier than the time they have to wake up to got to work).
I am not a boxing person. I love sports, don’t get me wrong. In fact, I’m quite an athlete. However, boxing was one sport I never really quite understood (and never bothered to watch, until this year) the game, until Contender came along. I guess it was the drama of the reality show that got me hooked. But anyway, after contender, boxing became bearable for me.
B likes boxing. So I treated him and his parents to watch the match over at Greenbelt Cinema. The preliminary matches began at 10 a.m. Kinda like the opening acts for a concert. One of the matches was between Bryan Viloria (Filipino) and Niño (Mexican). The commentators (Q.H. and C.T.) were obviously biased inn favor of Viloria. They exaggeratingly laud every punch Viloria throws and keeps mum whenever Niño throws a great punch. The commentators choose to give their “advice” or analysis during Niño’s great moments. Talk about bias. Hence, their commentary lacks credibility. How I wished that Solar Sports chose to have American commentators to ensure objectivity.

And then it gets worse. Following the Viloria vs. Niño match, was a match between two (2) Mexicans and another match between a Greek-American and a Columbian. Initially during the match between the Mexicans, the commentators did their job and give a blow-by-blow account and trivia and other info for the viewing public. And then it began. Few and bits at first but later evolved into a flurry of greetings just like a ***** radio station. “Hi to _____ of Tarlac”. “To the nanay of ______” “Nanood rin pala si _______” . Oh my God! It went on non-stop! All through out the match between the Mexicans and the match between the Greek and the Columbian. I was waiting for either Q.H. and C.T. to say “Can I pass the (micro)phone?” Only in the Philippines. I was unfortunate to sit through all the greetings. New Flash! I paid 700 bucks to watch a game and not to hear you greet all the Filipinos watching the game. I mean, really, what Q.H. and C.T. did was unprofessional. Moreover, there were other people (foreigners and Filipinos alike) who were watching the matches and may have been genuinely interested in the fight.

Anyway, after the flurry of greetings which lasted for an hour (or even more), it was finally Pacman’s time. I waited 3½ hours, for a match that lasted 9 minutes. Ugh. That deserves another post.

* Photo courtesy of Manny Pacquiao’s website