Why did Manny Pacquiao need this gay marriage mess? He didn’t. But maybe he has picked up a page or two from the Floyd Mayweather book of how to promote a fight. Against someone like Timothy Bradley, you need to do a lot of promotion to get impressive PPV numbers.

So Pacquiao didn’t say Gays need to be put to death, it was actually the interviewer. Pacquiao is ‘only’ against gay marriage. Bad enough this issue might take Obama down with him. Not Manny Pacquiao is feeling like Floyd Mayweather does. Pacquiao rarely speaks of issue that don’t involve boxing. But moving further and further down the religious road, Pacquiao suddenly feels he needs to speak his mind on godly matters. He already is something of a god in the Philippines, so I’ve heard.

Pacquiao isn’t the evil man everyone thought he was for a few hours, banning him from a California mall and getting a petition started for Nike to drop him. Once the issue was clarified, the petition stopped. But Pacquiao is a changed man. More religious. More according to the law of god, which doesn’t support gay marriage, according to Pacquiao.

I’m not against the gay people. I’m not condemning them.I have a cousin who is gay. I have relatives who are gay. I have a lot of friends who are gay, so I’m not condemning gays. What I said is I’m not in favor of same-sex marriage. That’s the one thing I said to the guy. I told the reporter I’m against same-sex marriage. It’s the law of God.

So if Pacquiao needed his controversy, he got it. Will it help sell his Bradley fight? You never know, but controversy is always a strong selling point. If you expected Mayweather to remain quiet on the matter, you’re wrong. Floyd suddenly became a crusader for gay rights, tweeting – I stand behind President Obama & support gay marriage. I’m an American citizen & I believe people should live their life the way they want.

Pacquiao’s a changed man. Maybe for the better. But is it the best for his boxing career? Not so sure. Both Bob Arum and Freddie Roach have expressed concerns regarding Pacquiao’s dwindling interest with the sport. There aren’t that many fights left in the eight-division world champion, who said God told him to leave the sport. Maybe it’s just a ploy to try and put some pressure on Mayweather. Maybe Pacquiao really believes he needs to hang up his gloves.

But the biggest question is how passionate he still is about boxing, fighting, winning and knockouts? Money is always a great incentive, but when there are too many distractions, that get in the way of training, that’s when the surprising losses come, and the careers start to go down hill. It’s arguable that Pacquiao is past his best. Not many give Bradley a chance, but don’t be surprised if this one will be much tougher for Pacquiao compared his Mosley and Margarito fights.

Years of watching sports leaves you cynical to whatever you hear coming out of an athlete’s mouth. It usually has some hidden agenda attached to it. Usually it involves more money somehow. I’m not doubting Pacquiao’s devotion to god and Christianity. But I wouldn’t be surprised if just a little bit of this controversy helps promote the fight.

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