By David Mayeda, PhD, FightTicker.com Social Issues Contributor

I'm not a huge boxing fan, but in the past few years, my favorite boxer has been the dynamic Manny Pacquiao. He has gone on a tear, turning back challenger after challenger from Mexico and stimulated a symbolic rivalry between Mexico and his home country, the Philippines. Without a ton of major sporting stars to follow, every time Pacquiao fights, traffic in the Philippines dies down while malls and theaters are jam packed with spectators cheering for their national hero.

On Saturday night, Pacquiao defeated another foe of Latin heritage, David Diaz, at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, NV. Diaz, who represented the United States in the 1996 Olympic Games, was KO'd in the 9th round in a lopsided loss, despite Pacquiao's rise in weight class to 135lbs. With the win, Pacquiao captured the WBC Lightweight Title.

This blog entry will not really enlighten any ardent MMA fans who know the sport is safer than boxing. I raise this boxing match on FightTicker to point out the hypocrisy that lies in allowing boxing in New York State while continuing the ban on MMA. It appears that Assemblyman Bob Reilly lead the charge in keeping MMA out of Madison Square Garden's home, stating that MMA exemplified the "glorification of brutality." Reilly went on to say that, "Embracing this barbaric sport would have sent the wrong message to our children and our families" (Associated Press, 6/18/08).

In the mean time, children and families in New York State will continue to be exposed to the following sporting practices via boxing (quotes taken from Kevin Iole's round-by-round coverage of Pacquiao vs. Diaz, Rounds 8 and 9, emphases added):

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ROUND 8
Pacquiao opens with a couple of hard punches to the head. How much punishment is the corner going to let Diaz take? They need to think of stopping it now. Diaz seems to have no shot, not even the lucky punch chance to keep his title. Right-left-right by Pacquiao sends Diaz sagging to the ropes. Diaz fights his way off, only to be pummeled in the center of the ring with a blistering combination. Pacquiao raking him along the ropes. This is horrendous. Diaz is taking a frightful beating. Pacquiao continues to batter him with shots. Pacquiao lands a five-punch combination to the head, all of which were hard shots. Left by Pacquiao catches Diaz on the way in. Diaz is wincing.
Iole scores it 10-8, Pacquiao

ROUND 9
Diaz’s face is a mess as the round starts and Pacquiao resumes the assault. Pacquiao lands a three-punch combination to the head. Diaz throws a left and a right, which Pacquiao blocks with his gloves. Diaz simply can’t land much. Straight left by Manny snaps Diaz’s head back. Diaz’s left eye is blackening and closing quickly. Pacquiao circles and flicks a couple of jabs. Right hand inside followed by a left sends Diaz down face first. The ref doesn’t even bother to count and waves off the fight at 2:24.
Pacquiao wins by knockout
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As I read Iole's overview of this match, I was disturbed when reading the bolded sections and thinking about the hard head shots Diaz sustained over and over. To think that boxing is allowed in New York and MMA is not is ludicrous.

I don't make note of this hypocrisy in order to bring down the sweet science. Actually, I feel the ongoing comparisons between MMA and boxing have become fairly tedious and ineffective in promoting MMA. MMA advocates should be pointing out that the sport is just as safe, if not safer, than other sports that have never been seriously questioned by the American mainstream, such as soccer, gymnastics, football, and hockey. But after reading the above quotes, I just cannot fathom how spectators are allowed to witness live boxing matches in New York State but not MMA.

Think about it, had Diaz and Pacquiao been engaged in a MMA match, upon being hit from Pacquiao's jab, Diaz could have shot in and tried to take Pacquiao down, specifically to stop the repeated head shots. Instead, this is what we are left to witness and what Diaz had to sustain: "This is horrendous. Diaz is taking a frightful beating. Pacquiao continues to batter him with shots. Pacquiao lands a five-punch combination to the head, all of which were hard shots."

David Mayeda, PhD, is author of Fighting for Acceptance: Mixed Martial Artists and Violence in American Society, the first book that analyzes MMA from a political standpoint, based on interviews with 40 mixed martial artists, including Randy Couture, "Rampage" Jackson, Guy Mezger, Dan Henderson, Chris Leben, "MayheM" Miller, Antonio McKee, Travis Lutter, and Frank Trigg.

(Photo courtesy of Yahoo! Sports)