Hundreds of Tanzanian fans flocked bars and other viewing centres to watch the long-awaited “Fight of the Century” between Floyd Mayweather, Jr., and Manny Pacquiao staged in Las Vegas.
From urban to rural areas people woke as early as 3 am while others ditched their beds altogether to make sure they don’t miss the big fight. And by 4 am bars and other joints with Super sport subscription in their TV were full to the brim as fans waited impatiently for the Fight of the Century.
For a lot of folks, watching a live high-definition feed of the fight on screens, huge and small was as close as they could get to actually being in Las Vegas for the boxing match.
The boxing enthusiasts, new and old, were divided according to whom they were rooting for, some went for the pound-for-pound Mayweather while others cheered Manny.
“My heart goes to Manny Pacquiao. He’s humble and a great role model for everybody, I expect him to win today,” said Musa Mmbaga, a Dar es Salaam resident. “I’m team Mayweather, he’s going to beat Pacquiao today, take my word,” boasted Paul Mabula, also residing in the city.
There was definitely excitement in the air, especially when the two boxers made their way toward the ring. Many in the crowd cheered whenever the fighters landed a punch.
After the thrilling 12 rounds of action, the judges announced that Mayweather Jr. had emerged victorious from the most lucrative fight in history, beating Pacquiao via a wide unanimous decision.
But the result was received with mixed reaction here in the country as it was in the US and the rest of the world, as most of Pacquiao supporters cried foul play.
“This is scandalous,” reacted Leonard Mwakalebela. “We all saw the fight, it was clear that Pacquiao had won it, it is obvious that they planned to award it to Mayweather.”
“I am disappointed. It’s a home court decision. Manny should’ve won. He had Mayweather running and cornered on the rope,” lamented Jumanne Ngohengo.
Even though Rashid Omary was with Manny, he had the feeling that the undefeated Mayweather had the advantage. “Manny was the sharpest and quickest of the two but Mayweather was clever and I think he scored enough points to win the fight,” Omary commented.
Mayweather fans were understandably happy with the outcome and insisted that the American boxer was a deserved winner.
“I am really happy, I didn’t sleep all night waiting for this fight, I was confident that Mayweather would win today, he is a clever boxer and has good defensive skills and always accurate when he attacks,” said a joyous Frank Lyimo.