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It was a joy to watch Manny Pacquiao demolish Miguel Cotto in 12 rounds and clinch his seventh world title. But the celebration was tempered with the tragic fall of fellow boxer, Z “The Dream” Gorres, a native of Mandaue City who collapsed minutes after winning his own crucial bout in Las Vegas that would have set him up for his own title shot.
Gorres, who beat Luis Melendez of Columbia in the runup to the Pacquiao-Cotto title fight, was rushed to a Las Vegas hospital for a blood clot in his brain. After falling into a coma after surgery, his condition was listed as critical.
That he survived is a source of great relief for his family, friends and his Cebu-based promoter Michael Aldeguer
Fortunately for Gorres, he has the best medical treatment available. With some divine intervention, he could regain consciousness soon.
But there’s no return for him to the game he loves best at the level of performance he left it. Doctors don’t see professional boxing anymore in his future, if he values his life.
Taking mean punches to the head is a professional hazard of boxers, many of whom retire with permanent damage to their neurological functions.
That and other medical risks that come from being pummelled by menacing, well-trained fists is the reason Aling Dioñisia, Pacquiao’s mother, was terrified by news of Gorres’ collapse. According to one report, she gave Pacquiao an ultimatum: choose between his mother or his career.
A mother’s influence may not sway Pacquiao, but the 30-year-old king, who knows he’s approaching his zenith as a champion, may hang up his gloves for good and pursue a career in politics instead, something his legions of fans pray won’t happen yet until he does one last grand battle with Floyd Mayweather Jr.
But for young boxers like Gorres, whose shot at fame and fortune was derailed by an unfortunate injury, the dream of boxing glory is over.
If he returns to the ring to compete, against doctor’s advice, he risks more pain and the prospect of ending up a vegetable.
Gorres’s coma reminds all athletes and their diehard fans that golden success in the boxing ring, the kind enjoyed by Manny Pacquiao, can come at a terrible price.
Too often, the public takes for granted the sacrifice and risks a professional boxers puts himself through to provide the blockbuster performance the world clamors to see.
Success can be fleeting; the damage, permanent.
Thankfully there are promoters who care for their wards and go the extra mile in acting in their best interest.
We hope Gorres fully recovers and returns home to his family. The Mandaue City government has promised to extend assistance and should make good on its word. His sports promoters also have the main obligation to see the athelte through his crisis. Gorres still has a wife and four children to support, a lifelong obligation that remains despite his injuries.
