Champ in no mood to shadow box with stalling Mayweather

When it comes to that part about setting a course, Manny Pacquiao is the one who looks to the stars. Floyd Mayweather Jr. looks to every passing ship. Theirs is a massive difference in ambition.

Freddie Roach is tired of talking about it. Bob Arum says he won't deal with amateurs. Pacquiao is content with his achievements. Leonard Ellerbe is suddenly William Jennings Bryan.

Mayweather is probably being deposed somewhere for a pending legal matter.

You would think a third fight between Pacquiao and Juan Manuel Marquez would be enough to satisfy those still interested in boxing, that given how close the first two encounters were, tonight's installment of the trilogy at the MGM Grand Garden would postpone talk of any future matchups.

But the idea of Pacquiao-Mayweather still has enough juice to grab headlines, despite the rapidly dwindling number of people who believe such a fight will ever happen.

Know this: Making the fight is more important to Mayweather's legacy than Pacquiao's. Mayweather wants to be considered the greatest ever to slip on gloves. Pacquiao wants to be president of his country.

Their ideas of success differ like the NFL skills of Aaron Rogers and John Beck.

But perfection can be stained with an asterisk, and that is what would be attached to Mayweather's career should he never lose but never fight Pacquiao.

"I'm kind of tired of Floyd, to be honest," said Roach, trainer to Pacquiao. "Shut up and fight or don't. He wants to make the rules. He wants to dictate everything. Who the (expletive) is he to make the rules? Then he sends his gofer, Leonard Ellerbe, out to make a speech.

"Who the (expletive) is Leonard Ellerbe?"

He is adviser to Mayweather and the one who recently told ESPN.com the fighter has eyed May 5 in Las Vegas for "the biggest fight possible and everyone knows what that fight is, the little fella."

What, Mayweather is going to fight Rafael Garcia?

Then who will wrap his hands?

Ellerbe's sudden interest in being heard was so laughable, so preposterous on so many levels of how mega-fights are made, it held the weight of a feather. If this was Mayweather's idea of putting the ball in Pacquiao's court, it had no bounce.

It was a dead flat effort.

One day, the Mayweather camp might even realize which of the two fighters in this proposed giant of a matchup owns the most power and popularity. It's the little fella who wouldn't be all that little if the two fought.

For his part, the Filipino congressman and champion in eight weight divisions seems as interested in Mayweather as he is the color of the carpet at the MGM Grand.

"I'm happy with what I've done in boxing," Pacquiao said. "I won't compare myself to any other fighters, but if we look at my record -- eight titles at different weights -- you know, I am very happy. My job is to train hard and fight. Whatever (opponent) my promoter puts in front of me, I'll fight."

His long-term plan goes something like this: He will fight through 2013 and then, likely unopposed, run for governor of Sarangani Province in the Philippines. He will then run for the Senate in 2016 and, if the political stars align, for president in 2022.

It would mean a maximum of four more fights following tonight, and whether any of them include Mayweather doesn't appear to matter much to those supporting Pacquiao.

"Could such a (time line) be derailed?" asked Arum, Top Rank's promoter. "Of course. Life is uncertain, especially in politics. But this is the plan, that the end of his boxing career is in 2013. I would like his final fight to be in the Philippines as sort of a victory lap. And that will be it. If any of it happens with Mayweather or without Mayweather, I could care less.

"The Mayweather camp is only into playing games. Nobody cares about that. If you're serious about making a fight, you don't do it through the media. You sit down face to face and make a deal. All this stuff about May 5 is a bunch of nonsense. They're amateurs.

"Floyd is a great fighter. There is no question about that. He knows boxing. But he really has nothing else of significance going for him. His legacy is the most important thing to him.

"For Manny, it's less important. Boxing is just a step in the road to much bigger things -- to president of his country and then maybe world leader. His plans are about the greater good for his people. He certainly doesn't need to fight Mayweather to make that happen."

Note to William Jennings Bryan: I wouldn't count on that whole May 5 idea working out, but Rafael Garcia might be available.

Las Vegas Review-Journal sports columnist Ed Graney can be reached at egraney@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4618. He can be heard from 3 to 5 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday on "Monsters of the Midday," Fox Sports Radio 920 AM. Follow him on Twitter: @edgraney.