HBO's Mayweather-Marquez 24/7, episode 2

Best spoken line, Floyd Mayweather Jr.: "I regret not being a bigger man and stepping to him, like yo man this stuff is petty," on the estrangement with his dad.

Best spoken line, Juan Manuel Marquez: "Once I come out of the ring, I am a regular person like everybody else."

Watching them speak those words, we believe them.

Best written passage: "The stark perils of boxing can lead fighters to build invisible walls that even those closest to them can't scale. The lucky ones re-assess their paths and demolish the walls. When the bell rings, they are left alone but that doesn't mean they have to fight all by themselves."

Best written passage, Part 2: "Juan Manuel Marquez has come to make use of what nature left behind ... The only reward for each toss is a gasp of thin air which at an elevation of 14,000 feet stings the lungs as much as replenishes them."

Best written line: "For those nine years they shared nothing but a name," of the Mayweather's split.

Narration: We've said this before, but it's worth repeating. Is there anyone in the business better at reciting those lines than Liev Schreiber?

Disgusting: Let's get this out of the way. First we saw JMM channeling his inner Rocky Balboa and drinking 25 raw quail eggs (which he calls turkey boogers). OK. Not my cup of tea, so to speak, but I can accept it. But then, we see him drink his own urine to get an edge. Yes, I turned away from the TV. The last time I checked, urine was still considered liquid waste, what's left when the body takes all the nutrients. But JMM feels he is getting additional vitamins from drinking his urine. (He's actually not alone, if you google it, people across the world drink it, feeling it cures everything from a skin rash to cancer.) There may be some psychological effect here too, I mean Floyd is watching, and would you want to fight a guy crazy enough to drink his own urine?

Cleansing: Maybe JMM's time in the hyberbaric chamber negates the urine he drinks.
Training day: Marquez's training session at the volcano. It was old school and we loved it.

Training day, part 2: You can't watch a 24/7 episode with Floyd and not marvel at his training regimen.How about, doing a situp and then rising to your feet to throw punches and then getting back down to the situp position? All in one smooth motion. Do you know how hard that is?

Best supporting cast. Erica Marquez, for her stoic, unwavering loyalty to her husband. Runnerup, Floyd's cutman, handman, Rafael Garcia.

Oh the humanity. What HBO does better than anyone else is make these athletes human. They've been doing it for years, first with their pre-fight profiles and now with 24/7. You can say what you want about the Mayweathers, but how could you not smile watching Floyd Sr. and Jr. jumping rope to the Four Tops classic, "Reach Out, I'll Be There." The same for Marquez, who was spending time tutoring his son and then playing video games. After watching these shows, it becomes easier to identify with them. No, we can't relate to the millions and the mansions, but when it comes to family, and the joy -- and sometimes heartache -- that comes along with it, we've all been there.
History 101. Loved that Roger Mayweather talks boxing history. But not so sure he can claim Sugar Ray Robinson from the midwest. Yes, he was originally from Michigan, and legend has it, he did briefly step inside Detroit's Brewster Gym, he learned how to box in New York City as a teenager and earned his ring name here as well. Speaking of Brewster, it was the forerunner to Kronk and gave the boxing world Joe Louis and Eddie Futch.

History 102. We loved that Roger had friend of the Neutral Corner Carlos Ortiz in his collage of great fighters.

History 103. A little Mayweather history. Floyd Sr. lost to Sugar Ray Leonard. Roger lost twice to Julio Cesar Chavez and Jeff Mayweather lost to Oscar De La Hoya. Floyd has lost to no one. By the way, where is Jeff Mayweather in all of this?
Best spoken line, Floyd Mayweather Jr., part 2: "We don't get tired, we get hungrier."

Looking ahead. The next episode airs, Sept. 12, at 10 p.m. The Mayweather-Marquez fight is Saturday, Sept. 19 on HBO PPV... Manny Pacquiao has announced that his training camp for the Miguel Cotto fight will be in the Philippines. Should make for some great 24/7 visuals. But we'll miss the Wild Card Gym.

Source: newsday.com