Thursday, November 25, 2010

Pacquiao Now a Boxing Icon

The unbelievable career of Manny Pacquiao will carry on for a few more years, but not much longer according the man who might be one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the history of the sport.


Pacquiao might be the most famous person from the Philippines, since, maybe ever. But the boxer, singer and congressman will not be in the ring forever to the disappointment of his legions of fans around the world. After his thrashing of Antonio Margarito, Pacquiao announced that he plans to spend only three more years in the squared circle. While the news might be disappointing to boxing fans it certainly is not surprising. Pacquiao is the first boxer in the history of the sport to hold championship belts in eight different weight classes.


He was willing to take on Margarito, an opponent who was banned for fighting in many destinations after being accused of loading his gloves. However, after the Pacquiao fight it looked like Margarito was the one on the receiving end of a beating from brass knuckles or another foreign object.


Due to his combination of hand speed and relentless offensive attacks, Pacquiao has become the top of the sport and perhaps the one fighter that is a bigger draw than Floyd “Money” Mayweather. Mayweather had been considered the top draw of the sport until Pacquiao arrived on the scene. After the last performance and Mayweather’s legal problems it seems as if Pacquiao has passed up his former rival in the minds of fans and boxing observers.


While Pacquiao might be a popular figure attracting everything from top affiliate programs to endorsements for popular products it was not until recently that he was considered superior to Mayweather. While boxing fans dream of a super fight between the two, if that match-up does not occur it seems that history will look more favorably on the boxer who did not hide from competition.

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