Pacquiao, Argueably the Best Ever

Image by Getty Images via @daylife

Me and the wife sat down on Sunday night for the Pacquiao / Margarito fight. Now myself, i always would hesitate before i dished ot over $50.00 for a pay per view boxing event. It's not that i didn't like boxing or anything, quite the opposite in fact. It was always just the thought of paying so much to watch it. But since i married a Filipina woman, i have gotten every pay per view for the last three years to watch Manny Pacquiao fight. Maybe what turned me off before was paying for the Mike Tyson pay per views, only to watch it end in the first or second round all the time. The let down was always so great because there really were no serious opponents for Mike.
Now there is a total difference sitting down watching the lighter weights fight. The action is much faster paced. The punches are always flying. It is great to watch.
But lets look at Manny Pacquiao for a moment. The man has to be argueably the best boxer in the history of the sport. He has done things no other boxer has ever done.
Manny has won titles in Eight weight classes. He has won ligitamite titles in four periennial weight classes. And if you have watched any of his last four or five fights, he has totally destroyed his opponents, most of them bigger men than him.
Margarito outweighed him by seventeen pounds and stood close to 5 inches taller than him. He looked the bigger and stronger man. What happened? Manny took him apart like a machanic stripping an engine. It was beautiful to watch. I heard the interpriter for Margarito's corner saying that "he doesn't hit hard, he can't hurt me". The next round i saw Manny hit Margarito in the body with a beautiful body shot, and Margarito was never the same for the rest of the fight. Many could hit him at will. Return five punches for every one he received. It was just Awesome.
It was the same when he fought Clotty. Clooty hardly threw a single punch. He just covered up and tried to protect himself from the onslaught. And Clotty was the much bigger man. Manny destroyed him.
The same goes for Ricky Hatton. Knocked out in the second round? Or was it the third? It doesn't matter. He thought Pacquiao would be easy. He got knocked out for his trouble. And Oscar De La Hoya was the same. Manny put on a clinic of boxing finesse and destroyed Oscar, pushing him to retirement with the loss. Cotto was hit so hard and so often he didn't know what happened to him.
What do all these fighters have in common? They were all bigger men than Manny Pacquiao. He was not supposed to beat any of them. He was too small. But he destroyed ALL of them in such a display of boxing not seen in ages. For a smaller man to so destroy such bigger larger foes, it leaves you to wonder? Exactly who, in the history of boxing, could be called greater than Manny Pacquiao???
In my mind, as of right now, Manny is the greatest boxer of all time. Pound for pound, or any other way you want to look at it.
The one match i do want to see, more than any other right now, would be Manny Pacquiao versus Floyd Merryweather Jr. This fight should have happened already. But as a fan looking from the outside, it looks to me like Floyd is scared of Manny. Floyd like to think of himself as the best, pound for pound, in the world. Well sorry to tell you this Floyd. Until you step into the ring and face Manny, and soon, you do not deserve that title. Manny has taken it from you, and earned it. You need to beat Manny to get it back. I don't think you are good enough.
In my mind, Manny Pacquiao is THE BEST THERE IS.
Congrats Manny.

Related articles

• Manny Pacquiao: Is He the Best Pound-for-Pound Boxer Ever? (bleacherreport.com)