There will only be one Manny Pacquiao. As the boxing world wonders who will take his place, the brutal truth is that nobody ever will. When Manny Pacquiao hangs up the gloves, he will take his place in history among greats like Henry Armstrong, Sugar Ray Robinson, Joe Louis, Muhammad Ali, Sugar Ray Leonard, Roberto Duran, and Alexis Arguello, to name a few. Each of these men was special. Each one was inimitable. And each one accomplished great things in the sport. Pacquiao is the only fighter to ever claim 7 world titles in 7 different weight divisions. He has a special charisma that makes him a star outside the ring, as well as inside it. He?s risen from the extreme poverty of the streets of General Santos City, Philippines to become one of the highest paid athletes in the world. When faced with challenges that were perceived to be insurmountable, he beat the odds. He resurrected a sport that was quickly losing steam. He ushered in millions of new fans. The vast majority of the people from the Philippines, and thousands of Filipino-Americans have become fans of the sport because of his success. As a result of his popularity, Filipino boxers have been given the opportunity to prove their worthiness to complete on a world stage. However, it isn’t only Filipinos who admire Manny Pacquiao’s fighting abilities. When this writer first began watching Pacquiao fight, many Arkansans didn’t know who he was. A lot has changed since that time. In conversations about Pacquiao’s possible retirement, one subject continues to come up. Two fans who assume that Mayweather will get past Shane Mosley (and most believe he will) chimed in on Pacquiao’s recent comments about retirement. Arkansas native, Jason said; ?He isn’t going to retire before he fights Mayweather. Maybe it’s just wishful thinking, but I hope it happens.? Dale, who works in Arkansas, shares the same enthusiasm for the fight the world wants to see. ?I don’t see how the fight couldn’t happen because there’s so much money involved. Those two guys just have to fight!? Pacquiao has achieved such success in boxing that he’s certainly not in dire need of another big payday, but one thing he does care about is pleasing his fans. Manny Pacquiao has revived the sport with no ulterior motive induced attempts to revise the sport. He?s fought hard and he?s fought clean. He?s fought the best at every given opportunity. Every time he?s fallen, he?s gotten up to rise higher than pundits could have ever possibly imagined. He?s beaten everyone that he wasn?t supposed to be able to beat. The mighty have fallen at the hands of Manny Pacquiao. When Pacquiao does decide to hang up his gloves for good, his drive and enthusiasm will compel him to continue to do great things. He is the quintessential over achiever. Ramblings of Pacquiao fighting one last bout with Marquez, Margarito, or Valero aren’t very appealing to the majority of fans who have spoken to this writer. If Manny Pacquiao only steps between the ropes one more time, most fans hope that he will be standing across the ring from Floyd Mayweather Jr. or Shane Mosley.
