The constant rise of Manny Pacquiao is a many-splendored thing. There are those who attribute him with God-given strength and talent; and still others believe that he is plainly lucky. For the Mayweathers, it is sadly their unfounded accusation on performance enhancing drugs (PEDs). But for the Paclanders it is a swansong to Bamboo?s hit Noypi which proudly yells, ?Hoy! Pinoy ako, buo ang aking loob, may agimat ang dugo ko!? (roughly translated as ?Hey I?m Filipino, I got the confidence and I have a talisman in my veins?). If you understand what these words evoke, you would understand the Filpino psyche. It was not long ago that even the Philippine national hero, Jose Rizal, compared the Filipino to a quadruped, who has the ?meekness and ferocity of a carabao?quieter, more peaceful and difficult to stir up?but once aroused, he does not hesitate and for him the struggle means death to the finish.?
However, while these preliminaries are a good glimpse at the superstardom of Manny Pacquiao, it is always wise to look at boxing as the sweet science. There is definitely a reason why, of all forms of contact sports, boxing has always been ? and will always be ? the sweet science. No other boxing resume in this generation is quite comparable to Manny?s. Aside from the seven-division title, where he rose from a mere flyweight (112 lbs) to the current championship belt as welterweight (147 lbs.), there are tangibles and intangibles that lead to him being the ?sweetest scientist.?
Long before Pacquiao was imported to US in 2001 with his Ledwaba gig, he developed before our local eyes in Manila, circa 1995. Here is a fearless, flambouyant 16-year old kid from General Santos City who fought under the boxing show ?Blow by Blow.? I can still remember Ronnie Nathanielsz commenting on his unkempt hair in a January 1996 bout with Lito Torrejos. He quipped matter-of-factly ?This boy definitely needs a haircut!? Then there was Quinito Henson?s bold prophecy when Manny was knocked out by Rustico Torrecampo barely a month after the Torrejos bout. Quinito said something like legends are made of knock-outs, referring to the steep learning curve that Manny learned at the tender age of 17.
Manny grew in the eyes of every Pinoy folk that when he secured his first belt (OPBF, a regional one) via KO of Chokchai Chockvivat in 1997, nobody in the audience believed ? even the highly partisan Filpino commentators ? that he could pull off a knock-out over a seasoned 33 wins, 2 losses veteran.
But he did, and you could hear the jubilation of triumph from the crowd who witnessed the now-famous left straight. The venerable Nacho Beristain, trainer of Juan Manuel Marquez, quipped how fast and dangerous Manny?s left straight is.
Before Nacho said those words, every Pinoy knows how comparable this left straight to Pancho Villa?s right. It is a staple in Pinoy boxing crowd that when Pancho Villa hits you with his left, you go the emergency room in hospital; and with his right, straight to the cemetery. We used to say it in Cebuano, ?sa wala, ospital; sa tuo, minteryo.? Manny is so into the Filipino psyche, that everyone believes no one can stand his left straight.
Of course, until Erik Morales came. While Pacquiao fought in the regional Southeast Asia for most of early 1990?s until early 2000?s, where he lost his WBC flyweight belt in 1999 due to the infamous ?can?t beat the scale? problem, it was in 2005 that his reliance on left straight was rendered nil. Morales, a champion himself and one of the slew of Mexicans that Pacquiao fought, sucked all the punches that Pacquiao threw at him, including his left straight. It was a unanimous victory for El Terrible. Manny cried after the fight, vowed to come back and ? together with Freddie Roach ? developed the equally dangerous Manila Ice, a complement right hook. Armed with double jab, right hook and left straight, Pacquiao became not just the complete fighter but the compleat boxer, a quintessential scientist in the squared jungle. Down went Morales, Marquez, Diaz, de la Hoya, Hatton, Cotto ? boxing?s biggest names between 2006 to 2009. It is a conquest that saw Pacquiao moved as champion from super featherweight (130 lbs.) to lightweight (135 lbs.) and unto higher scales, junior welterweight (140 lbs.) and eventually welterweight (147 lbs.).
Pacquiao is a prodigious talent with an incomparable work ethic. He is a human being who believes on the people around him. He withered the Nazario-Muhammad controversy, in favour of the Muhammad Ali Boxing Reform Act 2000. Without knowing it, US Senator John McCain, acted as Pacquiao?s ?padrino? to prevent him from the sharks of boxing. When he was released from the Murad Muhammad contract, and fought a tug-of-war between Top Rank and Golden Boy Promotions in 2007, Pacquiao for once made good friends of these opposing promotions when he fought Barrera for the second time. Safely after that, he was delivered into the hands of his new ?padrino?, the Harvard-trained Bob Arum. He is part of the Pacquiao team that sees Manny not just money but actually believes that Pacquiao is blazing a history no other professional boxer has blitzed. The Harvard man ?campaigned? during Pacquiao?s run in the Congress in May 2010. He is quite vocal in saying that Manny is Philippine?s biggest social dole out, and affirmed that he will ?campaign? for Pacquiao?s presidency in the future. He has the reach of an ESPN and the news of CNN that his influence at the world stage prompted the international media to document Pacquiao?s congressional race in Saranggani, a province in Mindanao. This is first in Philippine politics and first between an Arum-Pacquiao political tandem. The boxing promoter is now fast becoming a kingmaker. Only time will tell if Arum?s prophecy will be as good as Quinito?s, albeit not in boxing politics but in political boxing.
Pacquiao has come a long way from being one of the boys in the gym to having the most complete boxing team. With Manny being awarded the Boxer of the Decade by the Boxing Writers Association of America (BWAA), Freddie Roach is equally acknowledged as the best trainer.
Here is a boxer-trainer-strategist who understands boxing psychology and exploits boxer?s habits for Manny to pound on. No wonder his predictions are as good as Paul the Octopus. There is also the conditioning and nutritionist coach, Alex Ariza, who dabbled in any imaginable protein-rich recipes and plyometrics to keep Pacquiao?s fitness level second to none. Pacquiao also has the support of wife, Jinkee and his rah-rah girls, and Buboy Fernandez, a childhood friend who could well be the cheerleader of his rah-rah boys. Buboy is Pacquiao?s chum, a joker at the ring. It was Manny himself who quoted Buboy (when he fought Marquez for the second time, in 2008) in the championship rounds. Buboy whispered to Manny, ?Pare, basag na sila? (We bashed up Marquez!); in which Manny retorted, ?Basag na rin tayo! (Marquez also bashed me!). You can imagine the fondness, despite the severity of the event. Manny has Buboy through his rise from the ranks.
Lastly, there is the ka-berks, a Filipino slang for hangers-on. No need to mention them though, since this article occupies too much space already (no pun intended!). But if there is one worth mentioning, it is Chavit Singson: mainly for his role in the President Estrada impeachment. This makes him a good guy in my list of Manny?s ka-berks.
