FOR sometime now, Filipino boxing icon Manny Pacquiao, a.k.a. Pacman, had skimmed the surface of international superstardom, recognized in the Philippines and by hardcore boxing fans in the world but never beyond that.
Boxing analysts and writers consider him as the consensus pound-for-pound best in the world, but many still questioned the quality of his technical skills so that in every major bout involving him, there was always a big chunk of non-believers.
But by winning over the ?Golden Boy? Oscar de la Hoya in Las Vegas last Sunday, Pacquiao?s name, and with it that of the Philippines, no longer just skimmed the surface but finally soared, as he has become arguably the first international superstar the country has produced.
Legitimate superstar
The ?legitimacy? is a result of Pacquiao having achieved a higher level of recognition resulting from his having beaten, and thoroughly at that, someone that many conceded has become the face of boxing and whose popularity has transcended boxing and America.
As a result, many have conceded that Pacquiao now has inherited de la Hoya?s mantle, wrapping around his pound-for-pound best title the crown as boxing?s most popular figure.
In this sense, Pacquiao has become even bigger than Filipino boxing legends Gabriel ?Flash? Elorde and Pancho Villa and other icons and achievers the Philippines produced through the years, including Efren ?Bata? Reyes, Paeng Nepomuceno and Lea Salonga.
Pacquiao reached this status through sheer hard work, luck and a willingness to rein himself in when it became obvious he had strayed from the right path.
Commitment to boxing
The first time his trainer Freddie Roach saw him at the Wild Card Gym in Los Angeles years ago, he was amazed, first, at Pacquiao?s power and speed and, second, at his energy and dedication to improve his craft.
There was a time when Pacquiao succumbed to the lure of the good life brought about by his popularity and the millions of pesos that began to pour into his treasure chest, so much so that his vices almost got the better of his commitment to boxing.
But he was wise enough to listen to the advice of Roach, his promoter, Top Rank?s Bob Arum and many well-meaning people who made him realize that he should not waste his potentials and the very bright future that beckoned ahead of him.
Pacquiao is still relatively young at 29 and the de la Hoya fight was surely not the end of his career but merely opened new opportunities for him to cement his legend, and in the process make a whole race proud.
