Having arrived on the American boxing scene suddenly in June 2001 in winning the IBF junior featherweight world title in Las Vegas, many fans might not have realised initially what an already established career Manny Pacquiao had forged as a WBC flyweight world champion, adored by millions in his home country of the Philippines. Since then, Pacquiao has put himself forward as one of the best boxers in the world today pound for pound. This year Pacquiao continued to build on his reputation with three impressive wins and he has now won SecondsOut’s Award for Fighter of the Year 2006.
“Manny Pacquiao is the most exciting fighter in boxing today,” said promoter Bob Arum & Top Rank CEO. “He truly deserves the SecondsOut award of Fighter of the Year.”
2006 began with the Erik Morales rematch that Pacquiao had craved since losing a twelve round points decision to the Mexican great in March 2005. While Morales was coming off a loss to Zahir Raheem after an unsuccessful jump to lightweight in September 2004, Pacquiao was not taking him lightly.
“The last time we fought Morales he was coming off a loss to Barrera and everyone thought he was all done and just taking another tough fight,” Pacquiao’s trainer Freddie Roach said, before the fight. “And we are not going to make the mistake we made last time and we are focusing on him and we expect him to be at his best.”
“In his fight against Raheem, I have seen Erik’s mistakes,” said Pacquiao. “I need to use my jab more when we fight again. I need speed, more movement and more body attacks.”
“Manny is the most relaxed he has been,” said manager Shelly Finkel. “He hasn’t got distractions. If he can’t win this fight it is only because Morales is better.”
While the then 29 year-old Morales, who entered the ring as a three-time world champion, opened the fight using his jab to keep Pacquiao at bay and off balance, both boxers landed powerful shots in round 2, and Pacquiao finished stronger with a left hand that had Morales on his heels. Rounds 3, 4 and 5 saw Morales controlling the fight with his jab, just as he had done in their first fight. The turning point however came in round 6 with Pacquiao turning on the power early and landing a straight left that hurt Morales. A vicious combination followed and from that point on, the Filipino took control of the fight. Morales trudged back to his corner at the end of round 6 looking like a tired fighter.
The then 27 year-old Pacquiao floored Morales twice with a barrage of punches in the 10th round. Pacquiao connected with a chopping left hand to the face that dropped Morales for only the second time in his illustrious career. Pulling himself back up at the count of eight, the contest was allowed to continue, but Pacquiao jumped all over him with power punches that sent Morales back down again. Helpless and down on his knees, referee Kenny Bayless didn’t bother to count and waved the contest off at the 2:33 minute mark.
“Every time I hit him in the body he stopped punching but I was careful because he was a power puncher,” Pacquiao said, after the win. “He was hurt to the body first before I hit him in the head. If he got up the second time I knew I would finish him.”
“I was tired and it is an accumulation of all the hard fights,” said Morales, after the loss. “It was just very hard and I fell down because I was just tired. I was tired because of making weight. I hadn’t made 130-pounds in over a year and the body can’t take that much more and I was just exhausted.”
Next up for Pacquiao on July 2, was a return home against former WBC junior featherweight world champion Oscar Larios at the Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City, Manila.
Pacquiao attacked from the opening bell and never once let up. But this was no return to the wild, unfocused aggression that cost the pound-for-pounder two avoidable losses early on in his career. No, just as he was when he decimated previous conqueror Morales in January, Pacquiao was a two-fisted, intelligent and skilled assassin able to mount and sustain a scything body assault to wear his man out.
Aside from a brief moment in the third round, it was a brutal beat-down as Larios, a former junior featherweight champion coming off a stoppage loss, found himself caught and mangled in the whirling fists of a true pound-for-pound fighting machine. ‘The Pac-Man’ – who has replaced warrior Arturo Gatti as boxing’s most exciting fighter – began to pound away in the middle rounds and before long the Mexican’s legs looked heavier and his punches slower, the result of Pacquiao’s brutal body assaults.
Dredging the depths of his soul, Larios forced himself forward at the start of the tenth. But his success was sporadic at best and all the time he was eating booming rights and lefts upstairs and down. And yet there was absolutely no quit in this man, not even when the dog-tired and bloody Larios was put down once again by a sickening left cross to the mouth. The Pac-Man absolutely pasted the courageous Mexican – scoring two knockdowns en route to a 117-110, 118-108, 120-106 decision – much to the delight his countrymen.
It was another impressive win for Pacquiao that again confirmed his standing as one of the best boxers in the world pound for pound, but now he looked forward to another win over Erik Morales at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas on November 18. A fight to be known as ‘The Grand Finale’.
“I’m not going to promise that I’ll knock him out,” Pacquiao said, before the fight. “I’ll do my best to make people happy. I’ll do my best to give him a good fight.”
“Manny always looks terrific to me,” said promoter Bob Arum. “I call him the energizer bunny. He just keeps coming and coming and coming and it’s phenomenal because he never gets tired. In other words, if you’re going to fight Manny Pacquiao successfully, you have to be in top, top condition because otherwise he’s going to out-work you.”
There were obvious question marks on Morales, whose record stood at 48-4 (34) going into the fight. While he was only 30 years of age, the countless wars and having turned professional at the age of 16 had taken its toll. But by all accounts, he trained diligently for the fight to make weight and took his proud Mexican heritage and stellar career into the ring to defend one more time in facing Pacquiao.
“I am very confident going this fight,” said Pacquiao, “but I know Morales is still a good fighter and he’s been working hard and he prepared his fight. I don’t want to give him a little bit of confidence so I will be testing early and will not stop. I trained hard this time. I’m not over-confident and I’m sure that he’s 100 percent conditioned and he’s prepared and I’m sure that it’s going to be a good fight. The people will love it.”
For Pacquiao fans, it is a fight they will never forget, their hero destroying Morales with a third round knockout win.
The explosive Filipino was better than ever, jabbing, hooking and blasting his powerful left with immense confidence from round one at the Wynn Hotel in Las Vegas. Morales gave the outward appearance of health and strength, but he looked wobbly on his legs almost immediately.
The first round saw both men come out tentatively, probing with their jabs and looking to create angles. The ‘Pac-Man’ landed a fast combination early, jumping deftly out of trouble as Morales tried to come back.
In the second, Morales came out more aggressively, firing with both hands at Pacquiao. The ‘Pac-Man’ continued to dart in and out, jabbing with his right and effectively slipping the oncoming punches. Morales began to back Pacquiao up against the ropes only to be met with a vicious series of punched culminating in a thundering straight left that dumped the Mexican warrior on the seat of his pant. Morales rose at the 8 count, but the writing was on the wall. He fought back valiantly, but it was clear he did not have the snap in his punches to hurt the marauding ‘Pac-Man’. They traded violently at the end of the round with Morales showing enormous courage in going back into the trenches.
Round three saw Morales take some severe punishment probably ending the legends career for good. The Tijuana native began by firing off an excellent body shot, but was met with a fast combination from the surging Filipino moments later. Pacquiao landed a massive left that stopped Morales dead in his tracks, shocking him into retreat. Pacquiao followed through with another combination wobbling the Mexican badly. Staggering, Morales then motioned Pacquiao in to prove he was not hurt.
Obliging him, Pacquiao bombed his way to trade with the defiant Morales. After taking some nasty blows, Morales tried to cover up but Pacquiao’s ferocity was just too much. A quick one-two combination flattened Morales to the canvass. Morales rose to his feet after taking an eight count, and amazingly fought back with as much venom as he could muster. Pacquiao, smelling blood, walked through Morales punches to land another straight left crumpling Morales again. Sitting on the floor, Morales gave referee Vic Drakulich a look of resignation, signalling he could no longer continue. The fight was stopped with 3 seconds left in the round.
“I’m quicker than him,” said a happy Pacquiao, after the fight. “He came looking for me early, and it gave me chances to get to him early. I think he felt my power this time.”
Gracious in defeat, Morales offered no excuses for his loss.
“I did my best, I had the physical and mental preparation for the fight,” he said humbly. “I did my best, he was just too much.”
It was three great wins for Pacquiao in 2006. His record now standing at 43 wins, 3 losses, 2 draws and 34 knockout wins. In many ways, 2006 saw the now 28 year-old southpaw fulfil a dream that he had back in 1998 when he won his first world title.
“When I became a champion,” he said, “I dreamed that some day I was going to be a superstar not only in the Philippines but also around the world and speaking like this because it would bring a lot of positive light to the Philippines.”
And if you were wondering what the secret to his success is, Pacquiao will tell you that it all begins down low between his feet and his knees.
“My calves are naturally like that,” he said. “It’s a very difficult thing to develop the calves and that’s where my power comes from. They are God’s gift to me and I was born that way.”
Whilst considering Pacquiao’s success, maybe he deserves even more credit having achieved so much with so much pressure on him? In the Philippines he is adored throughout the country and treated as a national hero. Anyone who has ever attempted to attend the Wildcard Gym in Los Angeles when Pacquiao is training may be mistaken in believing they are actually in downtown Manila, such is the number of Filipino expats trying to get a glimpse of him.
“When I am in the ring I am also fighting for my people,” Pacquiao explained, before his third fight with Morales. “I want to make my country proud and make my fans happy. It is very important to me because my country is important to me. That is why I must win. Our fight is bigger than the two of us because we carry more into the ring than most other fighters. We carry the heart and soul of our people, and the pride and honor of our nations. The pressure on us is enormous which is why I will be on the attack the second I hear the bell for round one. But there can only be one winner and that winner must be me and it will be me.’
Outside of the ring in the business of boxing, Pacquiao has been in even greater demand with numerous promoters, managers and agents operating in the USA and the Philippines wanting to work with him. The current promotional dispute between heavyweights Top Rank and Golden Boy demonstrates that Pacquiao is the clearly hottest boxing property in the world today.
There were many other impressive performances from other elite boxers throughout 2006 to rival the performances of Pacquiao.
On March 4 in Manchester, Joe Calzaghe proved that his decade reign as WBO super middleweight world champion was better than many had given him credit for, with a classy shut out win over American Jeff Lacy. The 34 year-old southpaw from Wales put on his finest performance in winning on points over the distance 119-105, 119-107 and 119-107. Many had given Calzaghe no chance whatsoever against the hard hitting American and he simply silenced his critics. While his points win over Sakio Bika on October 14 at the same venue wasn’t as impressive, it had more to do with the awkwardness of the Australian based Cameroon fighter than any shortcomings on Calzaghe’s behalf. Sometimes a boxer has to be able to win ugly and Calzaghe did it on points 117-110, 117-110 and 116-111 to remain undefeated.
While Manny Pacquiao is edging closer to him, most will agree that Floyd Mayweather Jr is still the best boxer in the world today pound for pound. His April 8 points win over Zab Judah, who was coming off an upset loss, was more sideshow than main event, Mayweather’s twelve round points win over Carlos Baldomir on November 4 was a virtuoso performance. The 29 year-old’s display of speed and skills over a boxer who had recorded upset wins over Judah and Arturo Gatti in the same year, was impressive. The judges scorecards read 120-108, 120-108 and 118-110 and it was debatable if Baldomir won a single minute of the fight, let alone a whole round.
Bernard Hopkins only had one fight in 2006, but it was one of the most impressive performances of his career. Coming off two losses to Jermain Taylor in 2005, losing his middleweight world title and at the age of 41, few people gave him a chance against reigning light heavyweight world champion Antonio Tarver. But on June 10, Hopkins put on his best boxing display since the night he beat Felix Trinidad in September 2001, comprehensively beating Tarver on points over the distance to win by judges scored of 118-109, 118-109 and 118-109.
At a time when boxing is calling out for a universally recognised heavyweight champion to help the sport, Wladimir Klitschko put his name forward as one man who could unify the main world title belts. Two impressive 7th round knockout wins over Chris Byrd on April 22 and over the previously undefeated Calvin Brock on November 11, showed once again that Klitschko has great talent. Whether he can sustain his winning run over a longer period of time remains to be seen. At only 30 years of age, Klitschko has time on his side and with legendary trainer Emanuel Steward in his corner, whose record with Lennox Lewis speaks for itself, there is no doubt further improvement is to come from the Ukrainian born giant.
While they were all contenders for this award, ultimately, the readers of SecondsOut have voted in their thousands and Manny Pacquiao is SecondsOut’s 2006 Fighter of the Year. In a landslide victory in our reader poll, ‘Pac-Man’ received five times the amount of votes that Joe Calzaghe received in second place.
Runners-up
Joe Calzaghe: Even though the Welsh wizard was given a slim chance of defeating fellow super-middleweight champion Jeff Lacy heading in to their March showdown, it was very hard to find anyone would have predicted such a domination… after thumping the muscled Lacy in the opening round, Calzaghe informed father/trainer Enzo “His power is shit” and then proceeded to absolutely annihilate the American… Calzaghe capped off his best ever win by a final round knockdown and, just before his 34th birthday and after seven years as champion, finally joined the pound-for-pounders… had Calzaghe not withdrawn from a July fight with Glen Johnson, I believe the Welshman would have this award sewn up… instead, he returned for an October brawl with Sakio Bika…
Floyd Mayweather Junior An already scheduled April showdown with friend turned rival Jab Judah for the linear welterweight title lost much of it’s allure when Judah was upset en route by Carlos Baldomir… Mayweather fought Judah anyway and, after having a little trouble in the opening rounds, dominated Judah… Floyd was close to a stoppage when the infamous riot broke out.. Mayweather then return to effortless outbox Baldomir in November in a performance which nevertheless garnered mixed reviews… yet a former super-featherweight champion defeating the legitimate welterweight champion does not happen very often in boxing… Mayweather is clearly the most talented fighter of his generation and that alone justifies his place here…
Bernard Hopkins: If ever a single performance deserved to yield a fighter of the year award, it was the Executioner’s effortless and brutal 12 round mugging of Antonio Tarver in June… Tarver can blame the strain off cutting weight from above 210lbs (he put the weight on to star as a heavyweight in ‘Rocky Balboa’) all he wants, but he got his ass kicked here… in every single department… and was lucky to only go down once over 12 one-sided rounds…in fact, Hopkins looked so good at 175lbs one wonders whether his near-things at middleweight v Jermain Taylor (who has failed to impress since) were merely the result of weight-draining….
Wladimir Klitschko: Established himself as the best heavyweight in the world by obliterating Chris Byrd for the IBF title in April… it was a cold and controlled display of box-punching… frustrated in his attempts to secure his longed for unification match, Wlad made his first defense in October against undefeated American Calvin Brock, who is a flawed fighter but probably the best available opponent at the time… the giant Ukrainian dispatched Brock with a thunderbolt right hand in the seventh round at Madison Square Garden…
Previous Fighter of the Year Awards 2005: Ricky Hatton 2004: Glen Johnson 2003: James Toney 2002: Vernon Forrest 2001: Bernard Hopkins 2000: Felix Trinidad
