There are two sides to Manny Pacquiao: The Pound for Pound best fighter in the World and The Congressman who wants to help his fellow Filipinos who are struggling. At some point the two sides are going to clash. Does boxing need him to stay and dominate or should he devote more time to helping his people? Where is he needed the most?
Pacquiao the Congressman
Manny Pacquiao was elected to the House of Representatives in the 15th Congress of the Philippines, representing the Sarangani Province. Pacquiao has a very strong desire to help improve the lives of his countrymen and women, a lot of whom are living in extreme poverty. Pacquiao feels their pain because he has experienced the same struggles these people have. It’s well documented that Pacquiao had a very rough childhood, being homeless and hungry, not knowing when would be the next time he had a good meal.
It’s the memories of those rough years that leads me to believe that he genuinely doesn’t want his people to go through those same experiences. I believe Pacquiao when he says that he hopes to help create more jobs so people can take care of their families. I believe him when he says that he wants health care improved and free schooling.
The severely impoverished people in the Philippines need help, and if Manny Pacquiao is determined to do his part to make sure people will have better lives, I think he should be applauded for that. The main question is whether Pacquiao should devote his time totally to boxing while still in his peak years and I will address that question later in the article.
Pacquiao, the best boxer in the world
Manny Pacquiao is boxing to average fans. He’s the only boxer you see in commercials, compared to many football, basketball, and baseball players. He’s the only boxer who consistently is in Sports Illustrated or ESPN the Magazine. The average guy knows who Manny Pacquiao is. What if Manny Pacquiao announced after beating Shane Mosley that he was done. He had conquered everything and was ready to move on. Would boxing be able to deal with Pacquiao’s retirement? No, because if Pacquiao were to retire, boxing would lose its foundation and the house would fall.
This isn’t like if Oscar De La Hoya retired in his prime. Roy Jones was the best boxer in the world, period. You had Mike Tyson and Lennox Lewis at the top of the Heavyweight Division who did big PPV numbers. You had Shane Mosley’s dynamite speed-power package at lightweight, Tito Trinidad, Arturo Gatti’s blood and guts, and then you had Prince Naseem Hamed, who was on SportsCenter regularly because of his antics and knockouts.
Fast forward to today, and things are not the same. The Klitschkos, while brilliant, have totally destroyed the Heavyweight Division that used to be one of the most talked about things in sports. All of the mess surrounding Floyd Mayweather doesn’t help. The fact that you could argue that the best American fighter in the world right now is either Tim Bradley or Andre Ward, and neither one of them has a big following doesn’t help. You look forward to the future, and it isn’t getting better.
Once Pacquiao does exit, the guys I consider Heirs to the Throne are Juan Manuel Lopez and Nonito Donaire. That’s a featherweight and a bantamweight respectively. I don’t think that will attract many new American fans. Plus, I’m not even mentioning the popularity of MMA, which has everything going for it from the best fighters constantly fight each other; to Ring Girl Arianny Celeste’s playboy pics. Boxing can’t compete if the Pac-Man hangs his gloves up.
That being said, I still believe Pacquiao means more to his country than to the sport of boxing. The Philippines shut down completely when he’s fighting. Should Pacquiao focus only on boxing while still in the peak of his career? I say no. While Pacquiao fights in the ring, children are homeless and hungry, and die in the streets. As much as Pacquiao has given to the sport of boxing, if he can do twice as much as a politician to help make people’s lives better, that will be his legacy.
