The “Mannysburg” Address
Four score and seven divisions ago, MANNY “Pacman” PACQUIAO brought forth, upon this boxing continent, a new nation, conceived in liberating world titles, and dedicated to the proposition that all opponents are created equal – defeated. Welcome to Mannyfist Destiny — the Pacquiao Era, where nothing is beyond the realm of possibility inside or outside the boxing ring.
As we approach the 12th anniversary of Pacquiao’s first world title, the World Boxing Council (WBC) flyweight title (112 lbs), which he won on December 4, 1998, who could have foreseen what the future had in store for him? No one, because it is unprecedented. Like Ted Williams, who at 39, became the oldest man to win a batting title, only to do it again the following year at age 40, Pacquiao, who last year became boxing’s only seven-division world champion, is poised to break his own record next week, moving up in weight again, to challenge the bigger Antonio Margarito for the WBC super welterweight title.
Pacquiao has made no secret that his biggest inspiration in every fight has been to bring glory to his people in the Philippines. He has fought for them as an athlete and now he also fights for them as a public servant – simultaneously. Congressman Pacquiao, the lone representative from the province of Sarangani, was elected by a landslide last spring in one of the biggest upsets in the history of modern Philippines politics. And that describes Pacman in a nutshell. Ain’t no mountain high enough. Ain’t no river wide enough.
Last Friday Mannyfist Destiny spread to the Silver State of Nevada, where Congressman Pacquiao flew to Las Vegas after a day of training to endorse U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid at a reelection campaign rally. Reid, who was in a dangerously close race with Republican Sharron Angle, pulled out a victory for a fifth term on Tuesday that many attribute to the influence of Pacquiao on the state’s electorate.
This week, Pacquiao’s popularity landed him on two popular network television programs during the industry’s all-important November Sweeps — ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live! on Monday and the landmark 60 Minutes coming up this Sunday. On Jimmy Kimmel Live, Pacquiao sang John Lennon’s “Imagine” as a duet with comedy box office superstar Will Ferrell. It was so well-received, the producers promptly rescheduled the episode to rerun on Friday, November 12, the night before Pacquiao’s fight against Margarito. As of Thursday morning, You Tube had over 413,000 registered complete views of the four-minute clip. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jT4hHMIpnjU)
On November 13, Pacquiao will return to Cowboys Stadium, headlining his second world championship event of the year in Jerry Jones’ $1.2 billion palace. Whether or not he becomes an eight-division world champion won’t be revealed until that night, but with over 50,000 tickets sold in March when he defeated Joshua Clottey to retain his welterweight title and at least that many projected to be sold for his upcoming super welterweight rumble against Margarito, Congressman Manny Pacquiao can lay claim to a new title, the fight game’s 2010 box office king.
