Manny striking a pose “a la Bruce Lee” (my 2 all time heroes in one)
“Pound for pound, the greatest fighter of all time”. Prior to last Saturdays mega fight, (which apparently jumpstarted the American Economy, at least for Las Vegas and if only for a weekend) there were mixed emotions on such a bold statement. However, after seeing the “single greatest knockout punch of all time” –Emanuel Steward/HBO, it is far too hard to dispute this obvious fact.
Manny Pacquiao single-handedly saved the sport of boxing, revived pay per view, and gave Las Vegas an Economic boost as never seen before in previous fights. You have to consider that despite the economic slow down, a time for Americans to conserve, Manny was able to pack Sin City in a way like no other. For those who made the journey this past weekend, the traffic to and from could be an indicator of the weekend’s success. Even the CES, Consumer Electronic Show, the largest convention in the world couldn’t sell out Vegas, like what the Manny-Hatton fight achieved.
“Manny’s ability to land a punch and slip a punch at the same time, shows unbelievable coordination and timing... utterly amazing…” –Emanuel Steward/HBO Boxing.
One thing I noticed about Manny's recent training sessions beginning with the final of the Pacquiao-Morales trilogy until present was that he was attaining technical perfection. Not only is he the smartest fighter out on the mat, but he seems to be the most technically perfect boxer, and at his prime. As witnessed here, Manny successfully lands a punch while slipping one at the same time. It was the type of offense/defense combination that floored Hatton. If you get a chance to watch the HBO replay, or catch an online upload, watch the first knockdown punch in slow-mo. The way that he landed his knockout blow perfectly, and slips away from Hatton's left hook with finesse is utterly amazing.
I have been following Manny’s career since the 90’s during my medical years training in my home country of the beautiful Philippine Islands. I always thought to myself, “if I only had enough Capital, I would promote this guy, myself…” It’s amazing to see the kind of fighter, but better still, the kind of Man that Manny has become.
more subtle details you might not know can be read here:
The Pac-Man "Ripple" Effect, Mark Dimalanta for Philippine Star Lifestyle
more to come in a series... "Manny Lights up Vegas"
