Manny Pacquiao


By David Martinez / Boxing Historian

It is safe to say with pure honesty on my part, now that Floyd Mayweather has officially retired from the ring … that Manny Pacquiao has emerged as “pound for pound” the best boxer on the planet today.

His recent performance, a knockout win over David Diaz to win the WBC Lightweight Championship was nothing less than spectacular.

When I think of dominating performances, Ali vs. Cleveland Williams first comes for to my mind … Calzaghe vs. Lacy was the last recent dominating performance that I saw, and Manny sure accomplished that vs. Diaz.

At first I criticized my good friend Harold Lederman for giving Manny 10-8 in rounds number two and eight, but after reviewing the tape, that was the right call (my apology is in order) with his unofficial scoring for HBO World Championship Boxing.

Bigger fights in a bigger weight division are now in order for Manny and that group of fighters (not in order) includes Edwin Valero, Juan Diaz, Juan Manuel Marquez, and if a fight with Ricky Hatton were to take place in Europe that would maybe as big as when Ali invaded that land in 1966 vs. (in order) Henry Cooper, Brian London, and Karl Mildenberger.

I will go on record to say that the British have never seen a Filipino typhoon that will hit them like Manny Pacquiao!