
Originally Posted by
redorange
Is he the best ever asian boxer? We'll find out after his career is over and the body of his work can be judged better. Is he one of the best ever asian boxer? He's in the top 3-5 for sure. I'm pretty sure there others that are better but never used their talent to the best of their ability and just wasted their God given ability. One boxer comes to mind is Rolando Navarette, all the what if's and could have been's were wasted on drugs and a criminal conviction. Some just died young and never got a chance to complete the promise they showed such as Francisco Guilledo, aka Pancho Villa. Pacman has a better head on his shoulder and has made the most of the opportunities that has come his way. To his advantage also is that he is fighting in an era when boxing is so watered down from all the sanctioning bodies(WBC, WBA, IBF, WBO, etc) that the good boxers are all split up between several organizations unlike the old days when there was only the WBA and WBC. Fighters also go for months without a fight unlike in the old days of boxing, by the age of 23 when he died Pancho Villa had fought as a pro 105 times, Flash had 117 pro fights by the time he retired at age 33 compare that to Manny who at age 29 has only fought 51 times as a pro. The advent of MMA has also taken some good fighters from a possible career in boxing. But those things are beyond his control and as long as he continues to focus on boxing and not being a politician or singer/actor then he has a good chance of being the best ever. For now he remains behind Pancho Villa and Flash Elorde as the best Filipino boxer at least in my book.