Manny Pacquiao vs. Floyd Mayweather Jr. is the bout boxing fans need to see to determine - once and for all - who's the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world today. With Mayweather fighting Juan Manuel Marquez on Sept. 19, boxing fans will instead get the bout that most want to see. Manny Pacquiao will meet Miguel Cotto on Nov. 14 at the MGM Grand Garden in Las Vegas, Nevada. Neither Pacquiao nor Cotto is ever in a dull fight. The two in the ring together is certain to produce fireworks. The bout - at a mutually agreed upon weight limit of 145 pounds - will be shown on HBO pay-per-view. Financial terms were not disclosed but Pacquiao will reportedly receive more than 50% of the money. Tickets for Pacquiao-Cotto will go on sale in late August. So who do you think will win the fight? Pacquiao or Cotto? -------------------------------------------------------------------
Manny "Pacman" Pacquiao Age: 30 Division: Light welterweight Belt: The Ring Belt / IBO 140 Lbs Country: Philippines
Last five Opponents: Ricky Hatton - W TKO 2 Oscar De La Hoya -W TKO 8 David Diaz - W TKO 9 Juan Manuel Marquez - W SD 12 Marco Antonio Barrera - W UD 12 -------------------------------------------------------------------
Miguel Angel Cotto Age: 28 Division: Welterweight Belt: WBO Welterweight Country: Puerto Rico
Emmanuel Dapidran Pacquiao (pronounced /ˈpækjaʊ/, /pa'kjaw/ in Cebuano and Tagalog; born December 17, 1978), known as Manny "Pac-Man" Pacquiao is a Filipino professional boxer. He is the former WBC Lightweight world champion, WBC Super Featherweight world champion, IBF Super Bantamweight world champion, and WBC Flyweight world champion. He has also held the Ring Magazine titles for Featherweight, Super Featherweight, and Light Welterweight divisions. For his achievements, he became the first Filipino and Asian boxer to win five world titles in five different weight divisions. He is currently the IBO and Ring Magazine Light Welterweight champion and is rated by the Ring Magazine as the #1 pound-for-pound boxer in the world. He is also the first boxer to win the lineal championship in four different weight classes.[3] Since becoming famous, he as also dabbled in politics, acting and music recording.
Pacquiao started his professional boxing career at the age of 16 at 106 lbs (Light Flyweight). His early fights took place in small local venues and were shown on Vintage Sports' Blow by Blow, an evening boxing show. His professional debut was a 4-round bout against Edmund "Enting" Ignacio on January 22, 1995, which Pacquiao won via decision, becoming an instant star of the program. Close friend Mark Penaflorida's death in 1994 spurred the young Pacquiao to pursue a professional boxing career.
His weight increased from 106 to 113 lbs before losing in his 12th bout against Rustico Torrecampo via a third-round knockout (KO). Pacquiao had not made the weight. So he was forced to use heavier gloves than Torrecampo, thereby putting Pacquiao at a disadvantage.[7]
Shortly after the Torrecampo fight, Pacquiao settled at 112 lbs, winning the WBC Flyweight title over Chatchai Sasakul in the eighth round only to lose it in his second defense against Medgoen Singsurat, also known as Medgoen 3K Battery, via a third-round knockout on a bout held at Nakhon Si Thammarat, Thailand. Technically, Pacquiao lost the belt at the scales as he surpassed the weight limit of 112 lbs (51 kg).
Following his loss to Singsurat, Pacquiao gained weight anew. This time, Pacquiao went to the Super Bantamweight division of 122 lbs (55 kg), where he picked up the WBC International Super Bantamweight title. He defended the title five times before his chance for a world title fight came.
Pacquiao's big break came on June 23, 2001, against IBF Super Bantamweight champion Lehlohonolo Ledwaba. Pacquiao stepped into the fight as a late replacement and won the fight by technical knockout to become the IBF Super Bantamweight champion on a bout held at MGM Grand, Las Vegas, Nevada. He defended this title five times and fought to a sixth-round draw against Agapito Sánchez in a bout that was stopped early after Pacquiao received 2 headbutts.
