![Manny Pacquaio chooses his conflicts carefully, as Louis "Satchmo" Armstrong was forced to do.](http://cdn2-b.examiner.com/sites/default/files/styles/large/hash/df/5b/df5b938f31e3bc8143d11a96bfc807b7.jpg "Manny Pacquaio chooses his conflicts carefully, as Louis "Satchmo" Armstrong was forced to do.")
EDITOR’S NOTE -- International Boxing Examiner Marvin Dumon is self-publishing “Manny Pacquiao: An All-Time Great” this month. He asked me to write a foreward to be excerpted in his book. Faithful readers may recognize parts of it from my December 2008 post “A Pacquiao Primer for Americans: Why Filipino's Mystique is No Mystery.” Here is the foreward:
Manny Pacquiao may not be one of the 10 best boxers of all time technically, but he has reached the top 10 in boxing’s all-time pantheon just the same by provoking heavy interest in where he stands.
Historians may assess Pacquiao in terms of his resemblance to boxing’s Henry Armstrong, but what brings on the intimations of immortality is his resemblance to jazz’s Louis Armstrong, a striking combination of god and human.
Like Satchmo, PacMan is dazzling and knows it, yet humility drives his charisma while sometimes obscuring his subtle leadership skills. Pacquiao takes pains to convince us he is maximizing his potential, as the jazz trumpeter/bandleader did in his youth. Nevertheless, Manny often has to hold his head high in the face of indignities he doesn’t deserve to suffer, so many that he has to pick his battles carefully, as Armstrong did.
Make no mistake: Pacquiao’s skill in the ring is also prodding us to evaluate where he stands all-time. Pacquiao is an impossibly quick left-hander who forces non-stop action and lands power punches with the quickest release in the sport. He is resourceful and versatile. He takes a solid punch and is never deterred. At the very least, he is widely acknowledged to be the best Asian boxer ever, and his march through higher weight classes as he reached his 30s has certified his once-shakier bona fides.
But it’s the intangibles that elevate Pacquiao.
No. 1 is that Pacquiao is the most revered living person in the Philippines, population 90 million, and is leading a burgeoning parade of other Filipino stars. He is heavily involved in politics there, although the wisdom he projects makes that sideline seem almost beneath his dignity.
He is winning the hearts of boxing’s other important constituencies as well. He has worldwide renown.
Mexicans, for example, embrace his determined, courageous style (even though he is nicknamed “The Mexicutioner”) and they recognize his plaintive qualities that citizens of the two nations share. Mexicans freely compare him to the likes of Vicente Saldivar, Carlos Zarate and Ruben Olivares.
As for the United States, we can compare him to the likes of jazz immortals. Sugar Ray Robinson’s glory during the height of jazz’s success made that connection important to boxing. Maybe Pacquiao is more like Thelonious Monk than Louis Armstrong or Miles Davis, but he fits in there somewhere.
That the jazz-boxing connection would amplify the black fighters in the pantheon is beside the point where Pacquiao is concerned. For a man whose father famously ate his dog, there is no question about Pacquiao’s bona fides in the blues department: That cat got soul.
Such is Pacquiao’s transcendence beyond boxing. His appeal mixes an earnest everyman’s rise from poverty and obscurity with an aura of mysticicm that isn’t usually a component of boxing but is not unknown historically.
Not many of us today have a clear conception of Pacquiao’s historical doppelgangers. We know that Henry Armstrong managed to rule three weight divisions in the late 1930s, but how many of Hammerin’ Henry’s fights have any of us seen, how much footage from his featherweight period?
By most accounts, Henry Armstrong’s strong overall boxing skills were overshadowed by an aggressive style that could be overwhelming. When he lost to a taller, younger Robinson late in his career, Armstrong conceded that he “wouldn’t have beaten him on my best day,” but losses didn’t diminish Armstrong’s legacies, much as they won’t diminish Pacquiao’s.
He’s allowed to lose now and then, whereas many aren’t. Pacquiao’s one loss of consequence (his two early defeats can be explained away) before his move to the higher weights came against Erik Morales, and it was easy to forgive.
It came on the heels of what until 2008 was Pacquiao’s signature fight. Challenging the imperious Mexican featherweight legend Marco Antonio Barrera in 2003, Pacquiao was barely billed in what was seen as filler on Barrera’s schedule. As Pacquiao, moving up in weight class from super-bantamweight, quickly proved he was too fast for Barrera to handle, it first seemed Barrera merely might be hard-pressed to win a decision, but by mid-fight Barrera was far worse off than that. The little underdog was humiliating Barrera and it became thinkable he might stop him. Which he did, in the 11th round. This breakthrough was discussed at many a water cooler the following Monday in the United States. There was something compelling about this Filipino water bug.
In the loss to Morales, he was badly cut and in fact the bout should have been declared no-contest because of a head butt. But he fought valiantly and nearly pulled out the fight. It was a loss, yet it underscored Pacquiao’s success against Barrera.
Although many of his subsequent victories were not as convincing as the Barrera breakthrough, Pacquiao emerged victorious in two more brawls with Morales and against Juan Manuel Marquez (twice), Jorge Solis, Oscar Larios, and Barrera (again). Even if you think Marquez deserved one or both verdicts, Pacquiao seems undiminished by that ambiguity.
And all the while he has projected humility, in stark contrast to Bernard Hopkins’ haughtiness with streaks of racism, Oscar De La Hoya’s aristocratic charm, and the cynical smugness of Floyd Mayweather Jr. It was while Roy Jones Jr. was recklessly squandering his aura of invincibility in recent years that Pacquiao has risen to No. 1 or at least paralleled Mayweather in a tie atop the standings. Pacquiao doesn’t belittle his own skills, but he’ll never shout “I’m the greatest.”
Our conception of Louis Armstrong today is humble, too. Unfortunately, it’s the caricature of himself he became in his final decade, obscuring the magnitude of his trumpet playing and overall musicianship.
Pacquiao seems unlikely to outlast his welcome. He’ll set a date to retire fairly soon, acquit himself well in his final fights, and leave the boxing scene without second thoughts, thereby adding to the dignity that defines his greatness.
Comments
Great foreword and article. Well said! greatly written...
Great article...Manny's humility made us respect him more...
Nice foreword! I am always reading Marv Dumons well written articles and now here's the book coming! Can't wait.
how would you define greatness?? " MANNY PACQUIAO"
I'll read Marvs book when somebody kindly copies all of the pages out of it onto the internet ha ha ha ha ha...No im kidding...Marvs one of my favs...Tell Marv to send me a copy.
Mr seymour beautiful article as for music it carries magical word in every phrase, as for life definition, a rainbow full of color flies over jafar and jafar followers dirty tricks, now i get misty eyed. bravo!
Wow a great article!Were proud to be a pinoy because of Manny Pacquiao.Thanks again for the very sentimental approach of the writings.It can melts your heart.
Wow thanks for a very great article.Were proud of being a Filipino because of Manny Pacquiao.Mabuhay ang Pinoy!!!
Hey Colin, you have risen from the grave?! I thought I'd never see your article up again until now. Maybe you need some money to support the habits.. You used to be a critic of my man Manny Pacquiao but look who's writing good things for him now?! Well, everybody's welcome to join the band wagon, can't stop you from doin' so, after all Pacquiao's legacy ain't over until he retires... peace!
yes manny is really a great fighter, added with a value of humility. Compared to Floyd "the Chicken" mayweather whose comfort zone of tactic is to 'hit and run' against the opponent.
"Pacquiao emerged victorious in two more brawls with Morales and against Juan Manuel Marquez (twice), Jorge Solis, Oscar Larios, and Barrera (again)." Pacquiao fought Barrera only ONCE. Barrera developed PACQUIAOPHOBIA after the first fight.
Nice article.
GREAT ARTICLE YOU DID MR.SEYMORE!! KEEP ON GOING!!! YOU'RE GREAT, MAN!!!
I cannot find the right words that can justify the greatness of this article!!! EXCELLENTE!!!
Pacquiao fans do visit us at www.pacfans-corner.com
Greatness makes it more greater when these GREATS humbles themselves before his fellowmen and GOD.Greatness is greater when you don't treat yourself obove others.
If Manny's fights were PPV hits, Marv Dumon's "Paquiao Story Book" could be a best seller. Can't wait for it to be released.
great article mr. seymour! hope that the detractors of the pacman will soon realize the greatness of his heart and soul, inside and outside the ring. he is truly one of a kind!
the pacman is a great role model for all the upcoming
younger boxers who could continue the aura of respectability
that manny pacquiao has contributed so well to the boxing
world. truly you have put it where it should be that his dignity
defines his greatness.
i like this article..it speaks the truth..i like examiner.com because the examiners are examining and defining the truth from lies..nice one colin seymour..i also would like to announce my appreciation to other equally great examiner, rick rockwell..rick rocks!
nice one, epecially the words "He'll never shout, (i'm the greatest)". your got it mr, writer sir,
EXCELLENTE ARTICLE...........
in the pacmans hometown he will be remembered as a great humanitarian. he is setting up an oncology center at his own expense where poor cancer patient could get radiation and chemotherapy.
Great article from a great writer...I like the words the dignity that defines his greatness...
the author says that Pacquiao may not be one of the 10 best boxers of all time technically, but IMHO, and not few will agree, he is getting there. right now, pacquiao is the best of the best at what he does. when the final chapter of pacquiao's book is written, it will depict a man who has evolved from a left-handed sledgehammer fighter into a two-fisted juggernaut, a man who has risen from the depths of poverty and adversity and conquered the mt. everest of boxing as few others before him have done.
After all it is said and done, the title should be "Pacquiao the Bruce Lee of Boxing."
nice article..great author..
Collins, are you kidding? This foreward is in itself a book materila itself already. You just add some little tid bits of information and it can stand as another book. My suggestion in your foreward is to put a sentence these at the end something like " The book of marv Dumon is equally very interesting and deserves the attention of boxing fans otherwise they will close the book after reading the foreword convinced they have no more need to read the entire book. And to Marv, do not make your book more costly than it should be, because alot of Pacquiao fans like me are so poor that we do not have budget to buy books outside of college textbooks.
Gice Floydie Jr fans a break also. Collins and Marv, you also write a book about Floydie Jr. Be not discriminating please?
yeah its true!pacman never shouted that his the greatest,unlike big mouth mayweather who proclaims himself the greatest but to think he never was a good boxer ever.i agree if you'll say that his the best ducker in the sport of boxing...
very inspiring i should say. cheers to you marvin dumon.
i cant wait to read the whole book.
i hope more sports icons brace manny's example.
Collins, I particularly like this line: "PacMan is dazzling and knows it, yet humility drives his charisma while sometimes obscuring his subtle leadership skills."
One Filipino newspaper columnist paid much tribute to Pacquiao's confidence -- in taking on the best fighters, in his venture into politics, singing, acting, and his fearlessness in speaking english. While ordinary Filipino mortals melt in the prospect of doing the aforementioned, Pacquiao is one stubborn dude who can't easily be swayed to do otherwise, nor can he be easily stopped. Truly, he's one stubborn dude!
No henry your wrong, pacman and barrera fought twise and again pac defeats barrera, no knockdown since barrera is after to toe to toe wth pacman
This is good but why he needs him to be compare to other fighters all of the time. Why a book not be Witten based on Pacquaio true story from a boy who rose up to stardom.
yes i agree with you fan, no need to compare pacman with other boxers because he is the only boxer who won seven (7) titles in seven weight division, so we cannot compare him with those who won 4, 5, or 6 weight division.
WOW, BECAUSE OF PACQUIAO'S FAME.. AN IDIOT LIKE DUMON SURFACES AND WRITE SOMETHING... AND WILL PROBABLY SELL TOO
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