Just seven days until MayPac. With the plethora of information on the Internet about the fight ranging from Floyd’s mouthpiece, squabbles over hotel rooms & tickets, to how much Manny will make just from wearing advertisements on his trunks, we thought it a good time to put the focus back on boxing. In particular, what makes these fighters so special. First up, Manny Paquiao, one of the greatest fighters of his generation, the man has fought wars in the ring, made fighters who were legends in their own right look like amateurs and done it all with grace and aplomb. We look at Manny Pacquiao’s greatest knockouts.
Oscar De La Hoya
It was the passing of the torch and the fight that put Pacquiao on the map. Fight and sports fans knew who Pacquiao was, however, he was not the household name that Oscar De La Hoya was. Not yet that is. Pacquiao jumped up in weight to take on De La Hoya and some feared it might have been too big a leap to face the naturally bigger De La Hoya. However, Pacquiao dismantled the Golden Boy over eight rounds. The KO was significant because it got the attention of the common fan and put the boxing world on notice that a new pound-for-pound king had arrived.
Ricky Hatton
Many expected Pacquiao to defeat Ricky Hatton when they met. Given that Pacquiao is a two handed fighter with greater skill, speed and power a win was a given. However, Hatton was powerful a brawler with a good punch so everyone expected some entertaining exchanges. Manny had other plans. Pacquiao dominated from the opening bell dropping Hatton twice in the first round. In round two when it appeared Hatton got his legs back and was on the offensive, Pacquiao knocked Hatton out cold with a sharp left hook with less than ten seconds remaining. The knockout showed that he had one punch knockout power and earned him “Knock Out of the Year” honors from The Ring Magazine.
Miguel Cotto
Up to that time this was PacMan’s biggest test. Although Cotto was coming off of a defeat at the hands of Antonio Margarito, he was still considered a formidable opponent. Cotto was a legitimate welterweight, in his prime with a solid boxing pedigree. None of which were a problem for Pacquiao. Much as he did to De La Hoya, he dismantled Cotto stopping him in the twelfth round. The fight also made Manny the first fighter to win a world-title belt in seven different weight classes.
Erik Morales
We told you PacMan fought wars in the ring. Three of them were with Mexican legend Erik Morales. This was vintage Manny, in their rubber-match Pacquiao knocked out Morales in three before a capacity crowd of over 18,000 at the Thomas Mack Center. The KO put the seal on their rivalry.
