Poverty Produces One Of The World’s Greatest Fighters

The big fight night between American future hall-of-famer Floyd “Money” Mayweather and Filipino all-star Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao, also a hall-of-famer is set to happen on May 2 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. It’s the fight of the century, and even non-sports fans are anticipating the battle of the boxers. 

But there’s a story leading up to every man’s success. For Manny Pacquiao, it started in Bukidnon, a province in the Philippines. The man that knocked out 38 opponents was born Emmanuel Dapidran Pacquiao. The best pound-for-pound boxer was born into an impoverished, broken family of seven (including his mother, most fondly called by the Philippine public as “Mommy Dionisia). A high school drop-out, he started working to support his family at the age of 14. His career as a boxer started as an amateur on the Philippine national team, until the death of a young boxer and close friend inspired Pacquiao to go professional. At 16 years of age, and an inch short of 5 feet, he fought his first fight and immediately became a favourite after a four-round win. Even after some losses, Manny Pacquiao was unstoppably on his way to greatness and quickly became a worldwide favourite. 

While Pacquiao entered the world of boxing to feed mouths, Floyd Mayweather hails from a family of boxers, albeit also growing up impoverished. Boxing was his release from a young life exposed to strife and drug addiction and absent parents. From the get-go, Money Mayweather was a defensive fighter, as his father had taught him. His tight defense kept him from acquiring scars, which is how he earned the nickname “Pretty Boy”. Mayweather’s amateur career at the 1996 Olympics, taking home the bronze. At his professional debut fight for the super featherweight division, he knocked out opponent Roberto Apodaca in two rounds, and analysts predicted Mayweather to become a world record holder. He is known to be a very strategic fighter who calculates his punches, resulting in less misses. 

The Mayweather vs Pacquiao fight has been brewing for five long years, with negotiations spurring drug use rumors for the diminutive fighter, as Pacman refused to take the Olympic-style drug test on Mayweather’s terms. But analysts feel that the time is ripe for the fight to take place, when both boxers are more seasoned, and at their prime. Others argue that the fight is happening five years too late, as both near retirement age and have slowed considerably. 

Find out who’s right. Watch two legendary fighters go head-to-head on May 2 and witness history in the making as the world’s biggest and richest boxing match comes into fruition. 

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