Manny Pacquiao is more than a boxer. He’s more than just a sports star, too. His entrance into Abu Dhabi’s Yas Marina Circuit more than justifies that statement.
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As he strode into the building emerging from a powder blue Bentley he was given a welcome fit for royalty. Fans cheered, security were on alert and fellow media clamoured to hear what the ‘Filipino Slugger’ had to say.
There’s no entourage like a boxing entourage, and Pacquiao’s is substantial. But amid all this chaos at its centre was a small, almost delicate man.
In the ring Pacquiao has been destructive during a 20-year career, but out of it, a smile as big as the Philippines is permanently etched across his face. The details of his rags to riches tale are irresistible and his successes too enormous to capture in an article.
Is a Mayweather – Pacquiao rematch coming soon? Freddie Roach thinks so! via @TheBuzzerOnFOX: https://t.co/HKNsn4IQiz
— FOX Sports (@FOXSports) November 5, 2015
And while Floyd Mayweather may proclaim to be “The Best Ever”, there are few who have captivated a country and its people quite in the way Pacquiao has. He is a rare commodity in this sport, a great fighter, who is also a good person.
While he belongs to the Philippines, he also belongs to the world and that was clear to see from his appearance in the capital on Saturday.
Pacquiao was there to support Rahma, a new charitable cancer service in Abu Dhabi, during a week-long trip to the UAE. He signed autographs and posed for photos with thousands of fans ahead of RahmaYAS, a charity walk and cycle around the F1 circuit.
When talk shifts to boxing his eyes light up. You could be forgiven for thinking a boxer who has won titles in an unprecedented eight different weight limits against credible opponents, has achieved it all. Here, though, is a man who still believes he has plenty left to give to this sport.
“My motivation at the moment is to just focus hard because I feel like I can accomplish more in boxing,” the 36-year-old tells Sport 360.
Pacquiao will retire from boxing in 2016 as he steps up a weight class as a political pugilist in his home country. Fighting for a place in the Philippines senate will see his focus shift but before that is one more fight.
He hopes to announce his next opponent “late next month” and former training partner Amir Khan and rising star Terence ‘Bud’ Crawford are believed to be the two front-runners for Manny’s final clash, so who does he prefer?
“I have no preference, they both can bring me plenty of challenges because they are both good boxers and I’m happy to make a fight if it’s possible,” Pacquiao says. “Of course, negotiations are still ongoing so we’ll have to wait and see. But I’ve already made my legacy in boxing because no matter what I will be remembered.”
His trip will last long in the memory, too, and Pacquiao refused to rule out a return to fight in the UAE.
“Dubai and Abu Dhabi are great and this is my first time so I definitely want to come back again and perhaps fight here,” he added. It’s hard to comprehend the welcome they’d give him should that come to fruition.
