MANILA, Philippines – Boxing greats Joe Louis, Max Schmeling, Sugar Ray Robinson, Joe Frazier, Cassius Clay aka Muhammad Ali.And now Manny Pacquiao.
The Filipino ring icon is the latest fighter to make it to the list of professional boxers to be featured in the cover of well-respected magazine Time — and only the second non-heavyweight fighter to do so.
This also makes Pacquiao the second Filipino to grace Time’s cover after former President and democracy icon Corazon Aquino, who was named the magazine’s "Woman of the Year" in 1986.
Apart from heavyweights Louis, Schmeling, Frazier, Ali and middleweight Robinson, other boxers who had made it to the magazine’s cover include heavyweights Jack Dempsey, Primo Carnerra, Gene Tunney and the controversial Mike Tyson.
In its latest Asia edition issue, Time pays homage to the General Santos City-based southpaw in a story titled “The Meaning of Manny,” which branded the Filipino spitfire as “the latest savior of boxing.”
The story delves into Pacquiao’s stature as the Philippines’ favorite son, his humble beginnings, recent ring accomplishments, among others.
The same magazine previously included Pacquiao in its list of 100 most influential people in the world, with former heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis providing a brief write-up on him.
Pacquiao is set to collide with Puerto Rican bomber Miguel Cotto for a record seventh world title in as many weight classes. The fight, dubbed “Firepower,” is scheduled on Nov. 14 (Nov. 15 in Manila) at the MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada. - By Dino Maragay (Philstar News Service, www.philstar.com)