It’s a two tiered victory for Manny Pacquiao this 2016. Not only did he reign as champion in the fight tagged as the last fight of his life, Manny is also sitting comfortably at the seventh spot in the senatorial polls as of this writing. The people’s champ has made a massive punch mark in sporting history, and it looks like he’s now ready to conquer fights of a different kind.
Go on a blow-by-blow walkthrough of history-making moments in the early life of this fighter and celebrate him for his strength, humility and for bringing a nation together.
(Manny with his constituents in a photo at the Sarangani Congressional office | Photo by Brend Evangelio)
(Manny takes oath as the second-term representative of the lone district of Sarangani, as wife Jinkee and his two daughters look on in 2013)
The Road to Greatness | ABAC CORDERO
1978: Pacquiao was born to a very poor family. He brought fish to the market, sold bread, doughnuts, refreshments on the streets. “I also sold popsicles when I was young,â€
1992: Pacquiao was eventually introduced to boxing, and he found a better or easier way to earn. Against his mother’s will, he boxed his way around town. In one of his first fights, he earned the equivalent of $2. When he turned 14, Pacquiao couldn’t take it anymore; he decided it was time to leave the province. By then, his parents had separated. All he wanted to do was give his mother and siblings a better life.
One day, Pacquiao boarded a ship to Manila with just barya (loose change) in his pocket and a bunch of bananas in his hand—a sendoff gift from a friend. Early on, Manila didn’t turn out to be a bed of roses because he remained on the streets, and for a time slept on cardboard shacks and searched and found meager jobs.
1995: As a 17-year-old who weighed no more than a hundred pounds, he turned professional, winning his debut fight against a fighter named Enting Ignacio. The fight was held in Mindoro Occidental.
1998: He flew overseas for the first time on May 18, 1998 and scored a first-round knockout on Shin Terao at the Korakuen Hall in Tokyo. Just seven months later, against Thailand’s Chatchai Sasakul in Phuttamonthon just west of Bangkok. Again, the 20-year-old Pacquiao stunned the hometown crowd, knocking out the Thai warrior inside eight rounds. Finally, Pacquiao became a world champion.
(Chavit and Manny follow tradition by posing for their usual photo before a fight. This was taken before the Algieri fight)
(Manny looks sharp as he addresses the crowd at the MGM Grand before a fight)
1999: But it all came to a screeching halt in September of this year when Pacquiao had trouble making weight against another Thai boxer, Medgoen Singsurat. Pacquiao stripped his clothes off to make the 112-pound limit but it didn’t work. After losing his title on the scales, he climbed the ring completely dehydrated. The fight was over in three rounds. Pacquiao went home with a broken heart.
Then, the big break came along. His handlers, led by the late Rod Nazario, wanted him to train in the United States. The doors to the Wild Card Gym in Los Angeles opened for Pacquiao, and Freddie Roach, the owner and trainer, welcomed him with open arms.
2001: As a late replacement, Pacquiao, who impressed his American trainer the first time they shared the ring, was pitted against South African Lehlohonolo Ledwaba. It was the first time Pacquiao climbed the ring at the MGM Grand—as an undercard fighter for an Oscar dela Hoya fight. Pacquiao earned $40,000 for the Ledwaba fight with a knockout inside six rounds. But it was just the start of something big, because soon after, he was bound to make millions.
2005 – 2006: The trilogy with Mexican legend Erik Morales came along, and by this time, Pacquiao had built his first mansion in General Santos City and gave his mother and siblings homes of their own. He also reunited with his father.
(Manny serenades Jinkee in their Forbes home | Photo by Dix Perez)
(“It’s better to work for something than to ask for it. Still, it’s better to ask than to steal,” reminds Dionisia Pacquiao, mother of and #1 fan of the Pacman)
(Manny Pacquiao is conferred the rank of Lieutenant Colonel at the Officers Club of the Philippine Army in Taguig City | Photo by Jonjon Vicencio)
2008: The “Dream Match†with De La Hoya took place, and Pacquiao, the underdog, turned it into a mismatch. He earned over $15 million for this fight alone. Next came Ricky Hatton, Miguel Cotto, Antonio Margarito and Chris Algieri, all defeated by the now boxing superstar.
2015: On May 2, Pacquiao climbed the ring at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas for boxing’s biggest and richest fight ever. It was against undefeated American Floyd Mayweather Jr. Pacquiao, then 36, had gone a long, long way from the day he boarded the ship to Manila with nothing to call his own. He was then a world champion with some calling him “the world’s eighth wonder.â€
2016: On April 9 2016, Pacquiao, now 37 years old, and Timothy Bradley faced each other in the ring for the third time in what is now officially Pacquiao’s last fight. The people’s champ is now back on Philippine shores, ready to reset priorities.
No Filipino athlete has earned as much, even if they lived 10 lifetimes, and perhaps no one ever will. Now, there’s nothing Manny can’t buy for his family.
Still, Pacquiao strongly insists, it’s not about the money. “I don’t need the money because I already have enough,†he said even before the fight with Mayweather was sealed. “I’m not after material things. I want this fight because it’s the fight that the fans want to see. I’m here to entertain,†Pacquiao said.
Entertain he will – win or lose.
(A candid Manny shot about to play his guitar in his home, after a busy day of pictorials and training | Photo by Dix Perez)
(President Aquino welcomes Manny during a courtesy call at Malacañang | Photo by Willy Perez)  
(Vice President Jejomar Binay (CENTER), Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa Jr. (SEVENTH FROM LEFT) and PeopleAsia publisher Babe Romualdez (RIGHT) strike a pose with “People of the Year 2011” awardees Louie Ocampo, George Yang, Ben Cabrera, Gwendoline Ruais, Ted Failon, “Man of the Decade” Sarangani Rep. Manny Pacquiao, Shamcey Supsup, Sen. Ed Angara, Evelyn Singson, Jun de Leon, Mel Tiangco, Maruxa Pita and Henry Sy Jr. Also in photo are SM vice chair Tessie Sy-Coson (EXTREME LEFT) and PeopleAsia editor-in-chief/GM Joanne Rae Ramirez (SECOND FROM LEFT)
Editor’s note: The original article featuring these excerpts was first published in PeopleAsia’s special Manny Pacquiao issue in 2015.Â
