RING MAGAZINE FANS PICK PACQUIAO AS ?FIGHTER OF THE YEAR?
By Ronnie Nathanielsz
PhilBoxing.com
Sat, 01 Jan 2011
One day after USA Today bucked the odds and chose pound-for-pound king Manny Pacquiao as the ?Fighter of the Year? over Argentina?s Sergio Martinez, the prestigious Ring Magazine announced the results of a fan poll in which Pacquiao once again gained the coveted accolade over Martinez.
Respected boxing writer Michael Rosenthal reported that Pacquiao received 71 percent of the votes cast by fans while Martinez got 24 percent, Juan Manuel ?Juanma? Lopez and Fernando ?KO-Chulito? Montiel 2 percent each and Giovani Segura one percent.
Rosenthal said ?the choice for 2010 Fighter of the Year was a no-brainer for most objective observers? citing Sergio Martinez?s decision over Kelly Pavlik to capture the middleweight championship of the world and one-punch knockout of Paul Williams which he said clearly were more impressive than the accomplishments of any other fighter.
However, Rosenthal conceded that ?We?re in the era of Manny Pacquiao, though. The world?s greatest fighter is so popular ? particularly among his passionate countrymen ? that we knew with certainty that he would be the runaway winner of the award. Facts be damned.?
Rosenthal clarified his statements by saying ?This isn?t to say that Pacquiao?s one-sided points victories over Joshua Clottey on March 13 at Cowboys Stadium and Antonio Margarito on Nov. 13 in the same venue during the past year were insignificant.?
He noted that Clottey didn?t come to fight but was a legitimate contender on paper. And while Margarito?s talents pale next to those of Pacquiao, the Mexican was the much bigger and stronger of the two. He outweighed Pacquiao by 17 pounds on fight night, which took a physical toll on the winner.
The Ring Magazine writer noted that Pacquiao?s demolition of Margarito at junior middleweight, also gave him a major title in an unprecedented eighth weight class adding ?we don?t think much of the alphabet titles but to be a dominating fighter in eight of the 17 weight classes is remarkable.?
Ring Magazine said it wasn?t Pacquiao?s greatest year in terms of accomplishments but it certainly was a productive one and we ?shouldn?t downplay the role of the fans who voted for Pacquiao in overwhelming numbers. Boxers don?t perform in a vacuum. The fans are part of the equation, which is why many of us believe a fighter?s ability to entertain the masses is one factor in determining greatness.?
Rosenthal remarked ?We love to watch Pacquiao fight, regardless of the opponent. Pacquiao was never in danger of losing to Margarito, for example, but we were in awe of what we saw in the ring nevertheless. This is what Pacquiao gives us fight after fight after fight, which is why he has become a worldwide icon.?
Referring to the feelings of Pacquiao?s Filipino fans, Rosenthal wrote ?They burst with pride over the fact that their country has produced the best fighter on the planet who also is universally admired as a person. He?s like a god. Thus, many Filipinos couldn?t possibly look at him objectively, which is why he and not Martinez was voted Fighter of the Year. And who can blame them.?
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Ronnie Nathanielsz.
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