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Manny Pacquiao is on the verge of superstardom in the sports world. I remember first watching him as an undercard earlier in the decade. I never thought he would moved up in several wait classes and dominate in each one.
Pacquiao is nominated for two ESPY’s – Best Play and Best Fighter. Here is a summary from the ESPN Media Zone:
BEST PLAY
Ovechkin vs… Rangers
- Washington Capitals’ Alexander Ovechkin scored a spectacular goal vs… Rangers in game five of Eastern Conference Quarterfinals.
Pacquiao KO’s Hatton
- Manny Pacquiao cemented his claim as the best pound-for-pound boxer.
- Pacquiao knocked Hatton down two times in the first round before knocking him out with a vicious left hand late in the second round.
Roethlisberger to Holmes Super Bowl Winning TD
- Holmes’ brilliant catch in the corner of the end zone with 35 seconds gave the Steelers a 27-23 victory and a record, sixth Super Bowl title.
Texas Tech’s Michael Crabtree makes game-winning catch vs.. Texas
- The 28-yard touchdown pass with :01 remaining sealed the upset victory for Texas Tech as they rallied late to beat Texas, 39-33.
BEST FIGHTER
Lyoto Machida, MMA
- Knocked out Rashad Evans to capture light-heavyweight championship at UFC 98.
- The match-up of Machida and Evans was a battle of unbeatens.
Shane Mosley, Boxing
- Won WBA welterweight title by beating Antonio Margarito.
- Scored a ninth-round TKO to earn another championship (he has won in three separate weight classes).
Manny Pacquiao, Boxing
- Dominated over eight rounds against Oscar De La Hoya before the fight was stopped in a welterweight bout.
- Followed the De La Hoya fight with two-round demolition of Ricky Hatton.
- Joined Oscar De La Hoya as the second boxer all-time to win titles in six different weight divisions.
Anderson Silva, MMA
- Defeated Patrick Cote and Thales Leites in middleweight title defenses.
- Also defeated James Irwin.
Pacquiao does go up against some stiff competition but is deserving of both awards. While many star athletes chose not to take a stand in cultural or political issues, Pacquiao does not shy away. Not only has he had one of the most dominating years in sports, he has had a significant cultural and political impact in the Philippines.
Although Pacquiao didn’t win an election for public office in the Philippines (maybe because Filipinos wanted him to concentrate on boxing), he does have a shot at winning a couple of ESPY’s.
