Manny Pacquiao nararapat na Fighter of the Year

MANILA, Philippines — Para sa ilang boxing analysts, si eight-division world champion Manny Pacquiao ang karapat-dapat tanghaling Fighter of the Year sa taong 2019.

Ayon kay boxing analyst Andre Ward, hindi matatawaran ang husay ng Pinoy champion dahil sa kabila ng kanyang edad, nagawa pa rin nitong magpasiklab na animo’y nasa peak ng kanyang boxing career.

Patunay ang matagumpay na panalo na naitala ni Pacquiao sa taong ito.

Naitarak ni Pacquiao ang unanimous decision win kay dating four-division world champion Adrien Broner noong Enero para mapanatili ang kanyang World Boxing Association (WBA) welterweight title.

Muling umariba si Pacquiao noong Hulyo nang dungisan nito ang dating malinis na rekord ni Keith Thurman sa bendisyon naman ng split decision win.

Sa edad na 40, si Pacquiao na ang oldest welterweight champion sa kasaysayan ng boksing.

“I think you can make an argument for Deontay Wilder (as Fighter of the Year), but I’m not going to go with Deontay Wilder. I’m going to go with Manny Pacquiao,” ani Ward sa panayam ng ESPN.

Bilib si Ward sa kakayahan ni Pacquiao na ka-yang-kaya pang makipagsabayan sa mas batang mga boksingero.

“It’s the fact at his age, with the amount of miles that he has on his odo-meter, he is still competing with the young guys and he’s still asking for more smoke. He wants the big fights,” ani Ward. “He’s not really picking and choosing. I respect that and he is not the Manny Pacquiao of old but he is still good enough to deal with these young guys,” dagdag ni Ward.

Kabilang si Pacquiao sa mga kandidato sa Boxing Writers Association of America (BWAA) Sugar Ray Robinson Award Fighter Of The Year 2019.

Kasama ni Pacquiao sa listahan sina Canelo Alvarez, Naoya Inoue, Errol Spence Jr. at Josh Taylor.