Manny Pacquiao made his welterweight debut 17 years ago, and now he finds himself back in the division in search of one final run at the belt.
He faces a real push against his body’s limitations when he faces Mario Barrios at 46 years old for the WBC welterweight title.
Boxers have been outspoken on Pacquiao receiving a title shot, with Carl Frampton calling it ‘laughable’, but legacy is the driving force for this opportunity.
Which is why it is important to see just what kind of legacy the ‘PacMan’ has had in the division, with five of his best welterweight wins from across his 17-year journey in the weight class.
Shane Mosley
Another of his dominant decisions came against one of the great lightweights, Shane Mosley, who plied his trade in the higher division much like his opponent.
But once again, Mosley could not handle the pace, and a trademark left hand put ‘Sugar’ down in the third round.
It was all defence from the American thereafter as the ‘PacMan’ ran through and continued to come forward against a fighter reluctant to engage because he was worried about what was coming back.
A push, which was ruled a knockdown by the referee, could not affect the scorecards, which had all 12 rounds in favour of the all-time great.
Mosley even commented after the fight on the power, he said: “I just fought the best fighter in the world. He has exceptional power, I’ve never been hit like that before.”
Adrien Broner
Returning a year after a stoppage win over Lucas Matthysse, the Filipino fighter wanted to try pushing himself once again against a trash-talking technician in Adrien Broner.
On the back of a majority draw to Jesse Vargas and a loss to Mikey Garcia, Broner’s mouth was still running even in a poor run of form.
‘The Problem’ as he is dubbed was not the case for Pacquiao on the night, as he used his quick hands and combination punching to outdo the American in every department.
He pinned back and pummelled Broner on multiple occasions, with the lightweight champion struggling to meet the pace or defend the onslaught.
While two judges had it 116-112 and the other scored it 117-111, it really should’ve been wider as Manny looked like he hadn’t lost a step, defying age to step on his relatively younger foe and make him look average.
Keith Thurman
On July 20th, 2019, the fighting pride of the Philippines became the oldest welterweight champion by shutting out Keith Thurman by unanimous decision, now almost six years to the day he is fighting to beat the record.
In the first round, it looked like it wouldn’t last the distance as ‘Pac’ glided across the ring to land a swift southpaw left to send the arena into a frenzy as the Floridian was floored.
Of course, it had gone the distance, but it was the class and consistency of the then 40-year-old’s work that befuddled Thurman.
As he jumped in and out of range, landing clean shots, ‘One Time’ couldn’t find an opportunity to slow down the pace or get his work going without reply from the speedy moves of the eight-division champion.
A split decision on the cards of 115-112 twice to the new champion, compared to the close scorecard of 114-113 in favour of Thurman.
But the scores could not take away from what was an improbable performance for a man of his age to do to a current welterweight king.
Oscar De la Hoya
His first-ever welterweight fight in 2008 saw him take a massive leap from lightweight to face a primed Oscar De La Hoya.
While no title was on the line, it was built as a ‘The Dream Match’ which turned into a nightmare for the Mexican, who not only struggled but decided to stay on his stool before the sound of the ninth round bell.
De La Hoya was peppered from the very beginning and, like any opponent of the fighting legend, could not beat the speed.
Working off angles, Pacquiao delivered uppercuts and hooks at every opportunity while keeping his rival on the end of a snappy jab.
No scorecards were needed when the ‘Golden Boy’ decided enough is enough, but through eight rounds, all three judges had the newly crowned welterweight attraction well ahead.
Miguel Cotto
Miguel Cotto was the unfortunate soul to face Manny Pacquiao in his first WBC welterweight title shot, and this was as comprehensive a beating as you can get.
Heavy knockdowns in the third and fourth rounds were not enough to keep Cotto down as he soldiered on through rapid punishment.
The story of the fight can easily be told by his face, a red, bruised mess which had many at ringside calling for his team to pull him out.
But he wanted to go out on his shield, Pacquiao only put him out of his misery in the first minute of the 12th round when the referee showed mercy and stopped the fight after a gruelling watch.
It was as comprehensive a win as you could have, and it is the definitive win of his welterweight run because of the sheer damage and dominance on display.