By Jun Medina Special Correspondent

Legendary promoter Bob Arum compared Manny “PacMan” Pacquiao with the legendary Muhammad Ali, and Pacquiao used Ali’s famous rope-a-dope tactic to beat and batter Miguel Cotto.

“The best fighter I have ever seen,” Arum said. “And that includes Muhammad Ali, and Sugar Ray Leonard and Marvin Hagler. The best fighter I have ever seen.”

Some people may scoff at the comparison or dismiss it as one of those Arum hyperboles the Hall of Fame is given to during high moments in packaging big fights like Pacquiao-Cotto. But Pacquiao demolished World Boxing Organization (WBO) welterweight champion Miguel Cotto Saturday night to win a record seventh title in a seventh weight class.

And it was perhaps apropos that the iconic Filipino fighter borrowed a page from Ali’s secret bag of tricks in earning a place among the all time greats in boxing along the man who owns the title “The Greatest.”

Humble in victory

But Pacquiao, who is considered the best pound-for-pound boxer in the world, said part of the secret to his success was that he would never let his guard down and become smug with self achievements.

“I always think of myself as an ordinary fighter,” he told reporters after the bout. “That is what I tell myself anyway.”

He did not seem to be biting on the accolades heaped on by Arum, however.

“I don’t want to compare my achievements,” Pacquiao said. “I don’t want to be compared to Muhammad Ali or Sugar Ray Leonard. I am just doing my job.”

Pacquiao’s trainer Freddie Roach said his fighter was the biggest draw in the sport today and one of the top five all-time.

“He is the greatest fighter of his era,” Roach said. “Right now it is hard rate somebody before their career is over but as of right now I would say he is in the top five of all time.”
Rope-a-dope

Pacquiao’s rope-a-dope—leaning on the ropes and allowing his bigger opponent to bang away at him—seemed to defy logic, because with his back to the ropes, Cotto was free to bang the body and use his lethal left hook.

Roach must have had tense moments seeing his favorite fighter being pummeled by Cotto, a heavy-handed puncher with a mean feared for his crunching body shots.

“He is unbelieveable,” Roach said, referring to Pacquiao. “In the first couple of rounds he wasn’t following the game plan and then he made it look easy after that.

“Manny lay on the ropes which we trained not to do,” the trainer added. “He [Pacquiao] was determined to prove that he was the bigger stronger guy. He must have had it in his head to do that the whole time, because it is something we didn’t talk about.”

To the average fan, watching Cotto pummel away at Pacquiao only served to underscore the natural physical superiority.

“In first rounds I tried to measure his power,” Pacquiao said. “His camp was saying before the fight that he was bigger and stronger. I was trying to fight toe-to-toe.”

Yet, midway through the second round, and with the Boricuan banger in control of the fight, Pacquiao unleashed combinations from his defensive posture and stunned Cotto with a left hook to the chin. Cotto staggered backwards and was given the mandatory eight-count as his gloves appear to touch the canvas.

And after Pacquiao decked Cotto a second time with another left hand in the fourth, the consensus pound-for-pound king took complete control. For the next seven rounds, the proud and gutsy Cotto was reduced to a prey hopelessly running away from its predator.

Pacquiao himself admitted that his rope-a-dope was not part of the fight plan, which basically called for “PacMan” outworking Cotto using his speed while avoiding being tagged by the his bigger foe.
“I stayed in the ropes to test his power and to control the fight,” said Pacquiao pointing his finger to his temple.

And so it was Saturday night at the MGM Grand Arena—a great little man being mentioned in the same vein as legendary heavyweight—who years from now may share the same spot among the fraternity of the world’s greatest fighters ever.

WITH REPORT FROM AFP