Is Pacman the greatest Asian Champ of all time?

[grayfist]

That's the reason why Pac is destined to be the greatest Asian Fighter of all time.. He is internationally popular and has taken on the feather greats of his time with more than respectable results

Yup, all those four mentioned: Garcia, Villa, Harada and, yes, even Elorde, didn't get the kind of world attention Pac is getting.(Though, Elorde, I have been told, had the benefit of having films of his fights shown in movie houses throughout the archipelago and he was into local showbiz as well! Garcia and Villa were not.)

One can say that Pac came at the right time. What with the heavyweights, which often gets the largest chunk of the pie, not attracting too much, and with all those names such as MAB, Morales, etc. right in his class!

Looking at the current Jr. Light-featherweight-SuperBantam-Bantam situation, I think the only decade comparable-- even a tad better than this decade-- is the one where Sal Sanchez, Arguello, Pedroza,Young Azumah, WGomez, La Porte, Zarate, etc. were climbing rings! Late 60's through the 70's and then early 80's. That generation produced many Hall of Famers!

Good chance that this one will too!

[THRILLAinmanila]

Yup, all those four mentioned: Garcia, Villa, Harada and, yes, even Elorde, didn't get the kind of world attention Pac is getting.(Though, Elorde, I have been told, had the benefit of having his fights show in movie houses throughout the archipelago!)

One can say that Pac came at the right time. What with the heavyweights, which often gets the largest chunk of the pie, not attracting too much, and with all those names such as MAB, Morales, etc. right in his class!

Looking at the current Jr. Light-featherweight-SuperBantam-Bantam situation, I think the only decade comparable-- even a tad better than this decade-- is the one where Sal Sanchez, Arguello, Pedroza,Young Azumah, WGomez, La Porte, Zarate, etc. were climbing rings! Late 60's through the 70's and then early 80's. That generation produced many Hall of Famers!

Good chance that this one will too!

Great post again grayfist. Agree with you a hundred %.
I'm gonna use your post on the Filipino greats on my 1,000th post. I just wanna share with the boxing world the great Filipino boxing tradition if you don't mind...

[grayfist]

Great post again grayfist. Agree with you a hundred %.
I'm gonna use your post on the Filipino greats on my 1,000th post. I just wanna share with the boxing world the great Filipino boxing tradition if you don't mind...

Sure, pal! It's yours to do what you please! Glad to help!

[nadz]

Harada is the only fighter to ever win the flyweight and batamweight world titles. He should've won the featherweight title too if it weren't for a controversial decision. Harada is the only man to defeat the great Eder Jofre, albeit the first fight was extremely close and could've gone to Jofre.

Reminder Pacman is also...
Former WBC FlyWeight champ
Former IBF Champ
and current Peoples Feather Champ...

[ispayder]

I'd say that Pacman and Elorde are almost even in the sense that they both fought the best in their times. However, Pacman has a little advantage because he is still young and can still go a long way.

[K-Yo]

prince naseem? is yemen afrcia or asia?

manny is certainly one of the most exciting fighters out there right now.

[grayfist]

Reminder Pacman is also...
Former WBC FlyWeight champ
Former IBF Champ
and current Peoples Feather Champ...

Two other Filipinos have the distinction of having won two titles in two weight divisions, too:

Luisito Espinosa- WBC Bantam and WBC Feather
Dodie (Boy) Penalosa- IBF Light Fly and IBF Fly

Harada won only the WBA version of the Fly div championship (from Pone Kingpetch of Thailand to whom he, later, ceded the belt in the controversy-marred return match, which was his first defense); and,

The WBC/WBA versions (both) of the Bantam world title from Eder Jofre. As there was no IBF then and no other significant organization, he may well be considered as having been undisputed Bantam titlist.

Harada nearly won the Feather crown from Johnny Famechon in Australia. Willie Pep initially declared the fight in favor of Harada then changed his mind to favor Famechon after the crowd became nasty. Pep was the ref and sole judge. Famechon, who was Sydney's local hero, however didn't get his THE RING (magazine) belt until 20 years later! It was reportedly lost (or had been stolen) all those twenty years, and was ony recovered after THE RING paid $17,000 to an antique shop. Famechon accepted the belt, but later decided that it was too small for his grown waistline and consigned it to a museum in Australia.

Note: that controversy-marred Famechon-Harada title fight in Australia was actually the second meeting of the two. Famechon earlier beat Harada in a non-title contest, without any controversy.

[Mr. Violence]

I am amazed by grayfist's ring knowledge. You really know your boxing history man. Do any of you guys remember Morris East?

[grayfist]

I am amazed by grayfist's ring knowledge. You really know your boxing history man. Do any of you guys remember Morris East?

Thanks, pal!

Morris East! I wrote a post a few days ago about Filipino champs-- picking up a thread started by Thrilla.., actually-- and I said there that there was an Amerasian child who became champ. Forgot his name then. Now you reminded me. Yes Morris East indeed. Sired by a U.S. serviceman who was assigned at Subic Naval Base and his Filipina girlfriend. Won the WBA championship from Hiranaka in Tokyo by TKO11 but lost the title on his first defense 4 months later in Argentina to Juan Coggi (TKO8).

The biggest story about East however that caught the fancy of U.S. tv audiences did not concern his ring adventures but his oddessey in search of his father who had abandoned him and his mom before he was born. Twas featured on CNN!

He and his father eventually got together. And, not much later, East decided to let go of boxing.

Nothing has been heard from him since. Well, I haven't heard any... I presume he's still here in the U.S.

He fought from 1989 to 1995 and ended his career with a resume' of 20 (12KOs)-4-0.

[grayfist]

Anybody remember Saensak Muangsurin?

The 5'7 southapw from Thailand wrested the WBC light welter title from a Japanese (who's name I can't recall at the moment)and made 11 successful defenses agains such challengers as Saoul Mamby, Francisco Moreno, Mike Everett, Pedro Fernandez...

In June 1976, he lost the crown to Miguel Velasquez in Madrid by DQ (he was not the cleanest fighter in history; though the DQ was controversial ) but regained it from Velasquez four months later in Segovia, Spain in a rematch that lasted less than 2 rounds.

He holds a record that may never be ever equalled or eclipsed:HE WON A WORLD TITLE IN ONLY HIS THIRD PRO FIGHT!

He debuted in Nov. 1974 against a Filipino named Rudy Barro whom he KOd in the first round.