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A Pacquiao victory would give him a world title in a record-tying sixth weight division -- flyweight, junior featherweight, featherweight, junior lightweight, lightweight and junior welterweight.
So far, only one man has: Oscar De La Hoya, who won belts from junior lightweight to middleweight before Pacquiao sent him into retirement by handing him a beating in a nontitle welterweight bout in December.
If Pacquiao dethrones England's Hatton, he will accomplish something no fighter in boxing history has ever done, which is to claim the lineal championship in a fourth division. Lineal, as in the man who beat the man, who beat the man, who beat the man, etc. In other words, he'll be considered the "real" champion in a fourth division, not just a mere titleholder, the way he was when he claimed his junior featherweight belt and lightweight title.
"Pacquiao goes down as one of the greats if he can accomplish a junior welterweight championship to go along with his other hardware," said boxing historian and occasional ESPN.com contributor Bert Sugar.
Already a five-division titleholder, Pacquiao is in impressive company. The only others to get one for the thumb? Sugar Ray Leonard, Thomas Hearns and Floyd Mayweather Jr. The four-division titleholders in boxing history are Roberto Duran, Pernell Whitaker, Roy Jones Jr. and the not-so-well-known Leo Gamez.
This is some amazing **** guys even though i dont think its gonna happen tommorow
So far, only one man has: Oscar De La Hoya, who won belts from junior lightweight to middleweight before Pacquiao sent him into retirement by handing him a beating in a nontitle welterweight bout in December.
If Pacquiao dethrones England's Hatton, he will accomplish something no fighter in boxing history has ever done, which is to claim the lineal championship in a fourth division. Lineal, as in the man who beat the man, who beat the man, who beat the man, etc. In other words, he'll be considered the "real" champion in a fourth division, not just a mere titleholder, the way he was when he claimed his junior featherweight belt and lightweight title.
"Pacquiao goes down as one of the greats if he can accomplish a junior welterweight championship to go along with his other hardware," said boxing historian and occasional ESPN.com contributor Bert Sugar.
Already a five-division titleholder, Pacquiao is in impressive company. The only others to get one for the thumb? Sugar Ray Leonard, Thomas Hearns and Floyd Mayweather Jr. The four-division titleholders in boxing history are Roberto Duran, Pernell Whitaker, Roy Jones Jr. and the not-so-well-known Leo Gamez.
This is some amazing **** guys even though i dont think its gonna happen tommorow
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