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Home » Manny Pacquiao one win away from becoming Pound for Pound #1 at 40

Manny Pacquiao one win away from becoming Pound for Pound #1 at 40

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The man really is a freak of nature. Manny Pacquiao moved to number three in the Pound for Pound ratings following his awesome win over Keith Thurman.

At 40 years of age, Pacquiao looked ten years younger as he dropped and defeated Thurman to take the WBA welterweight champion’s belt and undefeated record in the process.

The Filipino Senator was in awesome form. So much so the ‘Pacman’ stands just one victory from becoming P4P number one due to form.

Currently holding the top spot is Canelo Alvarez, with the amazing Vasyl Lomachenko in third.

Lomachenko could overhaul Canelo with a devastating performance against Luke Campbell on August 31, whilst Canelo will fight two months later in October.

Conceivably, the pair could swap places more than once by the end of the year. But Pacquiao, due to his exceptional record in the pro ranks, could blow them both out of the water with in his next fight, dependent on the result and the opponent.

As things stand, Pacquiao is being linked to facing the winner of the Errol Spence v Shawn Porter unification. That two-belt offering happens on September 28.

Should Pacquiao face and beat the winner, the veteran would then hold three versions of the 147 pound crown. This feat would be enough to push Pacquiao back to the summit.

Pacquiao has months prior to any three-belt clash to set up an interim bout. There happens to be one contender available who could put Pacquiao at the top of the pile sooner.

That man would be Terence Crawford.

Any Pacquiao v Crawford collision, which would mean Top Rank and Mayweather Promotions working together to make it happen, would be huge. It would also elevate the winner to the very pinnacle of the sport.

Not only would they be WBA and WBO ruler, but the recognized superstar leading the way. At his ripe old age, what a feat that would be for Pacquiao.

A four-belt undisputed encounter against Porter or Spence would then become a firm reality.

Whether Pacquiao and Crawford, meaning their respective promotional forces, can put it together is another story entirely.

The options are there for Pacquiao to overtake them all once again, and it will interesting to see which route he pursues.

Enjoying two previous spells as P4P king in 2010 and 2016, Pacquiao has the opportunity to become the first boxer in history to take the crown three times during his career.


Pound for Pound #1 / 1970 – Present day:

1970

Jan: Jose Napoles

Dec: Joe Frazier

1973

Jan: George Foreman

1974

Jan: Muhammad Ali

1978

Feb: Roberto Duran

Sept: Muhammad Ali

1979

Oct: Roberto Duran

1980

Nov: Sugar Ray Leonard

1982

Feb: Marvin Hagler

1987

April: Sugar Ray Leonard

Aug: Mike Tyson

1990

Feb: Pernell Whitaker

Mar: Julio Cesar Chavez

1993

Sep: Riddick Bowe

Nov: Evander Holyfield

1994

April: Pernell Whitaker

1997

April: Oscar De La Hoya

1999

Sept: Felix Trinidad

2001

Sept: Bernard Hopkins

2002

Sept: Roy Jones Jr.

2004

May: Bernard Hopkins

2005

July: Floyd Mayweather

2010

Nov: Manny Pacquiao

2011

Sept: Floyd Mayweather

2016

Sept: Roman Gonzalez

Nov: Manny Pacquiao / Andre Ward

2017

Andre Ward

Sept: Gennady Golovkin

2018

Gennady Golovkin

May: Vasyl Lomachenko

2019

Vasyl Lomachenko

May: Canelo Alvarez