History beckons Pacman

MANILA, Philippines - When Manny Pacquiao enters the ring to face defending WBO welterweight champion Miguel Cotto at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas this morning (Manila time), he’ll be gunning to make boxing history.

Pacquiao, 30, has an appointment with destiny – a rendezvous that Cotto is determined to spoil. If the Filipino ring icon wrests the 147-pound crown, he will become the first and only fighter ever to win seven world titles in seven weight divisions.

At the moment, the record books show only five fighters with six world crowns. The sextuple champions are Pacquiao, Tommy Hearns, Hector (Macho) Camacho, Oscar de la Hoya and James (Lights Out) Toney. Not even the loudmouthed Floyd Mayweather Jr. is on the list.

Pacquiao turned pro in 1995 and three years later, claimed his first world diadem, the WBC flyweight crown he took from Chatchai Sasakul on a come-from-behind eighth round knockout in Bangkok. He lost the title on the scales, failing to make the 112-pound limit, in his aborted second defense against Medgeon 3-K Battery then moved up to the superbantamweight category. Pacquiao could’ve annexed titles in the superflyweight (115-pound limit) and bantamweight (118) classes but opted to jump straight to the 122-pound division.

In 2001, Pacquiao won his second world crown, the IBF superbantamweight title he snatched from South Africa’s Lehlo Ledwaba at the MGM Grand Garden Arena – the site of this morning’s main event. Pacquiao’s victory was in the undercard of a De la Hoya fight against Javier Castillejos. At the time, the Filipino was not quite the marquee attraction he is now.

Then, Pacquiao mowed down Marco Antonio Barrera in the 11th round to gain recognition as the “people’s champion” in the featherweight division in 2003. While the major governing bodies like the WBC, WBA and IBF didn’t sanction the bout, The Ring Magazine declared Pacquiao the undisputed 126-pound king for his feat.

Pacquiao didn’t stop there. He scored a split 12-round decision to dethrone WBC superfeatherweight champion Juan Manuel Marquez and followed it up with a ninth round demolition of David Diaz for the WBC lightweight crown – in a span of three months last year.

Coming off an eighth round stoppage of De la Hoya in a fight with a catchweight limit of 147 pounds, Pacquiao scaled down to halt Ricky Hatton for his sixth world title, the IBO lightwelterweight diadem last May.

What’s incredible is how Pacquiao has been able to retain his speed and power despite moving up from one weight division to another. When he turned pro, Pacquiao weighed only 106 pounds. Now, he’s facing Cotto at a catchweight limit of 145 with the welterweight crown on the line.

Floyd Mayweather Sr. and those as ignorant as the arrogant trainer said Pacquiao must be on steroids to jump from division to division without diminishing his speed and power. But Nevada State Athletic Commission executive director Keith Kizer has unconditionally cleared Pacquiao of using any illegal substance or drug. He is tested before and after every fight and there has been no evidence substantiating Mayweather’s unfounded charges.

Conditioning coach Alex Ariza is primarily responsible for keeping Pacquiao’s body in shape. The Colombian was brought in by trainer Freddie Roach for the Diaz fight to build up Pacquiao’s muscles in his invasion of the lightweight ranks. Ariza took over from former Australian heavyweight fighter Justin Fortune who left Roach’s camp in the wake of a financial disagreement.

Ariza worked with the late world titlist Diego Corrales for three years until his death due to a motorcycle accident. He was also hired by Morales, Angel Manfredy and UFC fighter Andrei Arlovsky as a strength and conditioning coach.

“Manny is in phenomenal physical condition,” said Ariza. “When he wakes up, his heart rate is 42 beats a minute. Olympic cross country skiers do 30 to 42 and they’re always in great shape. We’re working on Manny’s heart rate at the peak of his workouts and his recovery rate, too. We simulate the energy he uses in a round of boxing in a gym workout so we can track his heart rate.”

Ariza’s scientific approach has reaped handsome divisions. He works closely with associates Teri Tom, a nutritionist, and Andrea Macias, an isometric expert, in formulating Pacquiao’s conditioning program using the High-Intensity Intervolt Training system.

Among the five sextuple champions, none has emerged from as low as the flyweight division, making Pacquiao’s ascent even more remarkable. Hearns won titles from welterweight to cruiserweight, Camacho from superfeatherweight to supermiddleweight, De la Hoya from superfeatherweight to middleweight and Toney from middleweight to heavyweight.

But a word of caution for Pacquiao because there has to be a limit to how far he can go. Roach and Ariza said welterweight is the final stop in his boxing odyssey. But who can shut the door on a stab at the 154-pound superwelterweight division if Pacquiao beats Cotto?