'Smokin Joe' to present Pacman BWAA award

MANILA, Philippines - Manny Pacquiao should come out smoking when he receives his Fighter of the Decade award from the prestigious Boxing Writers Association of America on Friday evening at the Roosevelt Hotel in midtown Manhattan.

No less than Joe Frazier, the former world heavyweight champion otherwise known as “Smokin Joe,” will present the award to the 31-year-old Filipino champion who, as far as the BWAA is concerned, is second to none this decade.

It will be the first time the association, which started giving out the awards in 1938, and named Jack Dempsey as its Fighter of the Year in its inaugural ball, will hand out the Fighter of the Decade award, according to its website.

It’s probably the first as well for Pacquiao to stand beside the 66-year-old Frazier, the gold medalist in the 1964 Olympics, and holder of the world heavyweight crown until the 1980s.

Jack Hirsch, the BWAA president, broke the news to Ronnie Nathanielzs of www.insidesports.ph, adding that tickets to the affair, pegged at $200 each, are still available, and that he’s hoping for more Filipinos to come.

Hirsch was quoted as saying that the award is “extra special for him (Pacquiao) being both ‘Fighter of the Year’ and ‘Fighter of the Decade.’”

It’s the third time Pacquiao has been acknowledged as the Fighter of the Year by the BWAA. He first drew the honor in 2006, following two knockout wins over Erik Morales, and again in 2008, after a very big win over Oscar dela Hoya.

Pacquiao, the only boxer to win seven world titles in seven different weight classes, is only the fifth fighter in history to win the prestigious award three times -- next to Muhammad Ali, Joe Frazier, Sugar Ray Leonard and Evander Holyfield.

Ali, who will be remembered as “The Greatest,” won the award in 1965, 1974 and 1975, the year he shared it with Frazier who had won it previously in 1961 and 1971. It was in 1975 that Ali and Frazier staged the historic “Thrilla in Manila.”

Leonard won it in 1976, 1979 and 1981 while Holyfield earned the nod of the BWAA in 1990, 1996 and 1997. Among the two-time winners are Floyd Patterson, Carmen Basilio, Dick Tiger, Marvin Hagler, Thomas Hearns and Mike Tyson.

Pacquiao flew to New York the other night, and was joined in the trip by his lovely wife, Jinkee, their three children and his Canadian adviser, Mike Koncz. From New York, they go to Mexico for the long-awaited family vacation.

Koncz said Fernando Beltran, who has very close ties with Top Rank Promotions, will host the Pacquiaos in their Mexican getaway.