Professional boxing is one of the most entertaining sports in the world since its introduction more than a hundred years ago. It is also a sport where one can be famous and rich like Muhammad Ali (Cassius Clay), Rocky Marciano, Oscar Dela Hoya, Floyd Mayweather, Sugar Ray Leonard, Roberto Duran, Hagler, Hearns, Julio Cesar Chaves, Lennox Lewis, and many others.
Filipino boxers had also made a great impact on this sport. Scores of Filipino boxers were able to capture numerous championship belts in different weight categories. Here's a list of All-Time Greatest Filipino boxers.
Gabriel “Flash” Elorde (1935-1985)
Gabriel “Flash” Elorde is regarded “the greatest world junior lightweight boxing champion in WBC history in 1974”; for defending his title in 10 bouts for seven years, making him the longest reigning world junior lightweight champion ever; and for being inducted into the World Boxing Hall of Fame and International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1993.He won a total of 79 bouts in his professional boxing career.
Elorde became a world champion in the 130-pound division on March 16, 1960 when he knocked out American Harold Gomes at the Araneta Coliseum in Cubao, Quezon City. Since then, he has defended his title in 10 bouts for seven years, making him the longest reigning world junior lightweight champion ever. He finally lost to Japanese Yoshiaki Numata in a 15-round match in Tokyo on June 15, 1967.
Pancho Villa
Pancho Villa, for being considered the greatest flyweight of the century; for becoming Asia's first world champion in boxing; and for being inducted into the World Boxing Hall of Fame and International Boxing Hall of Fame. He was one of only four Asians enshrined into the New York-based International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1994. He was also inducted to the World Boxing Hall of Fame.
Born as Francisco Guilledo in Ilog, Negros Occidental on August 1, 1901, he began his boxing career in 1919 and adopted the name Pancho Villa after a famous Mexican revolutionary leader.
After his successful bids in the Philippines, he went to New York in pursuit of international bouts. Known for his whirlwind style, Villa, then 22, knocked out reigning world flyweight champion Jimmy Wilde of England in the seventh round at New York's Polo Grounds on June 18, 1923.
Ceferino Garcia
Ceferino Garcia was the heaviest Filipino ever who became a world-boxing champion. Known for his bolo punch, he captured the world middleweight title on October 2, 1939 when he knocked out Fred Apostoli in New York. He defended his crown against top rivals twice (Americans Glen Lee and Henry Armstrong) before losing his title in May 1940. Before he switched to the middleweight division, Garcia became a welterweight champion when he knocked out boxing legend and war hero Barney Ross in 1937 and Henry Armstrong in 1938.
In 1977, Ceferino Garcia was inducted into the Ring Magazine Hall of Fame and into the World Boxing Hall of Fame in 1981.
Luisito Espinosa
For five years, Luisito “Lindol” Espinosa has held two different world-boxing titles: the World Boxing Council (WBC) featherweight crown and the World Boxing Association (WBA) bantamweight belt. He was feted the "Athlete of the Year" award twice.
Gerry “Fearless” Peñalosa
Gerry Peñalosa won the World Boxing Council (WBC) super flyweight crown on February 20, 1997 and was able to defend it three times until August 1998. In June 1999, he knocked out a Mexican fighter to clinch the vacant World Boxing Association (WBA) North American junior bantamweight title in Mississippi. Geronimo “Gerry” Peñalosa is a Filipino boxer in the bantamweight division.
He is the current WBO bantamweight champion. He snatched the title via knock-out win over a Mexican boxer at the age of 36 years. Peñalosa has never been knocked down in 60 professional fights.
Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao - The Greatest Asian Champ of All-Time
Manny Pacquiao, one of the finest Filipino power punchers, is a former International Boxing Federation (IBF) world super bantamweight champion and a former World Boxing Council (WBC) flyweight champion. He is the current super flyweight champion becoming the first Asian to win three championship belts in three different weight categories.
He was the first Filipino to clinch a world boxing title at the MGM Grand Garden Arena where he floored Lehlo Ledwaba of South Africa in the sixth round to bag the IBF super bantamweight title in June 2001. Before this, Pacquiao knocked out a Thai champion in the 8th round of their match in Bangkok on December 3, 1998 to win the World Boxing Council (WBC) flyweight title.
He will be fighting for a higher weight category this month, and if he wins the fight, he will be the first Asian to win four championship belts in four different weight categories that will eventually make him the greatest Filipino champ but also the greatest Asian Champ.
Its official, Manny "Pacman" Pacquiao is the greatest Asian champ of all time. By knocking down David Diaz on the ninth round on their June 29, 2008 encounter in Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada and becoming the new lightweight champion of the world, he now holds the record as the "First Asian to hold 4 belt championships in four different weight categories.”
