Manny Pacquiao and the Most Compelling Superstars in Sports Today

Manny Pacquiao is a singing politician who can beat your brains in—an obviously compelling mix. Throw in the fact that the guy is a global superstar, and it is hard to find any comparable equals to him in the compelling arena. 

Pacquiao heads a list of sports personalities that commonly fill headlines, captivate us, entertain us, make us gossip and are just generally compelling. 

Manny Pacquiao 

PacMan grew up in poverty in the Philippines. He now makes tens of millions of dollars for one night's work because he is one of the greatest fighters to ever strap on a pair of gloves. 

He is not content to just be a boxer, though. PacMan is a congressman and a recording artist. I think he even occasionally finds time to sleep. 

He is a regular on the talk show circuits and is a huge celebrity around the world. He even manages to stay poised while singing a duet with Will Ferrell.

Tiger Woods

Tiger Woods captured the consciousness of the public by dominating golf courses like few ever thought possible.

At his best, every other golfer on the PGA was battling for second place. He quickly became one of the hottest tickets in sports. Through it all, he has remained guarded about his personal life and calculated in his responses in interviews. 

That made him even more compelling when details of his personal life stormed into the public life after he crashed his car outside his house and numerous accounts of extramarital affairs filled the headlines. 

Tiger has yet to regain his top form since the scandal, but he is still the biggest draw in golf and the public can't ever seem to get enough Tiger. 

LeBron James

King James' ability on the court is unmatched. He is a freaky mix of power, speed and precision. There is nothing he can't do on the basketball court. 

LeBron became one of the most coveted free agents in sports, and his decision on his future home was so anticipated that ESPN aired an hour-long special devoted to his decision.

As it turned out, he had the special just to spurn his former team, the Cleveland Cavaliers, and then to take his "talents to South Beach."

Since then, the man that has "Chosen 1" tattooed on his back, has become one of the most polarizing figures in the sports landscape. Analysts and fans dissect every missed, made or not-taken shot in the fourth quarter off all of his games, and he is easily one of the most talked about figures in sports. 

Floyd Mayweather 

We can't very well have an article about PacMan without talking about Money. Floyd Mayweather is a master of promoting himself. He doesn't care if people perceive him in a positive or negative light as long as they are forming some kind of judgment. 

He is brash, loud and amazingly gifted. But as great of a boxer as he is, he might be a better business man.

In his last fight, Money got a $32 million guarantee which is reported to be the largest in the sport's history. 

Making this even more lucrative for Money is that he has shrewdly eliminated many of the middle men commonly in place with other boxers. 

Say what you want about him; he doesn't care as long as you are saying something.