Pacquiao-Hatton: The Ballad of Two Brave Warriors (Part 1 of 2)

He had reached the abyss of supremacy, an immeasurably deep chasm that had nothing more to offer than an oasis of nothingness and an ocean of emptiness.

He despaired, and soon enough his dynasty crumbled to pieces.

Manny Pacquiao is by no means no Alexander the Great, but by outclassing great fighters such as Oscar de la Hoya, Marco Antonio Barrera, Erik Morales, and Lehonolo Ledwaba, he has reached the abyss of supremacy in boxing.

It’s almost one year since Floyd Mayweather Jr. announced his retirement, which gave way to Pacquiao’s reign.

Due to the nature of his elevation to the top spot (albeit a logical one the, No. 2 should assume a vacated No. 1 designation, though maybe not definitive), doubts of his numero uno status lingered in the air for a while.

But after a masterful performance against then-WBC lightweight champion David Diaz and a scintillating domination of de la Hoya, Pacquiao ultimately erased all those doubts.

Pacquiao is currently sitting comfortably on his pound-for-pound throne, enjoying the fame and fortune that he has worked hard for.

So now, the question is:

How long will his dynasty last?

They say that Pacquiao has reached his peak. If so, saturation point seems inevitable.

Although the boxing world isn’t quite ready to relinquish Pacquiao as the world’s best pugilist, chinks and rust may be starting to appear in his armor.

With Juan Manuel Marquez consistently earning sensational victories and Shane Mosley successfully moving back the hands of time, it seems that the arguments as to who is the current best prizefighter are blossoming like French Tulips in spring.

In order to silence the critics, Pacquiao must do one thing:

He must face a much tougher challenge in Ricky Hatton, and he must win impressively, as other elite fighters are challenging for his crown.