Jon Turner
Manny Pacquiao has the honour of being the only boxer to have won world titles in eight different weight divisions, amassing 10 titles in total. Should he beat Floyd Mayweather Jr on Saturday, he will increase that tally to 12.
Ahead of the Las Vegas fight, Jon Turner picks Pacquiao’s five most defining world titles.
See more: All of The National's "fight of the century" coverage at our Floyd Mayweather v Manny Pacquiao home page
1) WBC world flyweight title vs Chatcai Saskul, December 1998 (112lbs)
Perhaps the least heralded of Pacquiao’s world titles, but as it was his first, it rightly deserves a place on this list. While Sassakul is perhaps not the household name of other Pacquiao conquests, the Thai entered the fight having lost just once in his career – to Yuri Arbachakov, who he subsequently beat to end the Russian’s 10-fight title defence of the WBC strap.
Having successfully defended his title twice, Sasakul ran into trouble when he met Pacquiao, aged 19 at the time, in Thailand. Before the eighth round knockout, Pacquiao was down on all three judge’s scorecards, but that mattered little when he unloaded a barrage of punches, culminating in a straight left that landed flush on Sasakul’s jaw. Pacquiao had won his first world title.
2) IBF World super bantamweight title vs Lehlo Ledwaba, June 2001 (122lbs)
This fight truly was the start of Pacquiao’s path towards superstardom. It was the Filipino’s first fight in the United States, and his first on HBO – the network that would eventually secure Pacquiao to an exclusive deal. It was also his first under a new trainer – a certain Freddie Roach. On top of all that, he took this fight at two weeks’ notice. Pacquiao went about destroying the South African champion from the start. Ledwaba was bleeding from the nose by the end of Round 1. Pacquiao then had Ledwaba down in the second, had him wobbling in the fourth and fifth, and had him down again in the sixth. When a trademark Pacquiao assault had Ledwaba down yet again in Round 6, referee Joe Cortez decided enough was enough. The States had no choice but to sit up and notice the Pac-Man.
Listen: Jon Turner and Steve Luckings debate whether Manny Pacquiao or Floyd Mayweather will come out on top
3) WBC world super featherweight title vs Juan Manuel Marquez, March 2008 (130lbs)
The second in their four-part series of fights, Pacquiao and Marquez had drawn the first instalment in 2004, and four years later the pair were back in Las Vegas to settle the score. However, this was another contentious affair, with Pacquiao winning the fight and the WBC belt by split decision after a close contest. Marquez landed more punches at a higher percentage, although Pacquiao’s come-forward style – alongside a third round knockdown – handed the edge to Pacquiao according to two of the three judges. Marquez’s camp cried foul, believing their fighter won the contest and demanded a rematch, which Pacquiao refused having set his sights on a move up to lightweight and David Diaz’s WBC world title.
4) WBC World lightweight title vs David Diaz, June 2008 (135lbs)
Three months after his win over Marquez, Pacquiao made the step up to lightweight to face American WBC champion Diaz. The added weight made no difference to Pacquiao’s ferocious speed, dominating the fight before ending it with a ninth round knockout. Diaz, whose face was a swollen mess by the end of the fight, acknowledged he could not handle the pace of his opponent. “It was his speed. It was all his speed,” he said. “I could see the punches, but he was just too fast.” The victory meant Pacquiao became the first Asian boxer to win world titles in five weight divisions.
5) WBO world welterweight title vs Miguel Cotto, November 2009 (147lbs)
Following the Diaz win, Pacquiao increased his profile in the sport further with stoppage victories against Oscar De La Hoya and Ricky Hatton.
But it was his performance against Cotto that not only earned Pacquiao his first world title at welterweight, but also cemented his claim as being the best pound-for-pound fighter of his generation.
Pacquiao won all but one round of the first eleven of the bout with Cotto, according to the judges’ scorecards.
By the time of the final round, the punishment became too much for Cotto, who had already been knocked down in the third and fourth rounds. When another Pacquiao onslaught left him unable to continue and referee Kenny Bayliss stepped in to end the brutality, Pacquiao was now the first ever seven-division world champion.
jturner@thenational.ae
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The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
RESULT
Chelsea 2
Willian 13'
Ross Barkley 64'
Liverpool 0
Scoreline
UAE 2-1 Saudi Arabia
UAE Mabkhout 21’, Khalil 59’
Saudi Al Abed (pen) 20’
Man of the match Ahmed Khalil (UAE)
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Schedule:
Sept 15: Bangladesh v Sri Lanka (Dubai)
Sept 16: Pakistan v Qualifier (Dubai)
Sept 17: Sri Lanka v Afghanistan (Abu Dhabi)
Sept 18: India v Qualifier (Dubai)
Sept 19: India v Pakistan (Dubai)
Sept 20: Bangladesh v Afghanistan (Abu Dhabi) Super Four
Sept 21: Group A Winner v Group B Runner-up (Dubai)
Sept 21: Group B Winner v Group A Runner-up (Abu Dhabi)
Sept 23: Group A Winner v Group A Runner-up (Dubai)
Sept 23: Group B Winner v Group B Runner-up (Abu Dhabi)
Sept 25: Group A Winner v Group B Winner (Dubai)
Sept 26: Group A Runner-up v Group B Runner-up (Abu Dhabi)
Sept 28: Final (Dubai)
Company%20Profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDirect%20Debit%20System%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Sept%202017%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20UAE%20with%20a%20subsidiary%20in%20the%20UK%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20FinTech%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunding%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Undisclosed%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Elaine%20Jones%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20employees%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%208%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The alternatives
• Founded in 2014, Telr is a payment aggregator and gateway with an office in Silicon Oasis. It’s e-commerce entry plan costs Dh349 monthly (plus VAT). QR codes direct customers to an online payment page and merchants can generate payments through messaging apps.
• Business Bay’s Pallapay claims 40,000-plus active merchants who can invoice customers and receive payment by card. Fees range from 1.99 per cent plus Dh1 per transaction depending on payment method and location, such as online or via UAE mobile.
• Tap started in May 2013 in Kuwait, allowing Middle East businesses to bill, accept, receive and make payments online “easier, faster and smoother” via goSell and goCollect. It supports more than 10,000 merchants. Monthly fees range from US$65-100, plus card charges of 2.75-3.75 per cent and Dh1.2 per sale.
• 2checkout’s “all-in-one payment gateway and merchant account” accepts payments in 200-plus markets for 2.4-3.9 per cent, plus a Dh1.2-Dh1.8 currency conversion charge. The US provider processes online shop and mobile transactions and has 17,000-plus active digital commerce users.
• PayPal is probably the best-known online goods payment method - usually used for eBay purchases - but can be used to receive funds, providing everyone’s signed up. Costs from 2.9 per cent plus Dh1.2 per transaction.
The specs: 2018 Volkswagen Teramont
Price, base / as tested Dh137,000 / Dh189,950
Engine 3.6-litre V6
Gearbox Eight-speed automatic
Power 280hp @ 6,200rpm
Torque 360Nm @ 2,750rpm
Fuel economy, combined 11.7L / 100km
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo
Power: 178hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 280Nm at 1,350-4,200rpm
Transmission: seven-speed dual-clutch auto
Price: from Dh209,000
On sale: now
Name: Brendalle Belaza
From: Crossing Rubber, Philippines
Arrived in the UAE: 2007
Favourite place in Abu Dhabi: NYUAD campus
Favourite photography style: Street photography
Favourite book: Harry Potter
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
