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Pacquiao Will Fix The Philippines; Now Can He Please Just Fight Floyd?

Jun 28, 2010, 4:30 PM UTC

Certain sports stories defy context within the sports world. Remember when Dave Cowens, former rookie of the year, became a Boston cab driver back in the ‘70s? That’s sort of like what happened with Manny Pacquiao, currently the WBO welterweight champion. Except the Filipino Pacquiao took it up a notch.

Imagine Derek Jeter running for U.S. Congress one day. Wait: Is that what Pacquiao did?

Yep. Meet Congressman Manny Pacquiao.

From Time Magazine's report:

It was a fight even Manny Pacquiao’s closest advisers warned he would lose. His opponent hailed from a formidable political family. And the last time the Filipino boxing sensation ran for public office, he lost badly. But on Monday, May 10, Pacquiao won a seat in his country’s Congress — and won it by a landslide.

Indeed, while Pacquiao's boxing career is far from over, it seems a fallback career is already in place. And given the odds against his political success, it's hard not to be impressed by Pacquiao's showing. He spent an estimated 300 million pesos ($6.6 million) to spread his message, which he kept fairly simple.

He campaigned to end poverty—"I know what poverty is. I come from a poor family"—and against government corruption. Just about everyone can agree to hate those two things, right? What's more, by financing the campaign with his own money, Pacquiao can avoid any debts to special interest groups while in office. Pacquiao the politician, not unlike the boxer, is completely self-made.

But for all the bombast of his entry into the political arena, I'd just like to remind everyone that nothing he ever does will ever be as sublimely surreal as this movie trailer. WAPAKMAN!