“You can’t time limit Manny,” said Arum in an interview during his recent Manila visit. “How much longer will he keep fighting? I think it’s foolish to set a limit of two, three or five years. He’ll know when it’s time. At the moment, he’s just sensational. He defies everything that applies to most athletes. He can go on fighting for as long as he performs at the top level, as long as he enjoys doing it.”

Arum said studying Pacquiao’s latest fights, there is no noticeable slippage.

“No question Manny is very motivated,” continued Arum. “I don’t see any signs of slippage. He’s at the top of his game. If there’s any slippage at all, it’s imperceptible. You start thinking about slowing down when you start slipping and it’s a gradual decline. But I don’t notice it with Manny. He’s improving with every fight and that’s phenomenal because he’s already achieved so much.”

If Pacquiao is even getting better, why stop him from showcasing more of his skills? He’s become an icon not only in the Philippines but in the entire world.

“Manny has an incredible story and that’s why he’s so popular, not just with Filipinos but with everyone,” said Arum. “He resonates with the people. To most Americans, he’s an exotic person coming from a humble background, emerging from poverty to rise as a symbol of a success story in the Third World. He’s an inspiration. He worked his way to the top and realized his dreams. For Westerners, he symbolizes the aspirations of Third World people represented by Manny.”

Arum said people from all walks of life appreciate Pacquiao’s rags-to-riches tale.

“It’s a feel good story,” said Arum. “Nobody resents Manny for his riches, his fame and his fortune. He validates people’s aspirations.”

Arum said he now considers the Philippines his second home and makes it a point to visit the country often. He was in Sarangani during Pacquiao’s campaign for a congressional seat last year, in General Santos City to celebrate the fighter’s 32nd birthday last December and in Baguio City to show support during the training camp for Sugar Shane Mosley a few weeks back.

“Of all the fighters I’ve worked with, I consider Manny to be very special,” said Arum. “But I think I probably spent more time with Muhammad Ali and Marvelous Margin Hagler only because they were based in the US and it was easier for us to get together.” Arum has not been as intimate with a foreign fighter as Pacquiao.

Regarding the alphabet soup organizations, Arum said the governing bodies are “seriously flawed” and (have) “lost touch with reality.” He said they’re more for money-making than anything else, what with the WBC, for instance, creating additional championships, like the Diamond and Silver belts, to generate more opportunities to assess sanction fees.

Pacquiao now holds the WBO welterweight championship and relinquished the WBC superwelterweight title he won by defeating Antonio Margarito last November. He has held the WBC flyweight, IBF superbantamweight, WBC superfeatherweight, WBC lightweight and IBO lightwelterweight titles. Additionally, Pacquiao was recognized as the world featherweight champion by Ring Magazine as the “people’s” lineal titleholder.

Arum said it doesn’t make sense for Pacquiao to unify the welterweight championship because the titlists recognized by other governing bodies aren’t ticket sellers. Take WBC welterweight champion Andre Berto, for instance. “Berto’s not an attraction,” said Arum. “You sign up Berto and you run the risk of not doing well in pay-per-view. Against (Joshua) Clottey, we did about 700,000 buys but against Margarito and (Miguel) Cotto, we did over 1.2 million each.”

Asked about the possibility of battling unbeaten WBA welterweight champion Vyacheslav Senchenko, Arum wrinkled his forehead. “Who’s he and where’s he from?” wondered Arum. Senchenko is from Ukraine and has never fought in the US. Obviously, he’s not a marketable commodity in the high-stakes US environment.

Joaquin Henson, Philippine Star