Manny Pacquiao's Boxing Career

Pacquiao started his professional boxing career when he was just 16 years of age and weighed 106 pounds (light flyweight). His early fights took place in small local venues and were shown on Vintage Sports' Blow by Blow, an evening boxing show. His professional debut was a four round bout against Edmund "Enting" Ignacio, on January 22, 1995, which Pacquiao won via decision, becoming an instant star of the program. Close friend Mark Penaflorida's death in 1994 spurred the young Pacquiao to pursue a professional boxing career.

His weight increased from 106 to 113 pounds, before losing in his twelfth bout against Rustico Torrecampo via a third round knockout. Pacquiao had not made the weight, so he was forced to use heavier gloves than Torrecampo, thereby putting him at a disadvantage.

Shortly after the Torrecampo fight, Pacquiao settled at 112 pounds, winning the WBC flyweight world title (his first major boxing world title as well as the flyweight lineal title) over Chatchai Sasakul by way of knockout in the eighth round. However, Pacquiao lost the title in his second defense against Medgoen Singsurat, also known as Medgoen 3K Battery, via a third round knockout. The bout was held in Nakhon Si Thammarat, Thailand. Technically, Pacquiao lost the belt at the scales, as he surpassed the weight limit of 112 pounds.

Following his loss to Singsurat, Pacquiao gained weight anew. This time, Pacquiao went to the super bantamweight division of 122 pounds, where he picked up the WBC International super bantamweight title. He defended this title five times before his chance for a world title fight came.

Pacquiao's big break came on June 23, 2001, against former IBF super bantamweight world champion Lehlohonolo Ledwaba. Pacquiao stepped into the fight as a late replacement and won the fight by technical knockout to become the new IBF super bantamweight world champion (his second major boxing world title). The bout was held at the MGM Grand Las Vegas, in Las Vegas, Nevada. Pacquiao went on to defend this title four times, aided by his expert training from Freddie Roach at the Wild Card Gym.