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Manny Pacquiao and Freddie Roach were named 2008 Fighter of the Year and Trainer of the Year, respectively, by the Boxing Writers Association of America.
Pacquiao and Roach, boxing’s dynamic duo, were honored for a year that can only be described as Henry Armstronesque. The Pinoy powerhouse captured the WBC super featherweight title by defeating Juan Manual Marquez and the WBC lightweight title by knocking out defending champion David Diaz.
Pacquiao’s stoppage of Oscar De La Hoya, fought at the welterweight limit, was the historic exclamation to a great year. Armstrong, the great Hall of Famer, is best known for being the only man in boxing history to hold three world titles simultaneously, a feat he accomplished 71 years ago when he won world titles at featherweight, welterweight and lightweight during a nine-month span between November 1937 and August 1938.
For Pacquiao, this is his second Edward J. Neil Award in three years while Roach becomes the first three-time winner of the Futch-Condon Award.
In a further nod to Armstrong, Pacquiao will be moving down in weight to challenge junior welterweight champion Ricky Hatton for his fifth sanctioned world title in as many different weight divisions.
Their world championship rumble will take place Saturday, May 2 at the MGM Grand and will be produced and distributed
live by HBO Pay-Per-View.
