[PODCAST] At the Buzzer: On Manny Pacquiao and Jose Rizal

MANILA, Philippines – Whenever there’s a discussion about the greatest Filipino athletes in recorded history, Manny Pacquiao’s legacy will consistently be part of the conversation, if not leading it. 

As Rappler Sports unveils the podcast At the Buzzer, host Naveen Ganglani chats with Ring Magazine writer and former Rappler sports editor Ryan Songalia about his experiences covering the eight-division world champion – from the United States to the Philippines – dating back from early 2000s. 

Episode 1 also touches on what made Pacquiao a lethal boxer in the ring and what type of person he was behind the scenes (1:40). 

Ryan also unravels the curtains on the other interests Pacquiao enjoyed (18:00), before imagining what the end of the road looks like for his boxing career (33:00).

Here’s an excerpt from the podcast (27:03):

Naveen: What got you to think, you know what, Manny is being talked about or revered in the same level as the Philippines’ national hero (Jose Rizal)?

Ryan: My father is from Tanauan, Leyte. This is 2013 when Typhoon Yolanda hit. Manny had a fight right before that. It was the Brandon Rios fight, and people who lost everything were gathered around this giant screen to watch Manny Pacquiao against Brandon Rios.

Ryan: To the boxing world, that was like a “nothing” fight. It was like, “of course he’s going to beat Brandon Rios.” Brandon Rios was kind of over the hill a bit at that point. He wasn’t the kind of fighter who was going to beat Manny Pacquiao, but to those people, it meant everything. – Rappler.com