Team Lakay pays tribute to Manny Pacquiao after his retirement

The greatest Filipino mixed martial artists of Team Lakay have paid tribute to Filipino boxing icon Manny Pacquiao after he announced his retirement from boxing one week ago.

Pacquiao’s retirement came at the heels of his Presidential candidacy in the 2022 election. The lone eight-division champion in boxing history, Pacquiao left the sport with a professional record of 62-8-2 with 39 knockouts.

“I think he is at the right age to retire. When it comes to his achievements, nobody has done that before being a champion in eight divisions,” said former ONE lightweight world champion Eduard Folayang.

“It was a timely retirement though I also saw that he is still fit and can still fight. It is just different when other things get into your mind,” he added.

“Concentration is not 100%, and I think that was one of the factors that made him decide to focus on his political career. Just look at us who are 100% focused on fighting, we still lose. What more for someone who is thinking of a bigger fight for the Philippines?”

Reigning ONE strawweight world champion Joshua Pacio, meanwhile, believes that it is just about time for Pacquiao to hang it up given his legendary accomplishments.

“To me, it was just right to retire. Nobody was able to do what he had done, and nobody could do it again in boxing. He has nothing left to prove because he already proved it all. His achievements say it all; he is one of the greatest and an inspiration to all of us,” said Pacio.

Former ONE flyweight world champion Geje Eustaquio and former ONE bantamweight world champion Kevin Belingon, meanwhile, tipped their hat off to the legendary Filipino fighter but wished he left the sport coming off a win.

“I am not surprised about his retirement. I have been waiting for it for a long time because, like what Pacio said, he has nothing to prove anymore. Though I wish he ended with a victory, one last win before he retired,” said Eustaquio.

“Pacquiao is still strong, but he decided to retire and maybe focus on his political career. To me, he can still compete despite his age if he will focus on boxing,” Belingon chimed in.

—JMB, GMA News