MANILA: Manny Pacquiao may be a hero in his native Philippines but even his fans and associates admit he will be the underdog in his bout against undefeated Floyd Mayweather in the "fight of the century".
Betting odds in Las Vegas, where the fight will be held on May 2, favour the 38-year-old American, who has never lost in 47 fights. By contrast, the 36-year-old Pacquiao has 57 victories and five defeats including two suffered as recently as 2012.
The fight, which was years in the making, will finally answer the question as to which of the two is the best "pound-for-pound" fighter of their generation.
But Pacquiao, who has several other duties outside the ring, has plenty of baggage to shed.
"Manny likes to be in the underdog position," said sports writer Winchell Campos, who is working on a biography of the fighter.
"He thrives on that kind of pressure. It gives extra motivation for him."
Pacquiao has made a fortune as a commercial pitchman, dabbled in television, movies and music, and leveraged his boxing fame to get elected to Congress in 2010.
Last year, he even made his debut as player-coach of a newly-created professional basketball team.
All of that, however, will have to be put aside for the Mayweather fight.
"Mayweather will be the favoured one (in Las Vegas)," said Pacquiao's business manager Eric Pineda, who has labelled the bout the Philippine boxer's "toughest fight".
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