Manila ( CNN ) -- The right punch Mexican Juan Manuel Marquez threw to knock out Filipino Manny Pacquiao in the sixth round of their non-title welterweight clash arguably registered on the Richter scale , with the aftershocks being felt from the posh MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas , Nevada to the last-standing shanty in the typhoon-ravaged areas of Mindanao , the Philippines . When Pacquiao hit the canvas with a resounding thud , Filipinos all over the world cringed and felt the impact of the debacle down to their toenails . In the Philippines , where the fight was shown in cinemas , restaurants , and makeshift arenas , some stood in silence in utter disbelief while others unabashedly shed tears . The day following the fight , the front page of all the major newspapers in the country read like the obituary page . Pacquiao 's loss could not have come at a worse time . Just days before the fight , Super Typhoon `` Pablo '' ( international name Bopha ) leveled several provinces in the Visayas and Mindanao . Downtrodden Filipinos were all counting on Pacquiao to lift their faltering spirit with another sterling performance in the ring , but the Pacman also ended up taking it flush on the chin . That Filipinos are also treating Pacquiao 's loss as a `` natural disaster '' is not without a reason . Pacquiao is more than a boxer in the eyes of his countrymen . From the time he burst into the world boxing stage by knocking out Mexican Marco Antonio Barrera in November 2003 , Pacquiao has been looked upon as a walking icon , a symbol of everything that is positive about the Filipino : God-fearing , resilient and tough as nails . After every major win in the ring , Pacquiao , who grew up in dirt poverty , made it a point to share his astronomical paycheck among the poor . Down the road , he explored other avenues to help out : he successfully ran for a seat in Congress and started moonlighting as a game show host who indiscriminately gave out prizes to contestants . The devastating loss to Marquez , however , sends the signal that Pacquiao is already feeling the brunt of the responsibility he has been made to assume . Before the fight , not a few noted that Pacquiao 's focus on boxing had waned . He insisted that he was in control of the situation , but the observations were confirmed following the horrific knockout loss to Marquez . To some extent , Pacquiao has become a prisoner of the suffocating image he has created . Turning 34 on December 17 , Pacquiao 's career as a boxer is at the crossroads . Is it time to focus solely on boxing to give his career the glorious send-off it deserves ? Is walking away from the sport with his health intact the best option available ? Or should he again flirt with disaster by continuing to multi-task ? Considering all that he has done for his countrymen , perhaps it is only proper for Pacquiao to finally look out for himself . Boxing is a dangerous sport and what happened in the Marquez fight is proof that even a supposedly invincible boxing champion is susceptible to a flesh wound . Then again , at a time when his countrymen are down on their knees and in dire need of a hero , it appears that Pacquiao is bent on lacing on the gloves to carry the fight anew for his people . There is this scene in the movie The Dark Knight Rises where Selina Kyle , aka Catwoman , tries to convince Batman to leave Gotham City . `` You do n't owe these people anymore . You 've given them everything , '' Kyle tells Batman , to which the Dark Knight replies : `` Not everything . Not yet . '' You can say that the Philippines ' own knight is treading the same dangerous curve . We can only hope that he will emerge from his quest in one piece as nobody wants a repeat of the Marquez ordeal .
Perez : Pacquiao 's knockout shocked Filipinos around the world . Tolentino : Pacquiao seen as much more than a hero in eyes of many . Tolentino : He has become ashamed of the suffocating image he created .