Forbes names Pacquiao as one of boxing’s 'MVPs' for 2016

MANILA, Philippines – Despite already being at the twilight of his career, Manny Pacquiao is still relevant in boxing.

Pacquiao had such a solid year that Forbes.com included him in its list of the sport’s “Most Valuable Players” for 2016.

Forbes.com’s Josh Katzowitz ranked Pacquiao at No. 4, behind Andre Ward and Sergey Kovalev (tied at first place), and middleweight stars Gennady Golovkin (No. 2) and Saul “Canelo” Alvarez (No. 3).

Pacquiao’s high ranking came on the strength of his dominant performances against Timothy Bradley in April and Jessie Vargas in November.

The Filipino icon hacked out unanimous decision wins against Bradley and Vargas, even scoring knockdowns in both fights. In defeating Vargas, he regained the WBO welterweight title.

“When Pacquiao is in an active participant in the sport, it’s a good thing for boxing,” wrote Katzowitz, who also emphasized the Filipino icon’s dual role as a boxer and a Philippine senator.

“He’s a senator in the Philippines but he made time to fight Jessie Vargas in November, made at least $4 million and looked quite good while winning,” he added.

The 38-year-old Pacquiao reportedly plans to fight twice more next year, preferring a rematch with the retired Floyd Mayweather Jr. But so far, nothing is set in stone.

“It’s unclear what his next move will be, but a fight vs. Terence Crawford would be one of the boxing’s most exciting matchups of 2017,” Katzowitz continued.

Indeed, there is clamor for Pacquiao to face Top Rank rising star Terence Crawford, who likewise had an impressive year. The 29-year-old undefeated fighter also made the Forbes list at No. 10.

Freddie Roach previously stated that he want to pit Pacquiao against Crawford – the unified WBO and WBC super lightweight champion – at 140 pounds, which is widely accepted as the Filipino’s fighting weight.

Completing the rankings are Roman “Chocolatito” Gonzalez (No. 5), Keith Thurman (No. 6a), Anthony Joshua (No. 7), Vasyl Lomachenko (No. 8) and Joe Smith (No. 9).

Lomachenko, the WBO lightweight champions, is also being groomed to fight Pacquiao.