By Chris Williams: Sergio Martinez had some searing comments about the type of opponents that WBO welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao has been facing. While many boxing fans see Pacquiao as one of the greatest fighters that ever breathed due to the many titles he’s won in different weight divisions, Martinez, who is arguably the best fighter in the junior middleweight and middleweight divisions right now, feels a little bit different about Pacquiao. Martinez sees Pacquiao as a fighter that is being selectively matched against old guys or ones that are beatable.

Speaking with John Martinez at boxscorenews.com, Martinez said “Manny Pacquiao is working his business by picking boxers he knows he can beat and are pretty close to retirement. He is picking guys that are easy to beat so when you do this, it isn’t hard to be pound-for-pound and, if we fought I would beat him by knock out.”

I agree that Martinez would knock Pacquiao out if they fought. That’s not really debatable as far as I’m concerned, but it’s one of those things that will boxing fans will likely never get to see because Pacquiao’s promoter Bob Arum isn’t interested in putting Pacquiao in with Martinez because he sees him as too big for Pacquiao even though Martinez is smaller than a recent Pacquiao opponent Antonio Margarito. The difference between Margarito and Martinez is that Martinez is fast and powerful, while Margarito is incredibly slow and not nearly as powerful. Pacquiao beat Martinez at a 150 pound catchweight for the vacant WBC junior middleweight title last year.

Pacquiao fought an old Oscar De La Hoya in 2008, beating him and sending him into retirement. De La Hoya was 36 at the time and clearly past his best. Pacquiao recently beat 39-year-old Shane Mosley, another fighter not quite at the top anymore. Pacquiao will be facing Juan Manuel Marquez in November. Marquez will be 38-year-old by the time they fight.