With a professional boxing record of 54 wins, of which 38 were knockouts and 16 decisions, 5 losses and 2 draws, Filipino boxing champion Manny Pacquiao is considered a victor despite his recent heartbreaking, but not unexpected loss to Mexican boxer Juan Manuel Marquez on Dec 8.

His being a winner is not just in his boxing career, but also in life since Manny is a classic example of rags-to-riches story that has inspired many young Filipinos to follow his footsteps in pursuing boxing as a way out of poverty.

However, the champ, more known as Pac Man, had his share of heart-wrenching losses too, not only in the ring but even in his political and personal life. Here are 5 unforgettable losses of Manny, who nevertheless was still accorded a hero's welcome when he came back to Manila on Wednesday.

1. Knockout at 6th round by Marquez

Although Manny had five losses in his boxing career, only three were by knockout and one of them came from Marquez who slipped in the deadly punch at the last few seconds of the sixth round when Manny was actually ahead in judges' score.

The loss comes just six months after he lost his WBO Welterweight title to American boxer Timothy Bradley, which broke his 15-win record since 2005. Pacquiao's second KO was courtesy of Thai boxer Medgoen Singsurat way back in 1999.

While he still holds seven other titles, the unexpected loss to Marquez caused Pacquiao to slip to seventh from second place in The Ring magazine's pound-for-pound rankings on Thursday. In turn, Marquez moved up to third place from sixth, which is now occupied by another Filipino pugilist, Nonito Donaire.

2. Knockout by Darlene in 2007

His celebrity status was not a ticket to a congressional seat for Pacquiao in his first foray in politics in 2007. He was beaten by a young female opponent, incumbent Representative Darlene Antonino-Custodio for the seat in the 1st District of South Cotabato.

She got 65 per cent of the votes and he got 35 per cent. Supporters of Pacquiao attributed his electoral loss to Filipinos' preference that he remain a boxer, instead of becoming a public official.

Three years after, Pacquiao made a second attempt but instead run in the nearby Sarangani province, the hometown of his wife Jinkee. While he handily won the election with 120,000 votes versus the 60,000 votes his opponent got, political pundits question his performance in Congress, particularly his opposition to the popular Reproductive Health bill.

3. Affairs of the heart

Although Pacquiao has turned born-again Christian from being a Catholic - which angered his mother Dionesia - the boxer had his share of romantic liaisons with at least two starlets, which almost destroyed his marriage.

The most recent was in 2009 with starlet Krista Ranillo, the granddaughter of a Philippine diplomatic official. Because of the rumoured liaison, wife Jinkee was seen crying at a Thanksgiving Mass after Pacquiao's victory over Miguel Cotto in 2009.

Prior to Krista, Pacquiao allegedly had an affair with starlet Ara Mina, who was his leading lady in a film he produced a year earlier. Like the Krista affair, the boxer denied the rumour amid speculations that he even skipped a few days off training just to be with the young actress.

4. Flop movies

The alleged affairs with Krista and Ara were the inevitable results of two flop movies he produced. The last was Wapakman, which was an entry to the 2009 Metro Manila Film Festival where Krista was one of his leading ladies.

The film, which cast Pacquiao as a super hero, placed last among the eight competing movies in terms of ticket sales and failed to win any award.

A year earlier, he produced Anak ng Kumander (The Commander's Son), where he played a rebel's son, and had Ara as his leading lady. The film also bombed at the tills and was give a below average rating for technical assessment and acceptable rating for moral assessment by the Catholic Initiative for Enlightened Movie Appreciation.

5. First boxing loss

For any boxer, the first loss would be a very memorable one. Pacquiao's first loss was on his 12th professional fight against Filipino boxer Rustico Torrecampo in 1996 by knockout.

Ironically, while Pacquiao is now a billionaire, Torrecampo lives in a shanty in Manila near a river full of garbage. The latter's boxing career ended in 1997 after he injured his wrist in his first fight after he won over the then 17-year-old Pacquiao. Torrecampo, who once was given some cash by Pacquiao when they met again, now sells cooked noodles to support his wife and four kids.

Despite these five unforgettable and heartbreaking losses for Pacquiao, he is still considered a champion not only in the Philippines but also around the world, although his star appears to start to dim.

In spite of pleas from his family to quit boxing, Pacquiao refuses to hang his gloves and still wants to meet Marquez in a fifth match.

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