Pacheco was incredibly rude and patronising to fighters...couldn't stand him...in the 80s and 90s but sad for his family
He was at ringside calling the fight that got me hooked on boxing - Cornelius-Boza Edwards v. Bobby Chacon II "Boza's Legs are going, Chacon's face is gone" I thought he was a very passable color commentator. He obviously loved boxing, He picked the fights for NBC Sports in the late 70s-late '80s Also, he advised Ali to retire when everybody else in his entourage was milking Ali in the mid 70s He could have kept making money as Ali's doctor. I think he was over the hill when he was doing Showtime Boxing in the mid 90s. He wasn't as good then but still called some great fights like JC Chavez-Randall I. He did seem to have a good repore with Bobby Czyz and Steve Albert. He wasn't perfect and he could be a bit blunt, but he contributed much to Boxing during a popular era of the sport.
I definitely give Pacheco a lot of credit for leaving Ali's camp in 1977 after the Shavers fight. Ferdie said "Ali won the decision but his kidneys lost the fight." He gave a copy of his resignation letter to Ali, Angelo Dundee, and Herbert Muhammad, saying that Ali should retire. Ali had 4 more fights and lost 3 of them.
He was not a technical guy like Gil Clancy or Al Bernstein, but he had a personality and made people feel excited about the fight since he was excited. I liked him.
As he got older, he started getting a bit too blunt - calling Joe Frazier a gorilla, really? - but he was the only member of the Ali entourage with enough character to step away from the limelight when it became apparent the beatings Ali was taken were rapidly starting to erode his health. As above, his concerns were ignored by members of Ali's camp (except for Dundee, who I'll always believe stuck around as Ali's only safety and voice of reason - who else would have stopped the beating he was taking in the Holmes fiasco? FFS, Bundini wanted Ali to go out for another round when it was apparent there was no hope whatsoever) ... he obviously cared a great deal for Ali, as a physician and a friend. RIP, Fight Doctor -
I will never forget his commentary during one fight fight where the fighter's trunks ripped and Ferdie made a Freudian slip and said "Ruddock Buttock"
I enjoyed him as an analyst on ShowTime. "Castigating punishment! By Mike Tyson"He was very colorful and gave good insight. I understand he was also a artist. Very interesting life. RIP Ferdie. If you can find the video of Nelson/Fenech 2. You`ll hear Pacheco call the knockout. Not just a knockout but why it was going to happen and with what hand.