MANNY “Pacman” Pacquiao came in with all guns ablaze. Three knockdowns in three rounds, and it was all over.
Pacquaio won by a sensational third round knockout over Erik “El Terrible” Morales before a roaring highly partisan albeit divided crowd at the Thomas and Mack Center in Nevada.
And the last time the vanquished Morales was on the seat of his pants, Morales blankly stared from his corner, blinked his stunned right eye, and shook his head signaling he could go no further.
Pandemonium broke loose among the crowd gathered at the spacious Guest House of the Alcantaras in Alabel, Sarangani where several people watched the fight through live feed. All there present had their hands raised in triumph as if they were the ones who inflicted on Morales his second consecutive knockout defeat.
Thus, in probably putting an end to Morales’s Hall of Fame, Manny cemented his own niche in the cruel world of sweet science.
No longer would skeptics doubt his place in the pantheon of current boxing greats.
And in so doing, he also ensured himself a bigger future ahead. Now, Pacquiao deserves a long rest, but that might not be the case. But that is jumping the gun on him.
The end may have come so soon but it was not really unexpected.
Pacquiao was a runaway favorite to do a repeat of his January 21 win over Morales.
In fact, nobody expected the third offering of one of boxing’s great trilogies will last longer than the 10 rounds the first time they met. A few however gave Morales a chance.
But it was a question of when the end would come. And many predicted Pacquiao would run roughshod on Morales whose history of struggle with keeping up with the superfeatherweight limit is well chronicled.
Even before fight, scathing remarks were hurled at both camps. Morales said he is and was not a spent boxer.
Like many boxing greats, he was expecting one last good hurrah.
Unfortunately, that chance may have already come when he outclassed Pacquiao during their bloody and exciting first bout in March 2005.
Fast and furious
Manny was announced to weigh 141 pounds just moments before he stepped into the ring. Morales was 139 pounds. The weight disparity tilted in Pacquiao’s favor.
It was to become a portent of things to come.
When the bell sounded signaling the first round, a frail Morales looked smaller than Pacquiao.
Morales threw the first punches that landed. Three straight stinging jabs that Pacquiao just shook off with his head.
Pacquiao answered with a three-punch combination that stunned Morales and had the crowd in Las Vegas roaring in approval.
It was obvious in the opening seconds of the bout that both men were out to inflict the meanest beatings they could ever dish out.
Pacquiao had the early measure of Morales, connecting a wicked left hook to the body of the Mexican boxer in the middle of the round and throwing his vaunted right hooks to the face of the gladiator from Tijuana, Mexico.
It was clearly a first round for Pacquiao.
Morales started the second round bouncing and hoping to land his vaunted right straight that put to dreamland 34 of his opponents before.
They exchange solid blows and the momentum appeared to bounce back and forth.
Morales was obviously trying to put pressure on Pacquiao and pressed the attack during moments that Pacquiao was off balance.
But Pacquiao would answer back with flurries of his own.
Morales had Pacquiao on the ropes midway through the second canto. But just as he thought he had Pacquiao’s number, the General Santos City southpaw unleashed a stinging left cross to the jaw during a furious exchange that sent Morales crashing to his knees and into the ropes with just over a minute left in the round.
The Mexican, who is also known for his moniker El Terrible, quickly got up to his feet but appeared more stunned than hurt.
Morales would come back in a desperate attempt to recover from the knockdown.
They traded bombs at the closing seconds of the round to the delight of the electrified crowd who paid as much as $2,500 bucks for a ringside seat.
With the knockdown, Pacquiao stormed ahead in the scorecards of the judges.
Savage end
The two squared in the middle of the ring to start the third round. The bounce on Morales’s feet was gone. Pacquiao had all the intent of closing out the bout but Morales still has plenty of sting left in his punches.
The Filipino buzzsaw was caught with a three-punch combination capped with a wicked right straight that snapped his head back midway through the third stanza.
But that proved to be Morales’s last bursts of power.
In a slam bang exchange that ensued, the Mexcian got tagged by a powerful left straight that sent him crashing on his pants at the ropes for the second time.
He looked hurt and appeared spent. But Morales is Morales. He is a proud Mexican warrior. He was up at the count of eight.
This time, however, Pacquiao showed no mercy. Sensing Morales is done, Pacquiao put relentless pressure.
He threw all his power punches and again caught the Mexican with a wicked left straight.
Once more, and for the last time, Morales dropped to his pants with only the ropes keeping him from lying totally prone on the canvass.
He remained seated and looked so stunned. A quick look to his corner and the referee signaled the end to the fight.
It was reminiscent of the scene when Marco Antonio Barrera sat on his pants, his hands on his bended knees and head bowed.
That was in 2004, when Pacquiao knocked down Barrera in the sixth round en route to a lopsided 11th round technical knockout win.
Power
During the post fight interview, Morales finally admitted what he previously kept on denying.
Pacquiao had the power.
“I felt his power,” he said also adding that he found no antidote to Pacquiao’s blurring speed.
Commentators doing the live color of the bout said Pacquiao’s hand speed, aggressiveness and power simply have no match in the super featherweight division.
In fact, one even said Pacquiao, by checking in at over 140 pounds, is already a legitimate welterweight.
And he is carrying that knockout power that vanquished 33 others before Morales.
That should be pretty terrifying for others who may wish to lock horns with him.
In totally overpowering Morales, Pacquiao also showed a lot of class.
He went to his gallant foe’s corner to console Morales.
There was no water-throwing incident this time.
Morales returned the compliment by embracing Pacquiao in the middle of the ring a few seconds later.
Like two proud warriors, they gave each other the respect they deserved.
For Pacquiao, it was paying homage to one of Mexico’s greatest boxers.
For Morales, it was probably giving Pacquiao his dues.
In Sunday’s big fight ticket in years, those who watched the spectacle may have seen the passing of the torch.
Pacquiao has now earned his place in the class of great champions. He is soon to become one of the boxing world’s greatest pugilists.
