FILIPINO boxing sensation Manny Pacquiao crowned himself as world champion for a third time but not after surviving an intense contest against fierce Mexican rival Juan Manuel Marquez Saturday evening at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.
The battle reached the full 12 rounds which went see-saw the whole time, making the third round knockdown scored by Pacquiao probably the crucial point that gave the Filipino champion a split decision win with scores of 115-112 and 114-113 both for Pacquiao with the third judge going for Marquez, 115-112.
The usually slow-starting Marquez, 34, had a good first two rounds as he connected a few decent counter-punches, his best weapon that floored 35 of his 48 victories.
Marquez, defending his World Boxing Council (WBC) superfeatherweight crown for the second time, even staggered Pacquiao towards the end of the second round with a sweeping left punch.
Pacquiao, 29, went full steam by the third canto and stalled what seemed to be another dominating round by Marquez as the Filipino warrior floored the now dethroned Mexican champion with a textbook left hook to the jaw. Marquez laid flat on his back for a while then stood up at the count of four and was once again staggered with stinging left straights. At the end of the round Marquez momentarily went to the wrong corner.
?One knockdown doesn?t decide the outcome of the fight. I dominated him the rest of the way. But the decision was just like our first fight where they dwelled too much on those three knockdowns,? said a fuming Marquez.
Marquez entered the fourth round cautiously but soon traded leathers with Pacquiao and both landed big punches, with the Filipino ending up being cut on his right eyelid. As Pacquiao landed a strong left, Marquez countered with a left-right combination. Marquez connected a left hook but Pacquiao came back with his own right-left combo.
?After the knockdown I was about to control the fight but the cut bothered me,? Pacquiao said during the post-fight TV interview.
Action slowed a bit in the fifth round specifically Pacquiao as he got tagged a few times by Marquez? right counter blows.
Marquez started the 7th round with a left hook to the face then had more right hand counter connections and a blow to the body. Pacquiao comes back with a left that snapped the back the head of Marquez.
The 8th round turned out to be the best round for Marquez as he hurt Pacquiao to the head and body apart from widening the cut on the Filipino?s left eye.
?I was really hurt in that round but that is also because I was not able to see his punches because of the blood coming out of the cut in my right eye,? said Pacquiao.
More heated exchanges in the 9th round mostly in the center of the ring but the bout was temporarily halted to check Marquez? own cut on his right eyelid but Dr. Jeff Davidson immediately gave his thumbs up to referee Kenny Bayless.
Pacquiao again wobbled Marquez in the 10th with a huge left but what made most of the 11,061 on its feet was the furious exchanges of both fighters.
Pacquiao seemed to get affected badly by his still bleeding cut on the eye as his left straight missed its target in the 11th. Marquez then hit Pacquiao with a low blow and got warned. After a very brief respite Pacquiao went back to press the action but Marquez remained compelling with his counter shots.
Just like most of the rounds, action was competitive in the final three minutes of the fight but Pacquiao ended it with a sturdy combination.
The intense action spilled over at ringside, albeit verbally, as Marquez? revered trainer Ignacio ?Nacho? Beristain berated the judges with the way they tallied the fight, calling it a disgrace and harmful to the sport.
Beristain?s tirade made promoter Bob Arum retort.
“Stop with that bull (expletive) because you’re (expletive) up the sport,” Arum shouted. “There’s nothing wrong with boxing. The judges aren’t (expletive) up the sport. You are with those kinds of comments. “One judge had it for Marquez. One had it the other way for Pacquiao. And another judge had it close for Pacquiao, one point,?said Arum ?The media was all over the place, some for one guy and some for the other. Grow up and be a man and accept the judges’ decision. I know now how stupid I looked all those times when I complained about the decision when I listen to you.”
Arum meanwhile ruled out an immediate rematch between Marquez and Pacquiao as the well-known promoter plans to pit the newly-crowned Filipino champion against WBC lightweight champion David Diaz on June 28 also at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Golden Boy Promotions (GBP) boss Richard Schaeffer even offered the Pacquiao camp $6-million for a third fight with Marquez.
?I?m not saying they?ll never fight again, but you have to let it bake for a while,? Arum said during an exchange with Schaefer.
?Business is over. I don?t think there will be another fight,? said Pacquiao.
Bringing the belt to the Philippines is actually some sort of a homecoming as the same crown
was last worn by the Filipino champion?s troublesome fellow General Santos City native Rolando Navarette. The same tiara was also won by Rene Barrientos and the legendary Gabriel ?Flash? Elorde who defended the crown for seven years, a feat that established his boxing greatness.
What will make Pacquiao?s reign as world 130lb champion distinct is the fact that he is the first-ever Asian fighter to win three world crowns in three different divisions. Pacquiao won world titles in the flyweight and superbantamweight divisions.
Pacquiao improves to 46-3-2, with 35 knockouts while Marquez tumbles down to 48-4-1 (35 KO?s)
