BIGGEST WINNER
Manny Pacquiao: The Manny Pacquiao we saw outpoint Tim Bradley in their rubber match on Saturday night in Las Vegas isn?t the Pacquiao of old, the one whose work rate was as overwhelming as his quick, deadly combinations. However, he demonstrated one more time ? perhaps the last time ? that even a diminished, 37-year-old version of himself remains one of the best in the business. A more-economical Pacquiao (58-6-2, 38 knockouts) handily beat an elite fighter in Bradley, pushing the action throughout the fight and showing breathtaking flashes of the past. Those combinations are still a blur when he throws them. He even showed glimpses of his old punching power, putting Bradley down in the seventh and ninth rounds to seal the deal. Neither fighter had hit the canvas in their previous two meetings. Thus, the scoring was no surprise: All three judges had it 116-110, eight rounds to four. I had the same score. It wasn?t Pacquiao?s greatest victory but it had to be one of his most gratifying when all the factors are considered ? his age, his surgically repaired shoulder, his record in his previous six fights (3-3) and Bradley?s unquestioned ability. He insisted afterward that this was his last fight, that he will now focus on his political career in his home country. That?s hard to believe given his performance on Saturday and his still-healthy earning power but he seems sincere. We?ll see. If that was his swan song, it would be a heck of a way for him to go out ? the convincing winner of a compelling fight against a worthy opponent. Not many walk away on such a high note.
BIGGEST LOSER
Tim Bradley: Bradley (33-2-1, 13 KOs) had hoped to launch himself on Saturday into a different stratosphere, one in which could say he was the best 147-pounder in the world and claim the rewards that go with that. Instead, he?ll have to acknowledge that at least one welterweight ? Pacquiao ? is unequivocally better than he is. That has now been proven in the ring three times (yes, the scorecards in Bradley?s favor in their first fight were absurd). No shame there, not when you consider Pacquiao?s ability and his place in boxing history. As Teddy Atlas, Bradley?s trainer put it, ?He is a freakish combination of speed and power.? Thus, while Bradley certainly suffered emotional trauma in light of the setback, he can say with honesty, ?Hey, I came up short against one of the best fighters of all time. I can still compete with anyone else.? I believe that?s the case. He was competitive against Pacquiao even though he lost eight rounds on all three cards, as the CompuBox stats seem to bear out. Pacquiao outlanded Bradley only 122 (of 439) to 99 (of 302) overall and 92 (of 201) to 87 (of 218) in power punches. The winner landed the more eye-catching punches ? including the two that put Bradley down ? but the loser landed, which says something about him. So where does this leave Bradley? In good position, particularly if Pacquiao retires. He?s only 32 and has found new energy with trainer Teddy Atlas, who will help Bradley use what he learned on Saturday to become a better fighter. He?ll be a factor at 147 pounds for some time.
BIGGEST WINNER II
Anthony Joshua: I?ve believed since Joshua won his gold medal in the 2012 Olympics that he would end up owning the heavyweight division and what I saw on Saturday only bolsters that opinion. That said, let?s not get too excited over his performance. Joshua?s opponent, Charles Martin, was a pretend champion at best. The relatively unknown American won a title (the IBF version) that should never have been vacant in the first place when Vyacheslav Glazkov injured his knee during their fight in January. And he brought nothing to London. Stationary and clueless, Martin had neither the ability nor the composure to avoid the monumental right-handed bombs of Joshua (16-0, 16 KOs). Thus, he had no chance to win. I thought the ending was bizarre. Martin, stunned but apparently not badly hurt, seemed to lose track of referee Jean-Pierre Van Imschoot?s count after his second trip to the canvas but was on his feet before 10 from what I could see, which, if true, would mean the fight shouldn?t have been stopped at that point. It really didn?t matter, though. This was always destined to be Joshua?s night, his professional coming out party before an adoring hometown crowd; Martin (23-1-1, 21 KOs) was just a body with a belt. The victory doesn?t mean much given Martin?s obvious limitations and the fact that everyone knows Tyson Fury is the real heavyweight champ. At the same time, the fans at the O2 Arena and across the U.K. had reason to celebrate. It just might?ve been Joshua?s first noteworthy step toward inevitable greatness.
MOST DISAPPOINTING
Rodriguez vs. Abraham: I learned long ago that Arthur Abraham (44-5, 29 KOs) has his limitations but I expected more from him against Gilberto Ramirez on the Pacquiao-Bradley card. The 36-year-old Armenian was written off by many after his disastrous performance in the Super Six World Boxing Classic in 2010 and 2011 but was on a 12-1 run ? 8-1 in title fights ? going into his meeting with Rodriguez, including a decision over capable Martin Murray in his most-recent fight. Against Rodriguez, he barely showed up. I guess you can chalk that up to at least three factors: Limited ability, his age and a fine performance by Ramirez. The much-improved Mexican really never gave Abraham a chance to get going, sticking and moving with impressive deftness to hand his more-experience opponent an embarrassing shutout defeat: All three judges scored is 120-108, 12 rounds to none. Ouch. The most telling CompuBox numbers were Abraham?s connect rate of only 19.3 percent and Ramirez?s advantage in power punches landed, 125 to 57. Ramirez (34-0, 24 KOs) thus became the first fighter from his country to win a major world title above 160 pounds, the WBO super middleweight belt that Abraham had worn for two years. That?s a significant accomplishment. And he?s only 24. Ramirez is just getting started.
STRANGEST FIGHT
Selby vs. Hunter: IBF featherweight titleholder Lee Selby (23-1, 8 KOs) deserves credit for a solid performance against a tough, tricky opponent in Eric Hunter (21-4, 11 KOs) on the Joshua-Martin card. Selby boxed well and showed plenty of grit ? including rising from a second-round knockdown ? to win easily on the cards and retain his belt. The Welshman should be satisfied with himself, as should his fans. He wasn?t really the story of the fight, though. Hunter and referee Marcus McDonnell made sure of that. Where do I start? Well, McDonnell became obsessed with low blows from Hunter that didn?t appear to be low. The only obvious exception appeared to be the shot for which he finally lost a point. Selby?s gold waistband covered his navel; that?s where the remainder of Hunter?s ?low blows? appeared to land. And that?s not low; your navel is in the middle of the stomach last time I checked. The behavior of Hunter, known to be temperamental, was worse than McDonnell?s eyesight. He turned his back on McDonnell several times as he was warned for the supposed low blows and then whined in his corner about the injustice when he should?ve focused on how to cope with a tiger in the opposite corner. If I were McDonnell, I would?ve warned Hunter the first time he turned his back and then docked him points every time after that. The ref and loser deserved each other. The saving grace is that the right man won the fight. That, aside from the fighters? safety, is what matters most.
RABBIT PUNCHES
Pacquiao hasn?t scored a knockout since he stopped Miguel Cotto in the 12th round in Novemer 2009, a string of 11 fights. That fact still astounds me given the punching power that Pacquiao once generated. ? Martin?s heavyweight title run might be the worst in his history. He won his belt when he opponent injured his knee and lost it in his first defense less than three months later in one-plus rounds while barely landing a punch. ? The most-impressive performance of the night might?ve been turned in by featherweight contender Oscar Valdez (19-0, 17 KOs), who stopped Evgeny Gradovich (21-2-1, 9 KOs) in four rounds on the Pacquiao-Bradley card. The Mexican fought a near-flawless fight, keeping Gradovich at the end of his straight, hard punches and taking few shots himself as he methodically ? and quickly ? broke down a solid opponent. Add Valdez to the mix of elite 126-pounders. ? I don?t know how far former U.S. Olympian Jose Ramirez (17-0, 12 KOs) will go but I?m sure of one thing: He?s fun to watch. The tall 140-pounder throws a lot of punches and throws them hard, as he demonstrated in a one-sided decision victory over a remarkably resilient Manny Perez (25-12-1, 6 KOs) on the Pacquiao-Bradley card. I thought Ramirez took too many shots for a boxer of pedigree but he?s young, only 23. He?ll only get better. ? Light heavyweight Oleksandr Gvozdyk (10-0, 8 KOs) is definitely one to watch after his second-round knockout of Nadjib Mohammedi (37-5, 23 KOs) on the Pacquiao-Bradley card. It took Sergey Kovalev three rounds to take out Mohammedi. ? IBF junior welterweight titleholder Eduard Troyanovsky (24-0, 21 KOs) made a strong statement by stopping Cesar Cuenca (48-2, 2 KOs) for a second consecutive time Friday in Moscow, this time in the seventh round.
