LAS VEGAS – A reporter from the Philippines sitting ringside Saturday at Thomas & Mack Center said his country would go into mourning if its hero, Manny Pacquiao, again lost to Erik Morales. There will be no mourning, but perhaps one heck of a party.
Pacquiao and Morales engaged each other in an all-out brawl, each fighter scoring with big punches. But Pacquiao’s punches proved more lethal when he stopped Morales at 2:33 of the 10th round in front of 14,618 screaming fans, many of whom waved flags from the Philippines and Mexico.
Morales – who was taken to Valley Hospital in Las Vegas for precautionarymeasures after the fight – appeared to have early control of the fight, and he nearly decked Pacquiao with two solid right hands in the first round, but Pacquiao was clearly in charge when he stopped Morales (48-4) for the first time in his career.
Pacquiao retained his World Boxing Council International super featherweight belt and became the No. 1 contender to WBC champion Marco Antonio Barrera.
Pacquiao had lost to Morales by narrow decision last March.
Morales was knocked down twice in the fateful round, the first time with a straight left hand. Morales got up, but he appeared very fatigued.
He tried to continue the battle, but Pacquiao was soon all over him, landing punches of all kinds. Morales went down from a barrage, and referee Kenny Bayless waved off the bout without a count.
“I wasn’t sure,” said Pacquiao, when asked if he thought he could stop Morales. “But I started taking more shots to the body. I could see he was having problems taking my punches, but I was having no problems taking his.
“I know everybody in the Philippines is very happy.”
Morales, 29, of Tijuana, got in more than his share of crisp punches, using a stiff left jab complemented with a hard right cross. But Pacquiao (41-3-2, 32 KOs), who used mostly his left cross in their first fight, mixed in a vicious right hook to go along with those hard lefts.
“He hit me with a lot of good shots,” Morales said. “I was getting hit a lot in the head. As the rounds went on, I was getting more tired. He was hitting me as hard in this fight as he did in the first one.”
Morales said in the post-fight interview that he doubted he could make 130 pounds again. But Pacquiao, 27, said he would like to see a third fight between the two fighters.
Martin Castillo, in a grueling fight, retained his World Boxing Association super flyweight title with a split decision victory over hard-hitting Alexander Munoz in the co-main event.
Castillo, of Los Angeles via Mexico, won by scores of 116-111 and 115-112. Munoz won the on the other scorecard 115-112. The Daily News had Munoz winning 114-113.
Munoz (28-2), of Venezuela, lost the belt to Castillo (30-1) in December 2004.
Robert Morales, (626) 962-8811, Ext. 2213
