LAS
VEGAS, Nevada (UPDATED) – Timothy Bradley won a contested split
decision over Manny Pacquiao, ending the Filipino fighter’s
remarkable run and handing him his first defeat in seven years.
It
didn’t come easy and it wasn’t without controversy, with the
pro-Pacquiao crowd booing loudly when the decision was announced.
Pacquiao
landed more punches and seemed to land the harder punches. But when
the scorecards were added up, Bradley was up 115-113 on two
scorecards and behind by the same margin on a third. The Associated
Press had Pacquiao winning 117-111.
Pacquiao
tried to turn the fight into a brawl, using his power to hurt Bradley
in the early rounds. But Bradley changed tactics in the middle rounds
and used his boxing skills to win enough rounds to take the narrow
decision for the welterweight title.
"I
thought I won the fight,’’ Bradley said. "I didn’t think
he was as good as everyone says he was. I didn’t feel his power.’’
Ringside
punching statistics showed Pacquiao landing 253 punches to 159 for
Bradley, who vowed before the fight to take the title from Pacquiao.
Bradley
was so confident that he had oversized tickets printed up for a Nov.
10 rematch that will now likely happen.
Bradley
seemed hurt in the fourth and fifth rounds, but Pacquiao had trouble
landing big punches after that. Still, he seemed in control of the
fight everywhere but on the judge’s scorecards.
"Can
you believe that? Unbelievable,’’ promoter Bob Arum said. "I
went over to Bradley before the decision and he said, `I tried hard
but I couldn’t beat the guy.’’’
Bradley
said he hurt his ankle in the second round, and that trainer Joel
Diaz said he could either quit or try to take the fight to Pacquiao.
"I
did my best," Pacquiao said. `"I guess my best wasn’t
good enough.’"
Pacquiao
said he studied Bradley on tape before the fight and wasn’t
surprised by anything he did. He said he thought he was in control of
the fight and was shocked when the decision went against him.
"He
never hurt me with his punches, most of them landed on my arms,’’
Pacquiao said.
Arum
said there would be a rematch, though he criticized the judging. Arum
has contracts with both fighters.
Pacquiao
fell to 54-4-2 with 38 wins inside the distance, suffering his first
defeat since he dropped a 12-round unanimous decision to Erik Morales
in March 2005.
Bradley
improved to 29-0 with 12 wins inside the distance and seized
Pacquiao’s World Boxing Organization welterweight title.
Bradley
came out aggressive and got the better of the exchanges early in the
first round before Pacquiao hurt the American with three straight
lefts late in the round.
Pacquiao
continued to get to Bradley with the straight left in the second and
third rounds, connecting also with some right hooks to the body and
the occasional over-hand left.
Bradley
stayed in front of him and kept punching but didn’t appear to be
hurting the champion.
In
the fourth Pacquiao hurt Bradley with a series of blows. After one
exchange that included a left to Bradley’s jaw the American
stumbled back.
Pacquiao
rocked Bradley with another left to the head in the fifth and in the
sixth backed Bradley into the ropes, unleashing a barrage that
included a strong right hook to the body.
A
tenacious Bradley continued to challenge Pacquiao, and it was
Bradley’s work in the final three rounds that turned the tide for
the judges, even though by then he was complaining to his corner of
pain in his right foot, which he had twisted in an earlier round.
The
announcement of the result was greeted by boos from the pro-Pacquiao
crowd at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. Pacquiao’s wife, Jinkee, and
sons Manny Junior and Michael -- watching their father fight in Las
Vegas for the first time -- looked stunned.
Pacquiao,
a world champion in eight weight classes who is reckoned the best
pound-for-pound fighter in the world, said he thought he had done
enough to win.
‘’Absolutely,
yes,’’ he said, to cheers from the crowd.
However,
Pacquiao wasn’t prepared to criticize the judging. (Associated
Press and Agence France Press)
SOURCE: www.mb.com.ph
