It was billed as a "Manny Pacquiao weekend," but no one apparently told Timothy Bradley
The undefeated challenger Bradley shocked the world by eking out a split decision over Manny Pacquiao, backing up his pre-fight bravado with an unyielding performance that allowed him to keep his record immaculate, while also claiming the WBO Welterweight title, Saturday at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, in front of a largely pro-Pac-Man crowd.
One judge gave Pacquiao 115-113, but the other two scored it the same, but for Bradley.
It was a confusing result, as post-fight numbers showed Pacquiao landed 39 percent of his power shots (190/493) compared to just 28 percent by Bradley (108/390), according to Sports Illustrated's Chris Mannix.
Boos drowned out Bradley's post-fight interview, as the predominantly-Pacquiao audience let their feelings known.
"I caught my second wind by the sixth round," said Bradley. "I just kept sticking and moving, sticking and moving.
"Manny's a beast. He hurt me a couple of times in the fight, but I held up."
It was a stunning victory by 28-year-old, who was ranked eighth by The Ring Magazine on its list of pound-for-pound fighters, as he dispatched the number one-ranked Pacquiao.
Earlier in the week, Bradley told BET.com that he didn't think Pacquiao was as hungry as he used to be, and indeed, the fighter known as "Desert Storm" seemed to want it more.
Bradley also went to town with mocked-up posters, tickets and programs advertising a "Pacquiao versus Bradley II" fight during training and during their pre-fight press conference, based off a clause in the fighter's contract that would allow Pacquiao to immediately seek a rematch in event of a defeat.
That turned out to be exactly what happened.
The fight will also give additional fuel to calls for Pacquiao to retire. His own trainer, the legendary Freddie Roach, had said that he would call on his ward to step down "if he looks bad," while back in March, Pacquiao himself told a radio show that God had told him in a dream to retire.
"I thought that the fight was good. He's not an easy opponent. he's very strong and he moves around, [but] I mean I believe I won the fight," said Pacquiao.
"I don't know what happened."
Still, a smiling Pacquiao said he had "no problem" with a November rematch.
The beginning of the actual bout was delayed as Pacquiao wanted to finish the ending of the NBA Eastern Conference Finals, and then took extra time to loosen up his calves. Ironically, the team that Pacquiao supported, the Boston Celtics, also lost against the Miami Heat, 88-101.
The loss also gave additional credence to a "16th fight curse" for Pacquiao, as the Filipino icon has lost every 16 fights, since his first loss to Rustico Torrecampo in 1996. - Adrian Dy/OMG, GMA News
source: gmanetwork.com
