In what may be the last fight of his storied boxing career, Filipino ring icon Manny Pacquiao put on an entertaining show, as he knocked down Timothy Bradley JR. twice en route to a unanimous decision victory at the MGM Grand Garden Arena Saturday in Las Vegas (Sunday in Manila).
The three judges scored the bout 116-110 across the board for Pacquiao, who overcame a slow start and clinched victory with knockdowns in the seventh and ninth rounds.
The win gave the "Pacman" the WBO international welterweight championship.
The Filipino icon grew stronger as the fight went on, taking over in the second half of the match en route to the 58th – and last – victory of his legendary career.
"Physically, if you ask me, I'm still okay, I can still fight," Pacquiao said afterward. "But I made my decision to go back to the Philippines and help the people, and spend time with my family."
It was a close fight in the first six rounds, with Bradley fighting in a disciplined style and keeping Pacquiao off with his jab while repeatedly looking for an opening to land a huge right hand.
However, Pacquiao repeatedly evaded Bradley's wild swings, and in the seventh round, he landed the first definitive punch of the fight with a short right hand that forced the American boxer to touch both gloves to the mat.
Bradley survived the count, and Pacquiao tried to go for the win. The American boxer survived the round, however, and came back with an impressive effort in the eighth round. Bradley arguably won the ninth round, scoring with a huge flurry that pushed the "Pacman" into the ropes and had him side-stepping to avoid Bradley's punches.
Looking to build on his huge eighth round, Bradley came out aggressive in the ninth, but unfortunately for the American, it only worked to his disadvantage. With Bradley looking to come in with a right hand, Pacquiao landed a counter-left hand straight to the American's face, sending him tumbling down on the canvas.
"This was different from the last two fights, because I'm looking for a knockout in every round," Pacquiao said after the fight.
A desperate Bradley became even more aggressive in the final three rounds, but his swings mostly hit air or were blocked by Pacquiao. In the 12th, with the victory at hand, Pacquiao stood toe-to-toe with his foe and exchanged punches – and again, he got the better of Bradley who got tangled on the ropes seconds before the final bell rang.
"He's a tough opponent," Pacquiao said of Bradley. "He survived the 12 rounds. But I'm not careless. I'm not doing careless (things) in the ring. (I used) the counter punch, the uppercut and the straight, and that was my plan even in training."
source: www.abs-cbnnews.com
