Pacquiao fought with injured right shoulder

Filipino boxer Manny Pacquiao fought Floyd Mayweather Jr. with an injured right shoulder that kept him from throwing as many punches as he wanted to.

Kevin Iole of Yahoo! Sports first reported that Pacquiao had injured his shoulder in training camp and was taking anti-inflammatory shots that were approved by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA).

Pacquiao lost a wide unanimous decision to Mayweather in their "Fight of the Century" Saturday in Las Vegas, suffering the sixth loss of his career.

Pacquiao confirmed at the post-fight press conference that he had injured his shoulder and even briefly considered asking for a postponement of the bout.

"We thought about planning to postpone… because of the right hand," he said. "I can't use my right hand."

Iole reported that Pacquiao requested to take a shot after arriving at his locker room in the MGM Grand Garden Arena, but was denied by the Nevada State Athletic Commission -- something that Pacquiao confirmed.

Pacquiao also said his shoulder was "getting better" but it was not 100% on fight night.

"Three weeks before the fight, I skipped my training for a couple of days because of that reason, and we went to an MRI and there's a tear in my right shoulder," he said.

Trainer Freddie Roach said Pacquiao suffered the injury when he banged shoulders with a sparring partner.

Pacquiao revealed he started feeling the pain on his right shoulder by the third round.

"I already felt the pain in my shoulder, that's why when I throw punches and combinations, I backed off because it hurts," he said.

Pacquiao nevertheless kept moving forward throughout the 12-round match but was ultimately unsuccessful in getting past Mayweather's jab and laser-like right hand.

He wound up throwing only 429 punches and landed only 81. Mayweather landed 148 of 435 punches.

Yet Pacquiao said he still felt he believed he won the fight.

"I thought I won the fight, and I have to review the DVD," he said. "I hurt him many times. I hurt him many times. You can see that if you watch the replay, but he didn't hurt me."

Mayweather, when informed that Pacquiao fought with an injured shoulder, merely shrugged.

"I had injuries also going into this fight," he said. "Both of my arms is injured, both of my hands is injured. But like I said before, I will always find a way to win."

Mayweather hiked his record to 48-0.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Floyd 'not trolling' Pacquiao with PH flag-inspired shirt

American boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr. insists he was not trying to "troll" Manny Pacquiao when he unveiled a t-shirt that featured the colors of the Philippine flag.

The shirt shows an image of Mayweather against a backdrop of the Philippine flag, complete with the rising sun. The boxer debuted the shirt during his media workout, and is already being sold online and at a store at the lobby of the MGM Grand.

When asked about the t-shirt, Mayweather insists there is no ill intent on his part.

"I'm not trolling anyone," he told Kevin Iole of Yahoo! Sports. "Floyd Mayweather has fans from all around the world."

"My staff is very diverse. I have Filipinos that work for me, and we like everyone," he added. "We have 'TMT' for Africa, TMT for Japan, TMT for Canada, and we also have TMT for the Philippine fans."

Pacquiao, for his part, merely cracked a joke when informed of Mayweather's new gear.

"That's good. I like that, because he wants to join our team. TMT: The Manny Team," he told reporters yesterday.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Pacquiao now a One FC shareholder

MANILA, Philippines -- Filipino boxing icon Manny Pacquiao is now a shareholder of mixed martial arts company One Fighting Championship (One FC), according to a Yahoo! Sports report.

One FC chief executive Victor Cui told Yahoo! Sports reporter Kevin Iole that Pacquiao purchased "an undisclosed number of shares" in the company.

"There are tons of reasons why I'm excited about this. Obviously, Manny Pacquiao is a global sports icon, and having him as part of our organization as a shareholder and promoting One FC and promoting the sport is huge for the sport in the region," Cui told Iole.

Cui revealed that Pacquiao even tried on a pair of MMA gloves, and was delighted to find out that they were lighter than boxing gloves.

"He said to me, 'Man, someone could get hurt with the power of my punches if I could wear these,'" Cui related.

The executive also described Pacquiao as a "relatively new MMA fan."

One FC's popularity has steadily risen in the Philippines, with local MMA fighters like Eduard Folayang and other members of Team Lakay seeing action in the promotion's fight cards.

Recently, former women's boxing champion Ana Julaton also made her One FC debut, while former UFC contender Brandon Vera, a Filipino-American, also recently signed a contract with One FC.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com