Beaten Pacman accepts the result
Manny Pacquiao believed he beat Timothy Bradley in Las Vegas on Saturday night but two of the judges did not.
Their opinion was what mattered and what made the difference and after losing his title the former WBO welterweight champion did the right thing: he accepted the result.
"I accept the result," Pacquiao said after losing for the first time since his defeat to Erik Morales in Las Vegas in March 2005.
"I respect the judges. I cannot blame them. It is a part of the game. I give thanks to the Lord. I did my best but my best wasn't good enough," the Filipino said
Asked if he thought he had won the fight, Pacquiao replied: "Absolutely. Yes."
Official statistics indicated that the judges were wrong. Pacquiao connected with a higher percentage of punches thrown.
He landed with 253 of 751 to the 159 of 839 for the American, and landed 190 power punches compared to his opponent's 108.
Bradley’s victory ending a run of 15 consecutive wins by Pacquiao, who had won “world” titles in an
unprecedented eight weight divisions.
"Desert Storm" Bradley, a 5-1 underdog against Pacquiao, improved his record to 29-0 with 12 knockouts. Pacquiao slipped to 54-4-2 with 38 knockouts.
Jerry Roth (115-113) awarded the fight to Pacquiao, 115-113 but CJ Ross and Duane Ford made it 115-113 for the American. Many spectators felt Pacquiao had done enough to win.
"It was a good, competitive fight," said Bradley. "Every round was pretty close. Pacquiao won some of the early rounds. I controlled the later rounds with my jab. I need to go home and review the tape.
"He is a strong puncher. He rocked me a couple of times in the fight but I held my ground and fought to the end. This is boxing."
BRADLEY KEPT WAITING
Pacquiao kept his opponent waiting before the start of the fight after watching his beloved Boston Celtics basketball team lose the Eastern Conference finals to the Miami Heat.
Bradley landed several early body jabs before the Filipino ended the opening round with a flourish, landing three crunching straight lefts to the head.
Watched by a crowd of just under 16 000 that included former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson, Pacquiao kept probing with his left hand, then mixed in a series of telling combinations in the third round.
As chants of "Manny, Manny" echoed through the Garden Arena in the fourth round, Pacquiao attacked Bradley with an array of body punches and jabs to the head. Bradley did well to stay on his feet.
Pacquiao maintained control in the fifth round, subjecting Bradley to a flurry of blows on the counter attack and snapping his head backwards with a shuddering left hook.
The Filipino kept Bradley on the back foot for most of the sixth round, and pinned him to the ropes with another series of body blows, punctuated by a searing right hook.
Bradley fought back bravely in the seventh round and enjoyed his best round in the tenth when Pacquiao appeared to relax.
