Mayweather remains undefeated, beats Manny Pacquiao by unanimous decision
Manny Pacquiao lost a unanimous decision to undefeated champion Floyd Mayweather Saturday night in what many deemed as the Fight of the Century.
More than 16,507 fans packed the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas with seats going for a whopping $1,500 for the nose-bleed section and up to $10,000 for frontrow seats. The big event was one of the most monumental paydays in the history of boxing, with Mayweather receiving a guaranteed $120 million purse while his opponent, whose split is 40% of the purse, was guaranteed a stunning $80 million. Mayweather, after receipt tallies could end up earning $180 million with $120 million for Pacquiao.
The arena was filled with the who’s who of entertainment, including actors Denzel Washington, Robert De Niro, Mark Walhberg, music moguls Sean P. Diddy Combs, Jay Z and his wife, Beyoncé, Mary J. Blige, Nicki Minaj, actor Jake Gyllenhaal, Late Night TV host, Jimmy Kimmel, American Sniper actor, Bradley Cooper, and singer Justin Bieber just to name a few.
From the opening round, Mayweather established his jab early, a tactic the fighter is known for, and a strategy that would eventually become his calling card to victory.
Though aggressive in most of the middle rounds, Pacquiao threw less punches and seemed more frustrated as he tried to connect to the more elusive Mayweather, who danced around the ring in his traditional playful fashion.
When it was all said and done, Mayweather out boxed a somewhat fatigued Manny Pacquiao to win the judges favor.
“I thought I caught him many more times than he caught me,” a disappointed Pacquiao said. “I was never hurt. I was surprised at the scores.”
The scores all favored Mayweather, who breezed ahead of his opponent with little to no controversy. Dave Moretti saw it 118-110, while Bert Clements and Glenn Feldman both scored it 116-112.
Before the decision was even announced, Mayweather was already atop the ropes pounding his chest and declaring to fans, “I know I won!”
In claiming the WBO welterweight title to add to his WBC and WBA crowns, Mayweather advanced to 48-0, amassing enough points with his jab and counter punches to earn the victory. Pacquiao (57-6-2) who was never hurt in the fight and kept the pressure on, had a hard time landing any power or significant punches to stop Mayweather.
“He had his moments,” Mayweather said of Pacquiao, “but as long as I moved on the outside I could fight my fight. It was only when I stayed in the pocket that he had those moments.”
Even though the fight did not live up to all the hype that surrounded it, Mayweather proved, that even at the age of 39, he was indeed, pound-for-pound, the best in his league.
“My dad wanted me to do more, but I had to take my time. Because Manny Pacquiao is a competitor, and he’s extremely dangerous.”
Mayweather announced his last fight will be in September before hanging up his boxing gloves for good.
