S. Samuel
Popular professional boxer Manny Pacquiao, most known for getting name-dropped by rappers like Rick Ross and Jay-Z, received his first loss in seven years after going down to Timothy Bradley Saturday (June 9) night.
Althought Pacquiao managed to last all twelve rounds, a final decision ultimately knocked out his winning streak.
Manny Pacquiao tried to turn his welterweight title fight with Timothy Bradley into a brawl, but it was Bradley who won a split decision to end a remarkable run by the Filipino fighter. Bradley won 115-113 on two scorecards, while losing by the same margin on the third. The decision was roundly booed by the crowd at the MGM Grand arena. Pacquiao never put Bradley down, but hurt him in the early rounds and landed the harder and cleaner punches throughout the fight. Bradley fought well in spurts and tried desperately to take the fight to Pacquiao, and scored enough points with the judges to win the 147-pound title. (Fox Sports)
Shortly after the bout, Bradley downplayed Manny’s renowned boxing power.
Pacquiao tried to turn the fight into a brawl, using his power to hurt Bradley in the early rounds. But Bradley changed tactics in the middle rounds and used his boxing skills to win enough rounds to take the narrow decision for the welterweight title. “I thought I won the fight,” Bradley said. “I didn’t think he was as good as everyone says he was. I didn’t feel his power.” Ringside punching statistics showed Pacquiao landing 253 punches to 159 for Bradley, who vowed before the fight to take the 147-pound title from Pacquiao. (ABC News)
A rematch is reportedly already in the works to take place this fall.
Bradley was so confident that he had oversized tickets printed up for a Nov. 10 rematch that will now likely happen. Bradley seemed hurt in the fourth and fifth rounds, but Pacquiao had trouble landing big punches after that. Still, he seemed in control of the fight everywhere but on the judge’s scorecards. (ABC News)
Pacman has made a name for himself within the hip-hop community, most notably through a name drop off Jay-Z’s “Thank-You” Blueprint 3 record.
“Thank-you, thank-you, thank-you, please hold your applause,” Jay raps. “‘Fore I just apply logic keys, keys open doors/Now I’m balcony, opera, black tux, binoculars, blc lux/Stop it, I shouldn’t be so popular/Name keep poppin’ up, face keep poppin’ up/On the Tube, I’m just watching Pacquiao box ’em up/How would I know HBO would get a shot of us/Sittin’ so close, that we almost got snot on us.” (“Thank-You”)
