Ducking, running Mayweather picks off Pacquiao as furious Filipino fans cry foul

Floyd Mayweather cemented his place in the pantheon of boxing greats with an emphatic win over Manny Pacquiao which triggered an outcry in the Philippines and divided opinion amongst the legends of the sport.

Feinting and dancing his way to a unanimous decision, Mayweather comfortably picked off Pacquiao over 12 rounds to extend his 19-year unbeaten record to 48-0.

But the lucrative bout hyped as the “Fight of the Century” failed to pack the sort of visceral punch seen in some of boxing’s most celebrated confrontations, and Mayweather’s win was booed by sections of a 16,507 crowd at the MGM Grand.

Yet the jeers could not obscure a clear win for the skilful Mayweather, with judges awarding him the decision by margins of 118-110 and 116-112.

Mayweather, who retained his World Boxing Association welterweight titles and seized Pacquiao’s World Boxing Organization crown, faced down his detractors immediately after the fight, clambering on the ring ropes and yelling: “I told you!”
“Everyone said this guy could beat Floyd, that Floyd is a chicken,” Mayweather said. “The non-believers, well Floyd turned them into believers.” Not everyone was converted, however, with former world champion Oscar de la Hoya, who lost a split decision to Mayweather in 2007, bemoaning his “running style.” “Sorry boxing fans,” De La Hoya wrote on Twitter. “Call me old school but I like the fans getting their money’s worth by watching an action-packed fight.”
Former world heavyweight champion Mike Tyson, who had picked Pacquiao to win, wrote on Twitter: “We waited five years for that ... #underwhelmed.” Former world champion Barry McGuigan called the fight “boringly one-sided.” Fans in the Philippines echoed the disappointment of those in the ring, crying foul over the judges’ decision and claiming their man was robbed of victory.

Filipino politicians and public figures ranging from the head of the army to swimsuit models weighed in on the decision, lining up to cry foul in a land where Pacquiao, 36, is revered as a national hero.

Pacquiao, who said after the fight a shoulder injury had hindered his performance, insisted he had done enough to win the bout.

“I thought I won the fight,” he said. “He didn’t do nothing.”

But other fight figures praised Mayweather’s exhibition of elusive ringcraft. Britain’s Lennox Lewis on Twitter said: “If U can’t catch it you can’t hit it #Maypac that pretty much sums up the fight.” Frank Bruno hailed Floyd Mayweather as a supreme “craftsman” of the ring.

“In this generation you have to go very, very far before you can be a skilled craftsman, businessman, technician, professional and a king in knowing his craft,” he told BBC Radio 5 Live’s Sportsweek programme. “As a boxer you’ve got to admire him, he’s got to go down as one of the greats.”

The debate washed over Mayweather as he retreated to count his winnings, estimated at more than $200 million for a night’s work.

“I am the American dream,” Mayweather said, reiterating his insistence that he plans to retire in September after one more win that would see him level Rocky Marciano’s legendary milestone of 49-0.

“My last fight is in September. I’ll do that and I will hang it up,” said Mayweather.

Pacquiao will receive well over $100 million in a 60-40 purse split the fighters agreed to beforehand, with revenues believed to have soared past $400 million.

The unprecedented interest in the fight saw the entrance of the boxers delayed about 45 minutes as heavy demand for the pay-per-view telecast overwhelmed broadcasters and created technical problems.

The audience at ringside read like a who’s who of Hollywood and the sports world with director Clint Eastwood, actors Robert De Niro, Jon Voight, Denzel Washington, Bradley Cooper, musician Sting and former NBA star Magic Johnson in the crowd.

MANILLA

Boxing fans in the Philippines cried foul and groaned in bitter disappointment yesterday as national hero Manny Pacquiao lost to American rival Floyd Mayweather in the “fight of the century”.

Filipinos filled gymnasiums, cinemas and bars as the Southeast Asian nation of 100 million people stopped for Pacquiao’s battle with Mayweather in Las Vegas, which he lost in a unanimous points decision.

A devastated Pacquiao said immediately afterwards that he thought he had won, and many at home agreed with him as they lashed out at the judges while heaping praise on their inspiration. “Pacquiao was cheated. Mayweather didn’t land a single solid punch,” cable television technician Romeo Rivera, 41, said.

Rivera was among thousands of mostly poor people who had gathered in the main public square of Manila’s Marikina suburb to watch the battle on a giant screen mounted on the back of a flat-bed truck.

In the southern port city of Zamboanga, loud boos echoed inside an army gymnasium where thousands of soldiers and their relatives watched Pacquiao given just the sixth defeat of his career.

“The decision was unfair. From the start, the commentators were for Manny. Everyone is disappointed,” Lieutenant Colonel Noel Precioso said as others nearby expressed similar sentiments.

Even the nation’s military chief, General Gregorio Catapang, weighed in with emotional comments immediately afterwards. “I think the decision was not fair. Like Manny said, he thought he was ahead with points. Both fought carefully but Manny was more aggressive. He was hitting Floyd,” Catapang said.

MAYWEATHER DID NOTHING

On social media, popular television host and swimsuit model Georgina Wilson expressed outrage to her 2.76 million Twitter followers: “Mayweather did nothing !!!!!!!!!!!!! Such a joke!!!!!!!!!!!!!”.

Pacquiao, 36, is a unifying figure in a country beset by grinding poverty, natural calamities and corruption.

His rags-to-riches story, from high school dropout to millionaire world boxing champion in an unprecedented eight weight divisions, is a huge source of hope and pride in the Philippines.

His fights throughout his career have caused the nation to grind to a halt, with nearly everyone stopping to watch them. Famously, even crime has dropped to nearly nothing during Pacquiao fights.

President Benigno Aquino said before the Mayweather clash that Pacquiao, who has recorded 57 victories and two draws in his career, was an “inspiration for every Filipino”.

Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said immediately after the loss that it had not diminished Pacquiao’s standing.
“Pacquiao is truly the People’s Champ. He fought for respect, not points. He won the hearts of the world,” Lacierda said in a statement. Echoing the sentiments of many, Vice President Jejomar Binay said Pacquiao would still return home a hero. (AFP)