 |
| Pacquiao scores in this screengrab of televised fight |
Manny Pacquiao today came out of a four-year retirement and held WBC welterweight champion Mario Barrios to a majority draw, in a fight that critics said should have given him another page in boxing history.
Two other Filipinos scored victories in the card. Super
featherweight Mark Magsayo defeated Jorge Mata Cuellar of Mexico by unanimous
decision (100-90, 100-90, 98-92) while Middleweight Eumir Felix Marcial beat American
Bernard Joseph by 3rd-round technical knockout.
"I thought I won the fight," Pacquiao said in a post-fight
interview.
 |
| PAANO SUMALI? BASAHIN DITO |
The crowds who watched at the MGM Grand arena in Las Vegas
agreed with him, as they booed when the results were announced; the first judge
scored it 115-113 for Barrios while the other judges had it at 114-114.
The draw, which enabled Barrios to retain his World Boxing
Council title, denied Pacquiao’s bid to be the first fighter ever to capture a
major world title after being inducted to the International Boxing Hall of Fame,
which took place last June in recognition of his being champion in eight divisions.
The scorecards, however, showed that Pacquiao, 46 years old,
was leading until Round 9, landing more heavy blows in exchange for 30-year-old
Barrios’ mostly jabs, before the latter stepped up his aggression just enough
to catch up on the last round.
 |
| Basahin ang detalye |
Pacquiao landed 101 of his 577 punches (17.5%) compared to
Barrios' 120 from 658 (18.2%). However, Pacquiao landed 81 power punches against
Barrios' 75.
He said he wants a rematch, to which Barrios replied, ”I’d
love to do it again.”
But Pacquiao’s team also held out for the possibility of
fighting bigger names, such as Gervonta “Tank” Davis, WBA welterweight champion
Rolando Romero and Floyd Mayweather.
"If Mayweather comes out of retirement and signs the
contract, we'll fight," he said.
In their 2015 fight, Mayweather won via unanimous decision
to unify the WBC, WBA and World Boxing Organization welterweight titles.
