Underscoring his tag as the world’s best pound for pound fighter, Filipino ring hero Manny Pacquiao bucked a size disadvantage to outclass Antonio Margarito of Mexico and claim the WBC super welterweight crown, his eighth weight crown, at the Dallas Cowboys Stadium in Texas Saturday night.

   “I got hurt once, one round, I recovered right away, I really trained hard for this fight. I sacrificed a lot for this fight,” said Pacquiao after the fight.

   There was no knockdown but Pacquiao, despite giving up close to 20 pounds in weight, proved dominant throughout the bout set at a catch weight of 150 lbs.

   Unlike Joshua Clottey who refused to engage Pacquiao, Margarito gamely fought his heart out against the Filipino champion. In the end, however, his face was reduced into a bloody mess.

   Pacquiao went through the motions in the final round, with the outcome all but wrapped up in the first 11 rounds.

   Margarito took heavy shots but stayed on his feet. Pacquiao completed his classy performance with a late combination that landed flush on Margarito’s face.

   Pacquiao won on all three judges’ scorecards as he put a savage beating on Margarito and extended his win streak to 13 straight fights.

   “A really hard fight,” Pacquiao said. “The hardest fight of my boxing career. Margarito is really fast and strong. He is big, bigger than me.”

   The southpaw Pacquiao used his hand speed and ring savvy to prevail in front of a crowd of over 41,000, despite giving up a 17-pound weight advantage.

   “I never expected him to be as strong as he was,” Pacquiao said. “He hurt me in the body and in the face. I am so lucky tonight.”

   One judge scored the fight 120-109 while the other two had it 119-109 and 118-110.

   Pacquiao has shown little sign of losing speed and power as he moves up in weight to fight bigger and stronger opponents, but he failed to score the knockout on Saturday.

   Even so, the bout didn’t turn into the same kind of dull affair as Pacquiao’s fight against Joshua Clottey at the same venue in March.

   Unlike Clottey, Margarito came to fight. He paid the price as he suffered a nasty gash under the right eye and had a huge welt that almost closed his left eye and ended up in the hospital after the fight.

   At one point in the 11th round Pacquiao appeared to look toward referee Laurence Cole as if he was trying to get the ref to stop the fight.

   “I feel for my opponent,” Pacquiao said. “His eyes (were swollen and cut) and bloody face. I wanted the ref to look at that.

   “In 12th round I wasn’t looking for the knockout.”

   Asked what advice he had for his fighter heading into the final round, trainer Freddie Roach said, “I told him to knock him out.”

   Pacquiao had a scare after the fight when he learned his mother, Dionesia, had suffered what officials called an “anxiety attack” during the fight and was taken to hospital. Pacquiao said at the post-fight news conference that she was doing better.

   “She’s OK now. She’s OK,” Pacquiao said.

   Pacquiao, 31, entered the ring at 148 pounds while Margarito beefed up from 150 at the weigh-in to 165 pounds by fight time.

   Pacquiao dominated Margarito from the outset to capture his eighth title in as many weight classes. He is also the first Asian to hold four or more major world titles.

   Roach felt his fighter dominated, winning all but one round.

   “Sometimes he stayed on the ropes too long but overall he stuck to the game plan, box him down the middle. The jab worked perfectly, the straight left hand. I believe if he had stayed on the body he would have knocked (Margarito) out,” Roach said.

   Pacquiao has looked unstoppable in his last five fights and has now won 13 straight, including eight by knockout, since losing to Erik Morales in March 2005.

   Roach said he would have stopped the fight sooner if he was working in Margarito’s corner.

   “It was the worst beating I have ever seen,” Roach said. “After eight rounds it was over. It was just a matter of time. He has no quit in him but the corner man is supposed to protect his fighter.”

   The Mexican had his moments Saturday and hurt Pacquiao in the sixth and also in the eighth round when Margarito landed a left uppercut on the button that snapped Pacquiao’s head back.

   Margarito was most effective when he had Pacquiao on the ropes but he failed to capitalize on his big height and weight advantage.

   At five-foot-11, Margarito had a 6 1/2-inch reach advantage and a 4 1/2-inch height advantage.

   “We were going good until I got caught,” Margarito said. “And then that is when the problems started coming.”

   Asked in the ring, immediately after the fight, if he thought of quitting because of the punishment he was taking, Margarito said, “No, no way. I am Mexican and we fight until the end.”

   Pacquiao earned close to 15 million dollars while Margarito collected about six million.

   It was Margarito’s first fight in the United States since serving a one-year suspension after he got caught with plaster-filled hand wraps in his gloves prior to a fight against Shane Mosley.

 

Margarito: Eye surgery a success, vows to fight on

   “So when can I start running?” asked Antonio Marg-arito moments following successful surgery to repair a fractured right orbital bone at Methodist Hospital in Dallas, Texas. Sergio Diaz, manager of Margarito, said “the doctor told us everything went perfect no complications of any kind. There is nothing wrong with his right eye. “Antonio is such a warrior. The first thing he asked was ‘when can I start running’ and we told him he has to relax for awhile,” Diaz said. “For sure, at least 60 days of no contact of any kind in a gym.” Margarito said “I fought as hard as I could against a great champion in Manny Pacquiao.”

Margarito’s message to the fans

   While awaiting eye surgery, Antonio Margarito took the time to express gratitude to his many fans: “I would like to congratulate Manny Pacquiao for his win on Saturday Night. It was a tough and difficult fight for me and I hope the fans enjoy our battle at Cowboys Stadium.”  “I also want to thank Bob Arum for always believing in me and for giving me the opportunity to fight Manny Pacquiao. I also want to thank all the fans who came out to see me and who watched the fight on TV and continue to support me. I gave it my all, but unfortunately I was not able to get the victory over the best fighter in the world today. As I said before the fight, I was never going to quit and tried to win the fight to the very last minute.” 

El Gran Chisme:

Golden Boy Promotions and Televisa Sign Multi-Year Deal
Mexico’s best to be featured on monthly Saturday night shows.

   As one of boxing’s traditional powerhouses when it comes to producing world-class talent in the ring, Mexico might best be described as the heart and soul of the sweet science.  Now, in signing a multi-year deal, Golden Boy Promotions and Televisa will team up to bring Mexico’s best established stars as well as its stars of tomorrow into living rooms across the country. “This is a great moment for Golden Boy Promotions, our fighters and the sport of boxing,” said Oscar de la Hoya, President of Golden Boy Promotions.  “To join with such a respected partner in Televisa is an honor for us and together, we’re going to deliver the best fights possible to boxing fans every month. We can’t wait to get started!” Alberto Sosa, Director of Televisa Deportes added, “Both companies are obligated to present each event with the highest quality and best transmission along with the most recognized boxers on the national and international levels.” The monthly telecasts, which will debut in January of 2011, will air live on Saturday nights from sites throughout Mexico. The date and fights for the series debut, and other telecasts taking place in the first quarter of 2011, will be announced shortly.