Manny Pacquiao is a champion once again, out-dueling Timothy Bradley in an exciting, hard fought 12 round welter-weight battle that had everything except a knockout.
I thought the champion Bradley appeared to be the better fighter early, showing he'd improved since their last meeting and had more power. But the fast pace and the power punches took a lot out of the champion and facing a challenger like Pacquiao you gotta go the distance.
Its obvious that Manny is not the same fighter he once was. Not that he lacked the 'killer instinct' but the power to kill and finish off a wounded opponent.
Even he said he was being careful not to get caught with a punch when he knew he was leading the fight and was trying to end it. Manny couldn't put down Bradley and seldom seemed to have him the champion really hurt. What Manny did right was land punches and adjust to the bruising style that Bradley tried to impose early.
All three judges had it for Pacquiao, 118-110, 116-112 and 116-112, as he regained his welterweight world title and handed Bradley his first defeat. ESPN.com also had it for Pacquiao, 118-110.
This title fight, Pacquiao vs Bradley II, was one of the better fights of this year. It pitted two fighters against one another who had something to prove and/or disprove; is Bradley deserving of the championship title? Has Pacquiao lost his killer instinct in the ring?
I believe the fight answered those questions with a Yes and No. Bradley proved deserving and Manny disproved his critics, sort of.
The fight gave us boxing fans an edge of your seat excitement that was one punch short of being a classic. Neither fighter could put together the punches nor land the one big punch that would've made him undisputed winner. Sure Manny got the unanimous decision winning on all three judging scorecards, but Bradley's style and fatigue played more into the hands of Manny, allowing him to score with quick punches in the later rounds. Manny won a boxing match, he didn't win a FIGHT!
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