In round 4, Pacquiao started strong and seemed to have gotten a rhythm for the first time in the fight. He was coming in and out and hitting Marquez with his punches with better precision than the previous 3 rounds. Marquez kept backing off, showing signs that he hasn’t completely recovered from the knockdown. Pacquiao repeatedly tagged Marquez with his right jab, left straight combos to the delight of his fans. HBO analyst Emmanuel Stewart commented, “Pacquiao seems to be much stronger now. His confidence looks like it has come back,” as the tempo of the fight started to lean towards Pacquiao’s favor. Marquez would keep trying though and landed some isolated shots, but they were too few and far away from the other to even consider the round competitive. (Pacquiao 10, Marquez 9)
Round 5 opened as Steward showered Pacquiao with high praise. Steward said,
"He loves to fight. You can see it in his eyes. I don't think there's ever been anybody in the boxing ring that loves to fight like he does."
And further elaborated,
"I think that he would be rather doing this than anything in the world. Just looking in his eyes you can see the intensity and the fierceness. Certainly, he is a true fighter."
The round though was turning back into a boxing match similar to the first two rounds. Marquez seemed to have regained his composure and was picking his spots with increased accuracy, Pacquiao in his part was also showing his improved boxing skills as he utilized his jab more often, picked off Marquez's punches and also counter-punched when he had an opportunity. This round could've definitely gone either way. Compubox did little to help determine the round's winner as both fighters logged in almost identical numbers with Pacquiao having a one punch edge in connects and Marquez a 2% edge in accuracy. Might as well toss a coin on this one or score it an even round. Depending on what you saw, and ringside judges did not have the privilege of a replay like I do, you can give the round to Pacquiao based on his aggressiveness or to Marquez for dictating the pace and bouncing back. Marquez also landed the best punch of the round with a straight right that connected flush on Pacquiao's jaw. I'll give that round to Marquez. (Marquez 10, Pacquiao 9)
Marquez opened round 6 with renewed confidence. He had gotten his bearings back and Pacquiao seemed like he was starting to doubt himself again. Pacquiao was tentative and Marquez was masterfully out-boxing him. HBO commentator Jim Lampley commented saying "In rounds like this you can feel Juan Manuel Marquez out-thinking Manny Pacquiao." Marquez countered Pacquiao and caught him out of position on various occasions. (Marquez 10, Pacquiao 9)
At the midway point of the fight, Pacquiao was ahead my cards 57-56 with both fighters taking 3 rounds each and Pacquiao leading by a point because of the knockdown. Coincidentally I have the same scores at this point with HBO analyst Larry Merchant and Harold Lederman during fight night.
Round 7 started similar to how the last two rounds did. The fight was favoring Marquez's pace and he was looking to continue his success against Pacquiao. In the middle of the round however, both men's head would clash for an inadvertent head-butt that opened up a cut on Marquez's right eye. The referee had to stop the bout momentarily for the ringside physician to check the cut and wipe off the blood that was dripping from Marquez's eye. Sensing blood, Pacquiao jumped on Marquez and turned the fight back into a brawl. He connected in bunches with his combinations as Marquez seemed more like the fighter in round 4 trying to fend off a Pacquiao storm. Around the 1:10 mark, Pacquiao started a flurry that had Marquez wobbly for a second. Every time Pacquiao fought at his usual relentless pace, it was evident that he came out on top but when he doubts himself and try to box with Marquez, he gets taken to school. In this round though, Pacquiao's aggression saw him through. (Pacquiao 10, Marquez 9)
Marquez opened round 8 with a vengeance. He went straight at Pacquiao and landed clean punches together with a straight right hand that opened a cut on Pacquiao's left eye. Pacquiao looking obviously bothered by the cut was backpedalling and getting tagged in the process. Pacquiao in the past has had a hard time adjusting to cuts and in this instance it was his lead eye that got damaged which affected his vision. In one instance, Pacquiao lunged back as if Marquez was stalking him when his opponent was simply standing still. He was having problems locating his opponent and seeing punches. He was practically fighting blind. It was as vulnerable as I've ever seen Pacquiao in a fight. He kept trying to fend Marquez off but the cut was really bothering him. Marquez took advantage of the situation as he landed with combinations and perfectly placed punches. (Marquez 10, Pacquiao 9)
Pacquiao opened the 10th round with a brilliant counter left hook while ducking and slipping from a Marquez left. The shot almost knocked Marquez down if not for his great balance which helped him regain his footing after the highlight real shot Pacquiao gave him. Pacquiao would follow-up with one of his vicious flurries as he stalked Marquez and backed him to the ropes. Marquez courageously fought back despite getting hit with a lot of punches. Pacquiao was going for the kill as the crowd noise reached deafening levels. At the midway point, the crowd starts cheering "Manny! Manny! Manny!" after Pacquiao tags Marquez with another vicious left. Big round for Pacquiao as he proved that the cut he sustained in round 8 was not enough to take him out of the fight. As he recovered from his cut though, Marquez's kept getting worse. More and more blood started to drip from the right eye. Marquez was getting desperate while Pacquiao looked like he was getting stronger. (Pacquiao 10, Marquez 9)
In-between rounds, Marquez's trainer Beristain was shown trying to mend Marquez's ugly cuts. HBO's Lampley was already suggesting the fight might be stopped due to the severity of the damage to Marquez's right eye.
When round 11 began, both fighters were finally showing signs of fatigues. Neither of the two really made a definitive statement in the first minute of the round. At the 2-minute mark, the referee warned Marquez for a low blow and gave Pacquiao a few seconds to recover. When the fight resumed, Pacquiao and Marquez would take turns in mounting assaults with little success. Marquez connects with a nice combination however around the 1-minute mark. Pacquiao was also showing his improved defense as he deflected and strafed most of Marquez's punches. Pacquiao ended the round by toying with Marquez ang tagging him with a couple of good straights as HBO commentator Jim Lampley suggested,
"Marquez is slipping in that area that he may need a knockout to beat Manny Pacquiao"
Based on my scorecards he did, Even if I gave round 11 to Marquez, which I can't based on how I closely reviewed the video multiple times, Marquez needed a KO to at least draw with Pacquiao. (Pacquiao 10, Marquez 9)
The final round of an epic battle was finally under way. Larry Merchant comments that his scorecards reflect a 6-5 edge for Marquez with Pacquiao receiving a 10-8 in one of his rounds making it a stalemate in his scorecards at the moment. Perhaps it's one of the reasons why a lot of people who saw the fight thought Marquez was robbed. If you listened to Merchant's opening comments in the last round, you would be under the impression that if Marquez won the last round, he would be declared the winner. Honestly, I don't know which rounds Merchant gave to Marquez that made his card swing that way. He didn't mention which rounds he scored for Pacquiao or Marquez in the last few rounds. My score card thus far has Pacquiao leading 106-102 with round 9 being the only round that can go either way. I can see though how other analysts could've given round 9 and/or 11 to Marquez but I simply couldn't based on the replays I saw.
The last round was a testament to Marquez's will to win and beat Pacquiao. He attacked with determined and definitive aggression. Pacquiao looked tired and wasn't connecting with much. I don't know if in his head he knew he was up as it seemed like he was playing a little bit of "keep away" or if was simply fatigue. Pacquiao's initial charges in the round did not have the same pop and fury he displayed in the rounds he won. Marquez took advantage and owned the round. In the last ten seconds, Pacquiao still tried to steal the round with a combination but Marquez was just on point in this round and would not allow him to get his way and finished the round strong by countering Pacquiao's assault with a combination of his own. Both men raised their hands as the bell sounded. (Marquez 10, Pacquiao 9)
Conclusion: HBO flashed Harold Lederman's card which read 115-112 for Pacquiao. The only difference between his card and mine is that he scored the 11th round for Marquez and the 12th for Pacquiao. I gave 11 to Pacquiao and the last round to Marquez en route to a 115-112 win for Pacquiao. The ringside judges at the fight scored it as such: Roth 115-112 for Marquez; Ford 115-112 Pacquiao; Miller 114-113 Pacquiao. Pacquiao wins via SD and is the new WBC super featherweight and Ring magazine champion.
I don't know how Roth scored it the way he did, because after closely reviewing all the rounds carefully, it was clear to me that the nearest Marquez would've came was a 1 point edge over Pacquiao and that is if I gave him rounds 9 and 11. However, it was indeed a close match that deserves another go.
After the fight Marquez and his camp cried foul claiming they were robbed. Marquez even followed Pacquiao to his home country singing his salty tune. Marquez had a reason to be salty, but crying a river would not get him anywhere and only cheapened his accomplishment. If there are doubts in most of you, just review the fight again. There are posts on Youtube for every round of the fight. Feel free to give me your own analysis.
Pacquiao has conquered the Mt. Everest of challenges he set forth in conquering years before. He had finally bested the best in his divisions in the likes of Mexican legends Erik Morales, Marco Antonio Barrera and Marqeuz. What's next for the Pac Man? Check back in the next couple of days for part 13 of this article as I chronicle the next few years of Manny Pacquiao's career. Thanks for reading.
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