Manny Pacquiao Robbed By Judges Against Tim Bradley
by Gautham Nagesh
A year of terrible judging in boxing culminated in the unthinkable on Saturday night at the MGM Grand: welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao, one of the sport’s brightest stars, was the victim of an abysmal split decision in favor of Timothy Bradley after a fight the Filipino clearly controlled.
That Pacquiao, the leading cash cow in Vegas not named Floyd Mayweather, would be robbed by veteran local judges seems like a cruel joke, especially after he escaped his third tilt against Juan Manuel Marquez with a win that many (including us) felt he didn’t deserve. Pacquiao appeared to land the harder and cleaner punches throughout his fight against Bradley, though “Desert Storm” did put up an admirable effort. Bradley scored with left hooks, jabs, and some strong body work, but his punches simply didn’t have a visible effect on the fantastic Filipino. Pacquiao, in contrast, appeared to hurt or stumble his opponent on several occasions.[[MORE]]
Pacquiao began finding a home for his straight left early and that was the punch that won him the fight, at least in our estimation. His right hook also landed cleanly at times, and appeared to hurt Bradley at least once. Tim scored with his own left hook, but that punch barely made Manny flinch. One could argue Tim did similar damage, but Pacquiao was better at hiding it. Such an argument would probably be overly charitable to Bradley, who also appeared to injure his ankle early in the fight. Regardless, when the two exchanged, Bradley consistently got the worst of it.
The only explanation for the scorecards from judges Duane Ford and CJ Ross in favor Bradley is that they favored his constant aggression, which mostly took the form of jabs, flurries, and forward movement. This is clear evidence of the folly in using the amateur system to breed judges, who will then bring those same tendencies to the pro ranks. Effective aggression should be rewarded, which means doing damage, not simply throwing punches. Bradley threw more punches, but he missed most of them, and the ones that landed barely affected Pacquiao. There’s simply no way one could argue Bradley did enough damage to win more than five rounds.
Pacquiao was admirably sporting after the contest, crediting his opponent and sounding content with his effort. Perhaps his newfound religious awakening really has given him some inner peace. His was an efficient, if not devastating performance. He deserved better than the judges’ decision, but should win a November rematch handily if it happens. Something tells me Pacman won’t be content to leave that fight to the judges, which seemed to be his idea from the outset in this contest. Pacquiao appeared a little unimpressed by Bradley throughout the build-up to this fight, and it might have cost him in the end.
All credit goes to Bradley for showing tremendous heart. We predicted his chin wouldn’t hold up for 12 rounds, but he took Pacquiao’s punches surprisingly well. I disagreed with the judges about his effectiveness, but there’s no denying he out-worked Pacquiao both before and during the fight. In winning, he has fulfilled his lifelong dreams and accomplished his boasts of conquering the mountaintop. Even if he loses the rematch, his place in boxing (and his bank account) should be secure for the rest of his life.
A lackluster PPV undercard turned out to be a pair of brief contests sandwiched around a late-round stunner in a welterweight bout for the IBF “world” title. Veteran puncher Randall Bailey showed nearly nothing for most of ten rounds, then caught previously unbeaten Philly contender Mike Jones with a picture-perfect straight right in the 10th to score a knockdown. Bailey calmly waited until the 11th, when he stepped under a jab and landed a pulverizing uppercut that immediately re-arranged the internal structure of Jones’ face. Jones went down like a stone and was unable to rise, forcing the ref to stop the fight.
We often point out how meaningless these alphabet trinkets really are, but then again we aren’t the ones getting into the ring. Donning the red IBF strap clearly meant something to Bailey, a journeyman that was overcome by emotion as he was interviewed by Max Kellerman. The win should earn him at least one defense and a solid payday along with it. Most importantly, for the rest of his life he will tell people he was a world champion. Good for him.
The junior featherweight co-feature between Jorge Arce and Jesus Rojas ended early, after a bizarre sequence of fouls at the start of the second round that left Arce unable to continue. Rojas landed what looked like a low blow at the same time as a head clash, which left Arce clutching his face. As he turned away, Rojas threw a vicious left hook that landed flush and stole Travieso’s sense of balance. Arce complained of his inability to rise, forcing referee Kenny Bayless to declare the bout a no contest. Arce had earlier scored a knockdown on a beautiful counter hook in the first.
The opening bout of the telecast saw Cuban amateur legend Guillermo Rigondeaux continue his ascent by flooring Philly’s Teon Kennedy five times en route to the fifth-round stoppage. The southpaw Rigondeaux worked as deftly as a surgeon with his left hand, delivering it in every fashion with incredible precision and deceptive power. The final knockdown came from a devastating straight left that forced the ref to end the violence. Rigondeaux might have already surpassed Yuriorkis Gamboa as the most impressive product of Cuba’s amateur system. A bout against Nonito Donaire could headline its own PPV card.