Manny Pacquiao reclaims WBO welterweight title with win over Jessie Vargas

Filipino star Manny Pacquiao reclaimed the World Boxing Organization welterweight title for the third time with a unanimous decision victory over former champion Jesse Vargas in his comeback fight on Saturday.

The 37-year-old Pacquiao, who announced his retirement seven months ago after beating Timothy Bradley, knocked Vargas down in the second round en route to a decisive victory at the Thomas & Mack Center.

Pacquiao, 59-6 with two drawn and 38 knockouts, showed he still has a lot left in the tank but failed to get the knockout victory that has eluded him for the past seven years.

All three judges scored the bout for Pacquiao, two of them by 118-109 and the other by 114-113.

Pacquiao won the WBO title for the first time in 2010 when he beat Miguel Cotto. He lost it two years later to Bradley, then got it back by winning the rematch with Bradley in 2014. He then lost it last year to the now-retired Floyd Mayweather, who had a front row seat for Saturday’s bout.

Pacquiao took time off to concentrate on his job as a newly elected politician in the Philippine Senate. After serving his first stint as a rookie senator, he says the fire was rekindled and the stage set for a return to boxing.

Pacquiao said he was retiring following his April 9 two-knockdown victory over Bradley in their third fight.

Pacquiao looked impressive in stopping Bradley, showing that he has recovered from a shoulder injury which hampered him in his fight against Mayweather in May 2015.

Both fighters felt each other out as very few punches were thrown in the first round.

Pacquiao was the quicker of the two to size up the opponent as the Filipino southpaw learned early on that he could counter Vargas’ left jab with a right to the face.

That’s what happened in the second round when Pacquiao connected on a counterpunch that sent Vargas stumbling backwards and onto the canvas.

source: interaksyon.com

Palace praises triumphant Manny Pacquiao for inspiring Filipinos

Malacañang on Sunday congratulated Manny Pacquiao for his latest victory over Chris Algieri, describing the Filipino boxing champion as a “worthy role model and wellspring of inspiration” to his countrymen.

“We join the Filipino nation in celebrating the triumph of Congressman Manny Pacquiao over Chris Algieri in Macau,” Presidential Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma said in a statement.



“He is a worthy role model and wellspring of inspiration to all Filipinos who are striving to improve their well-being and attain a prosperous future.”

Pacquiao was simply dominant over Algieri, scoring six knockdowns en route to a unanimous decision over the previously unbeaten American fighter.

“Strength, grit, and courage were written all over his face and demeanor throughout the fight. With every punch that scored, millions of Filipinos cheered him to victory from all corners of the country and the world,” the statement added.

“Congressman Manny Pacquiao embodies and personifies the Filipinos’ outstanding qualities – audacious, tenacious and conscientious – persevering in advancing a worthy cause, and unwavering even in the face of danger and adversity.”

Vice President Jejomar Binay also hailed Pacquiao, who beat Algieri’s height and youth edge by displaying one of his finest performances inside the ring.

“Algieri may have the advantage in height and reach, but Manny overcame that with his heart and determination. He showed us that he has the true heart of a champion and once again, made us all proud to be Filipinos,” Binay said in a statement.

source: interaksyon.com

Manny Pacquiao relaxed, Chris Algieri struggles but makes weight ahead of fight

Manny Pacquiao weighed in at 143.8 lb Saturday for his welterweight world title defense, but his opponent Chris Algieri had trouble on the scales ahead of Sunday’s fight.

Undefeated American Algieri could not make the catchweight limit of 144 lb and was still 0.20 lb over after a second attempt despite stripping down to his bare essentials at the Saturday morning weigh-in (Friday night in the US) at the Venetian Macau’s Cotai Arena. 



Algieri (20-0, 8 KOs) was given two hours to sweat off the remaining weight and came back for a third attempt which saw him finally go under at 143.6 lb.

Despite the hiccup, which would have thrown Algieri’s final preparations for Sunday’s fight slightly behind schedule, the former kickboxer from Long Island predicted he would win.

“I did all the hard work I needed to do,” said Algieri. “I know I can count on my skills to do it. This is dream come true and I’m ready to rock.”

Before Pacquiao and Algieri square off for the World Boxing Organization (WBO) welterweight title at around noon local time (0400GMT) Chinese double Olympic gold medalist flyweight Zou Shiming (5-0, 1 KO) will take on Thailand’s Kwanpichit Onesongchaigym (27-0, 12 KOs) in a 12-round final eliminator for a world title shot.

Kwanpichit, an uncanny Pacquiao look-alike dubbed ‘mini-Manny’ by the media, and Zou both weighed in right on the 112 lb flyweight limit.

There are two other world title contests on the undercard.

WBO featherweight champion and double Olympic gold medallist Vasyl Lomachenko (2-1, 1 KO) defends his title against Thailand’s Chonlatarn Piriyapinyo (52-1, 33 KOs) with both exactly on the 126 lb limit.

World Boxing Association super lightweight champion Jessie Vargas from Las Vegas (25-0, 9 KOs) weighed in on the 140 lb limit for his defence against Mexico’s Antonio DeMarco (31-3-1, 23 KOs) who was a little lighter at 139.3 lb.

source: interaksyon.com

WBO names Pacquiao ‘Fighter of the Decade’

Even if he has only fought under the World Boxing Organization (WBO) four times, the Puerto Rico-based governing body yesterday named the Filipino superstar and ex-welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao as its Fighter of the Decade during the ongoing 25th WBO convention in Florida.

Pacquiao only became a WBO champion in late-2009 after he beat Miguel Cotto for the welterweight title. He defended it successfully twice against Shane Mosley of the US and Juan Manuel Marquez of Mexico before losing it to Tim Bradley last June on a controversial split decision.

Pacquiao is due to face Marquez in a fourth fight on Dec. 8 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas and although there won’t be any title at stake, the winner of this much-awaited battle would become a major player in the big-money bouts in the coming year.

The WBO’s decision to award the 33-year-old Pacquiao the coveted award stems from his winning eight world titles in as many weight classes stretching back to 1998.

Since making his US debut in 2001, Pacquiao has racked up a string of victories over the biggest names from super-bantam (122 lbs) to super-welter (154 lbs). His victims include Erik Morales, Marco Antonio Barrera, Oscar De La Hoya, Ricky Hatton, Joshua Clottey, Antonio Margarito, Marquez and Mosley.

The WBO also picked super-bantamweight champion Nonito Donaire as its Fighter of the Year for his exemplary performance against Wilfredo Vazquez Jr. of Puerto Rico, Jeffrey Mathebula of South Africa, and recently, versus Toshiaki Nishioka of Japan.

The Philippines currently has four world champions, three of them—Donaire, flyweight Brian Viloria and light-flyweight Donnie Nietes--carrying WBO titlebelts. The other champion, light-fly Johnreil Casimero reigns in the International Boxing Federation (IBF).

The WBO was created in 1998 when a group of boxing men broke away from the World Boxing Association (WBA).

The WBO, alongside the WBA, IBF and the Mexico-based World Boxing Council, are the four legitimate boxing bodies in the world

source: mb.com.ph