The Fighting Pride of the Philippines, Manny Pacquiao, settled for a majority draw in his WBC welterweight title fight with Mexican champion Mario Barrios held at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on Sunday morning, Manila time.
Two judges scored the championship showdown 114-114 to overrule the other judge’s 115-113 tally in favor of Barrios. With the draw, Pacquiao was unable to wrest the title away from the Mexican and the history that comes with doing so. The only eight-division was aiming to become the oldest welterweight title holder in his return to prizefighting after six years and the second oldest ever to win a belt.
Those lofty goals, however, were left unrealized as Barrios proved to be one tough cookie to crack.
Manny Pacquiao Goes on the Attack, Mario Barrios Jabs Away
The fight between Manny Pacquiao and Mario Barrios ended up mostly as a tactical showdown, with the Filipino pressing the action for much of the 12-round title fight and the Mexican sitting in the pocket and countering with jabs and combinations.
The Pacman actually started on the offensive right in the opening bell, going forward and looking to pepper Barrios with his trademark punches in bunches. But the champ kept his wits about him, refusing to engage the 46-year-old warrior from the Philippines and instead countered masterfully, mostly with well-timed jabs and straights.
Barrios, in fact, also had his moments, catching Pacquiao flush with some counter combinations in the middle rounds and coming on strong in the championship rounds.
“I Think I Won the Fight,” Says a Defiant Manny Pacquiao
Post-fight, Manny Pacquiao said he believed he did enough to win the fight and make history—an assessment none of the judges seem to have agreed with. But despite not getting the result he would’ve wanted, Pacquiao showed flashes of his former brilliant self, the dominator who won titles in eight divisions and captured the boxing world’s undivided attention.
Still, it wasn’t exactly a vintage Manny Pacquiao performance as the blinding speed and explosive power were nowhere near the caliber as they were when the Pacman was in his superlative prime. The whirlwind combinations—five, six, even seven punches strung together and in quick succession—gave way to three- or four-punch combos that noticeably lacked the speed and pop of yesteryears.
But all in all, Manny Pacquiao performed admirably well and was thisclose to winning and making history.
Whether he should keep pursuing that goal is a topic for discussion for another day.
