Las Vegas: Manny Pacquiao of the Philippines retained his WBO welterweight title by recording an unanimous points victory over a lacklustre Shane Mosley at the MGM Garden Arena on Saturday.
The 32-year-old southpaw dominated all 12 rounds against his defence-minded American opponent to improve his career record to 53-3-2 with 38 knockouts.
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It was Pacquiao's 14th consecutive win since his loss to Erik Morales in Las Vegas in March 2005, and enhanced his status as the world's best pound-for-pound fighter.
Fighting for the second time since winning a seat in his country's national congress last year, Pacquiao gained one-sided verdicts from all three judges -- 119-108, 120-108 and 120-107.
"Manny, Manny, Manny"
"Sugar" Shane Mosley, an 8-1 underdog against the 10-times world champion, slipped to 46-7-1 with 39 knockouts.
Loud chants of "Manny, Manny, Manny" rang out in the Garden Arena before the two fighters made their way to the ring.
Mosley came out first, led by American rapper and actor LL Cool J, before Pacquiao followed suit with Jimi Jamison of U.S. rock band Survivor singing the group's 1982 hit "Eye of the Tiger".
Round One
Round one began with both fighters probing. Pacquiao connected early on with a left jab before Mosley landed a solid right-handed punch to the body.
Round Two
With the crowd again chanting "Manny, Manny, Manny" Pacquiao began to find a rhythm and he landed several telling combinations before ending the second round with a right hook followed by a straight left.
Round Three
In round three, Mosley connected with another solid right before the Filipino sent the American crashing to the canvas with a crunching straight left set up by a right jab, only the third time Mosley had ever been knocked down.
Round Four
Pacquiao began round four in the same vein, continually forcing Mosley to back-peddle, although the American connected with his first three-punch combination of the fight.
Round Six
In round six, Pacquiao kept moving forward and landed a solid upper cut before Mosley, mainly focused on defence, responded late on with a powerful right hook.
Round Seven
The Filipino, wearing yellow gloves to give hope to those fighting hunger and poverty in the Philippines, kept Mosley on the retreat in round seven with his agile footwork and a series of probing combinations.
Round Eight
Pacquiao unleashed several accurate body and head jabs early in round eight against a tiring Mosley to maintain control as the crowd booed the American for his defensive strategy.
Round Nine
Mosley was initially more aggressive in round nine with his jab but the Filipino southpaw countered with a flurry of combinations before landing a crunching straight left on the American's chin.
Round Ten
Pacquiao, continually moving forward, forced Mosley back on to the ropes in the 10th round. The Filipino was surprisingly adjudged to have been knocked down after being pushed to the canvas by Mosley. Fired up, Pacquiao ended the round in aggressive mode, hitting Mosley late on with a withering left.
Final two rounds
Sensing the chance of a knockout, Pacquiao kept coming forward in the final two rounds, pummelling his opponent at every opportunity and twice pinning Mosley against the ropes.
Visiting Manny Pacquiao's hometown and talking to the people he grew up with, Gulf News discovers the humble beginnings of one of the world's greatest athletes.
Car accident
Manny Pacquiao was involved in a minor vehicle accident on Saturday but his management team said he was not injured and set for his WBO welterweight title defence against Shane Mosley later in the day.
"Manny is ready to go," the Filipino southpaw's trainer Freddie Roach told reporters at the MGM Grand where the scheduled 12-round bout will be held on Saturday evening.
According to Pacquiao's publicist, Fred Sternburg, the boxer was returning from mass when the sport utility vehicle he was in was hit from behind at low speed by one of his security vehicles.
Sternburg said the 10-times world champion was "a little shaken up" but not injured in the accident which took place on the hotel property. No police report was filed.
