According to HBO Boxing, all three judges scored the fight 116-110 in favor of Pacquiao.
The fighters each carried a win against the other heading into Vegas on Saturday night. Timothy Bradley Jr. won a contentious split decision in June 2012, while Pacquiao left little doubt as to the result with a unanimous-decision victory in April 2014.
Since their last fight, though, the two stars have been on different trajectories. Pacquiao beat an overmatched Chris Algieri but was thoroughly outclassed by Floyd Mayweather Jr.
Not only was this Pacquiao’s first fight in nearly a year, but it was also his first fight since rotator cuff surgery. Pac-Man’s knockout power was waning before the injury, so major questions hovered as to how much he had left in the tank.
Meanwhile, Bradley has looked like a different fighter under trainer Teddy Atlas, whose unique brand of motivation has erased all of the fighter’s indecision and self-doubt in the ring. In the way only he can, Atlas described Pacquiao as a Ferris wheel before the fight, per Lance Pugmire of the Los Angeles Times:
It’s like going to an amusement park the first day and you see this big Ferris wheel. You saw it in books, your eyes are big, it’s as big as the sky, touching the clouds, going 100 miles per hour. You say, ‘Oh my God, look at that.’
But then you get in it and by the time the ride’s over, it didn’t quite touch the clouds, it didn’t quite go 100 miles per hour and you realize it actually stops in spots. You can actually view and see things. That’s how we have to view Pacquiao. We have to see things now we didn’t see the first time we rode the Ferris wheel.
While Bradley wasn’t overawed by his opponent, he respected Pacquiao’s power and was hesitant to leave himself open early in the fight. A younger Pacquiao would’ve come firing right from the opening bell, but at 37 years old, he, too, was careful not to get into any troublesome situations.
Yahoo Sports’ Dan Wetzel was let down by the lack of action:
Does Pacquiao know he’s allowed to throw a punch? Buying this fight may not have been such a bright idea
Radio host Charlamagne Tha God was similarly unimpressed by the matchup:
I can’t believe y’all paid for PAC vs. Bradley. I love boxing as much as anybody but naw…..
The fight came alive in the fourth round. Pacquiao was more aggressive and began finding a comfort zone. In turn, Bradley came out of his shell, and the two exchanged glancing blows. While Pac-Man was stronger in the fourth, Bradley landed a right just before the bell, which served as a warning sign to his opponent.
The Miami Herald‘s Ethan J. Skolnick thought Saturday provided more excitement than Pacquiao’s last bout:
That round was better than all of Mayweather-Pacquiao
Bradley enjoyed a successful spell in the fifth round, landing a few combinations, but he was unable to do much damage to his opponent. That quickly became the story of the fight as Bradley’s deliberate style worked against him.
HBO’s Max Kellerman summed up the ebb and flow of the fight, per the network’s Twitter account:
“@Timbradleyjr is doing a lot of good things, but @mannypacquiao is just better so far.” – @Max_Kellerman
Pacquiao then registered a knockdown in the seventh, blunting Bradley’s momentum in an otherwise encouraging round. As the Las Vegas Review-Journal‘s Steve Carp argued, though, the knockdown didn’t hurt Bradley physically:
Bradley wasn’t hurt on the knockdown. More like stunned. 69-63 Pacquiao on my card as we go to R8.
Bradley’s last stand arrived in the eighth. He stunned Pacquiao momentarily and threw caution to the wind with a flurry of punches. While the brief offensive was enough to give Bradley the round, he was unable to send his opponent to the canvas.
Sensing an opportunity, he continued taking the fight to Pacquiao in the ninth. In doing so, he left himself vulnerable to a left uppercut that knocked him down for the second time. While the second knockdown was more emphatic than the first, Randy Cruz thought Bradley added a theatrical flair:
Timothy Bradley getting knocked out like… pic.twitter.com/dkjFHoVNdY
This fight isn’t bad, but it reaffirms it’s pointless. We know Pacquiao is a better fighter than Bradley. 24 rounds told us that already.
According to ESPN.com’s Dan Rafael, Pacquiao will earn a guaranteed $20 million, though his official purse for the fight will be $7 million. Bradley’s fight purse will be $4 million.
In January, Pacquiao announced he planned to retire from boxing following this fight. While he may stick to that decision, countless stars in the past have walked away from the ring, only to return at some point down the road.
Any hopes of a rematch between Pacquiao and Mayweather are almost certainly gone after Pacquiao was unable to register a knockout Saturday night. Especially after this fight, plenty of fans would question why they’d need to see a repeat of Mayweather and Pacquiao’s disappointing May superfight.
Pacquiao is still a skilled fighter, though, so he could cash in on at least one more big payday in the ring if he chooses to put the gloves on again.
Post-Fight Reaction
Although he didn’t land many substantial blows in the early rounds, Pacquiao wanted to end the fight as early as possible.
“I was looking for a knockout in every round,” he said, per Rafael. “He’s a very tough fighter and a very good counterpuncher. Bradley is a good boxer, a great fighter and a good man. It was not easy tonight [but] my right shoulder was fine. It gave me no problems.”
The 37-year-old also insisted this was his last fight.
“Yes, I am retired,” he said, per the Guardian‘s Bryan Armen Graham. “I want to go home to my family and serve the people. I love the fans and thank them for all the support they’ve given me.”
Bradley thought he was his own worst enemy at times in the ring.
“Manny was very strong in there,” he said, per Yahoo Sports’ Kevin Iole. “He was strong the entire fight. He was always very patient. I wasn’t professional enough to stay within myself and I walked into shots.”
Atlas was also quick to absolve his fighter of some of the blame: “I don’t think the first knockdown was a real knockdown, but Pacquiao did a great job in there. Give Pacquiao credit. I didn’t do a good enough job for Bradley.”
Article Appeared @http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2631715-pacquiao-vs-bradley-3-results-winner-scorecard-recap-and-prize-money-split