Monday, March 17, 2008

Juan Manuel Marquez, Robbed of Victory?



After Manny Pacquiao defeated Juan Manuel Marquez via split decision during the epic and sensational Pacquiao-Marquez 2: Unfinished Business fight on March 16, Marquez' camps contested the results and even questioned the system of judge selection. While Pacquiao camps were so ecstatic for the win to mind the lamenting Marquez camps, some sports analyst were also discontented on the bout's outcome. Many sports writers who scored the bout at ring side had the outcome separated by a point, or a draw just like the first Pacquiao-Marquez fight in 2004. This goes to show how tightly-contested the fight was.
Some had it in favor of Pacquiao because they saw his aggressiveness in throwing punches at and following Marquez around the ring. History backs up that judges favor more the aggressor and in this fight, Pacquiao showed more aggressiveness than Marquez. The hard-hitting blows he threw had knocked Marquez down in third round. Had it not been for the round- saving ring of the bell, Pacquiao could have finished the fight with a technical knock out.
But Marquez stood his ground. He made it difficult for Pacquiao when he gave him a nasty cut in the eye that made him staggering inside the ring. He showed to everyone that he has the heart of a real fighter even after he got a nasty cut near his right eye in the seventh round. Marquez also got the final damage as he landed more punches than his opponent. He landed 172 punches, or 34% of his total compared to Pacquiao's 25%. Pacquiao threw more jabs, and Marquez landed more power shots.
People lamenting and complaining on the result of the fight, in my opinion, is hurting the boxing sport. Bob Arum was right. We should live with the decision and accept that Pacquiao deserves the hard-earned title. Sure, Marquez was as aggressive as Pacquiao but he is not too strong for Pacquiao to handle. Marquez always brings out the best in Pacquaio and it is a fact that we have to live with. I also agree with Freddie Roach when he said that it could have gone either way. Marquez has the style that will always make Pacquiao look so bad after a fight. Marquez left Pacquiao bloody with 17 stitches after the fight.
Now, the big question lies: Is the business really over and done with? Will Pacquiao agree on a rematch? Well, I think, this is a very nice and interesting point of contention.

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