Pambansang Kamao Manny Pacquiao fought against Mexican boxer Juan Manuel "El Dinamita" Marquez on Saturday, November 12, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada (Sunday, November 13, in the Philippines), the Associated Press reports. Pacquiao retained his World Boxing Organization World Welterweight title via majority decision with scorecards of 115-113, 116-112, and 114-114, a result that had Marquez fans in the crowd booing.

"Of course they're unhappy, they're fans of Marquez," Pacquiao is quoted as saying on USAToday.com. "But I clearly won the fight."

Meanwhile, a disappointed Marquez said, "This is the second robbery of the two fights we've had. This one was even more clear than the first. I don't know what else in the ring I can do to beat this guy."

According to the ringside punch statistics listed by the Associated Press, Pacquiao landed more punches with 176 out of 578 punches thrown compared to Marquez's 138 of 436. He also landed more power punches at 117 to 100.

It was a very close fight, however, with Marquez remaining a formidable opponent throughout the match. By the end of the 11th round, Pacquiao and Marquez were each ahead on one scorecard, and the match could have gone either way, depending on the results of the last round, said the Associated Press.

In their first fight in 2004, Pacquiao knocked down Marquez thrice in the first round, but the bout ended in a draw. In their rematch in 2008, Pacquiao won the fight through split decision. Their third match was supposed to be the last, but the results prompted Top Rank chairman Bob Arum to suggest another rematch in 2012. Pacquiao said he was willing to meet Marquez in the ring again, but Marquez has yet to confirm for a fourth go-round.


(Photo courtesy of PEP.ph)