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Monday, March 21, 2005
Pinoys cheer Pacquiao, share grief over loss
MANILA -- President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, armed insurgents and common street folk found unity Sunday when they cheered for Filipino boxing hero Manny Pacquiao then collectively grieved over his defeat to Mexico's Erik Morales.
All three judges declared Morales the winner after the non-title super featherweight showdown fought before a sellout crowd that included Arroyo's husband and dozens of Filipino lawmakers at the MGM Grand hotel in Las Vegas.
Morales, fighting with the cool precision of a champion who has been there many times before, got the better of Pacquiao with jabs and big right hands Saturday night to win a close but unanimous decision in their super featherweight showdown.
No title was at stake, but there was plenty of national pride.
Pacquiao is a national hero in the Philippines while Morales is revered in Mexico, and between the two they drew a sellout crowd of 14,623 to the MGM Grand hotel to see them brawl.
They didn't disappoint, going after each other from the opening bell in a fight that grew in intensity after Pacquiao was cut in the fifth round when he was hit with a right hand and the two boxers clashed heads.
Pacquiao, the slight favorite, fought desperately with blood flowing down his face from a bad cut over his right eye, earning praise at home despite his loss.
Though blood flowed in his eye, Pacquiao fought gallantly and the two fighters went toe-to-toe in a frenetic 12th round that had the crowd standing and cheering.
All three judges had Morales the winner, but not by much. He won 115-113 on the ringside scorecards.
"It was a close fight with a lot of close rounds," Pacquiao's trainer, Freddie Roach said. "Morales landed the bigger punches but Manny landed more combinations."
Pacquiao blamed the loss on having to wear a different type of gloves than he usually uses. He wore them because his promoter, Murad Muhammad, signed a deal for his fighter to wear them.
Neither fighter went down, but it wasn't because of a lack of effort. They brawled at a relentless pace that brought back memories of Morales' three fights with Marco Antonio Barrera.
"I tried my best," Pacquiao said.
Many fans believed Pacquiao would bounce back with the same ferocity that has earned him a string of boxing victories and turned him into an icon in his country.
"I praise Manny Pacquiao's bravery, ability and fighting spirit," Arroyo said. "I am sure he will bounce back from his loss."
"We cheer Manny as an outstanding Filipino. He sets an example of the toughness we need to surmount our trials and in fighting our way to become a strong Philippines," she said.
In their hinterland strongholds, Marxist and Muslim separatists took time out to monitor the bout over the radio.
"It's sad because most of us expected he would win by knocking out his foe," said Eid Kabalu, spokesman of a Muslim rebel group that has been fighting for a separate homeland in the country's south. Pacquiao hails from General Santos city in the south.
"It's good he did not fall because that would have been more painful for us," he said.
In many areas in the south's central region, villagers and rebels were glued to their radios, and some traveled to town centers to watch the boxing match on TV, he said.
Communist rebel spokesman Gregorio Rosal said Pacquiao fought valiantly but lost, and if there were doubts about his defeat, Filipinos could seek a rematch.
In Manila's streets, it was evident when Pacquiao landed a good punch by the howl of the crowd, which yelled his name as they gathered around TVs and radios.
At a shoe store in the capital's pier area, a crowd of about 30 men listening to a radio felt the first sign of trouble when Pacquiao's suffered a cut in the 5th round.
When the decision was announced, they dispersed quietly, some shaking their heads.
Street vendor Agacan Angni said Pacquiao made him proud as a Filipino and felt the boxer's loss was his.
"It's a sad day but don't worry, someday we will be back." (AP)
(March 21, 2005 issue)
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