Fight of the Week #8: Pacquaio - Marquez I and II

The first and second fights could have gone either way, no doubt in my mind that those were both super close. The second I had Marquez ahead but I have no complaints about Pacquiao winning it.

Not sure either fighter deserved to be 0-2 after those first two. Marquez can consider himself unlucky though that he was without a win. The one I thought was unjust was the third. I just couldn't score that for Pac.

 

So...do we have a fight this week?

 

Pac Marquez 1

1. Pac 10-6 (Pac 10-6)
2. Pac 20-15 (Pac 10-9)
3. Pac 29-25 (Marquez 10-9)
4. Pac 39-34 (Pac 10-9)
5. Pac 48-44 (Marquez 10-9)
6. Pac 57-55 (Marquez 10-9)
7. Pac 67-64 (Pac 10-9)
8. Pac 77-73 (Pac 10-9)
9. Pac 87-82 (Pac 10-9)
10. Pac 97-92 (Even 10-9)
11. Pac 106-102 (Marquez 10-9)
12. Pac 115-112 (Marquez 10-9)

 

Fight I

Round 1: Pacquaio 10-6
Round 2: Pacquaio 10-9
Round 3-9 - Marquez 10-9
Round 10: Pacquaio 10-9
Round 11: Marquez 10-9
Round 12: Pacquaio 10-9

Marquez 113-112

Fight II
Round 1-2: Marquez 10-9
Round 3: Pacquaio 10-8
Round 4: Pacquaio 10-9
Round 5-8: Marquez 10-9
Round 9-10: Pacquaio 10-9
Round 11-12: Marquez 10-9

Marquez 115-112

Fight III

Round 1: Pacquaio 10-9
Round 2: Marquez 10-9
Round 3: Pacquaio 10-9
Round 4: Marquez 10-9
Round 5: Marquez 10-9
Round 6: Pacquaio 10-9
Round 7-11: Marquez 10-9
Round 12: Pacquaio 10-9

Marquez 116-112

I had Marquez winning 8-4 in every fight.

 

Pac Marquez 3

1. Marquez 10-9
2. Marquez 20-18 (Marquez 10-9)
3. Marquez 29-28 (Pac 10-9)
4. Marquez 39-37 (Marquez 10-9)
5. Marquez 49-46 (Marquez 10-9)
6. Marquez 58-56 (Pac 10-9)
7. Marquez 67-66 (Pac 10-9)
8. Marquez 77-75 (Marquez 10-9)
9. Marquez 86-85 (Pac 10-9)
10. Marquez 96-94 (Marquez 10-9)
11. Marquez 106-103 (Marquez 10-9)
12. Marquez 116-112 (Marquez 10-9)

 

These are my most recent scorings....

Marquez-Pacquiao I

Marquez: Rounds 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 10, 11 and 12.
Pacquiao: Round 1 (10-6), 2 and 9.
I had the 7th round even.

So that left me with 114-112 to Marquez. Not a robbery, but the draw was a little kinder to Pacquiao than it was to Marquez. I think to make a case for Pacquiao outright, you'd really have to be looking to give him rounds wherever possible. I think all of the rounds I scored for Marquez were pretty clearly and decisively in his favour, with the exception of the twelfth. But overall a draw was an acceptable verdict.
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Marquez-Pacquiao II

Marquez: Rounds 2, 5, 6, 7, 8, 11 and 12.
Pacquiao: 1, 3 (10-8), 4, 9 and 10.

So that gave me 114-113 Marquez this time. BUT! I have also scored this 114-113 to Pacquiao as well. This is the only twelve-rounder they completed where I think any of a very narrow Marquez win, very narrow Pacquiao win or a draw would all have been totally legitimate results. This was definitely Pacquiao's best all-round performance of the series. In the first fight, once Marquez had cracked his code, it was pretty much one-way traffic and Pacquiao was made to look a clear second best. What's impressive for Pacquiao here is that, from rounds 5-8, Marquez looked as if he had it all worked out and was going to run away with it again, but this time Pacquiao made some adjustments and responded with two clear rounds in the 9th and 10th, which he'd been unable to do first time out. The only 'swing' round for me seems to be the 7th, so depending on how I see that, I've always ended up with 114-113 either way. Virtually nothing in it.
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Marquez-Pacquiao III

Now this one was definitely a bad verdict. Had it 116-112 watching it live, and have come up with the exact same score on two subsequent viewings. Can't see how anyone can make a case for Pacquiao here. The best I could say for him is that some of the late rounds which I have to Marquez were close, but whereas I said in the first fight you'd have to be consciously looking to score rounds for Pacquiao to make a case for him winning it, this time you'd have to be consciously looking to give him rounds just to get him a draw. Marquez gave Pacquiao nothing here. In the first two fights, Manny's left hand had been giving him hell in the early rounds, but here Marquez pretty much neutralised it right from the off. He kept him off balance throughout and put his own shots together much better.

Marquez: Rounds 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 9, 10 and 11.
Pacquiao: Rounds 1, 6, 8 and 12.

For what it's worth, I had Pacquiao 48-46 up (and on course to win the sixth) before he got flattened in their fourth fight.