Manny Pacquiao stands over a beaten Erik Morales Saturday night in Las Vegas. Pacquiao scored a tenth round knockout over Morales, who previously had never been down in his illustrious career.
RESULT
Pacquiao KOs Morales!
In a battle of super featherweight superstars, Manny Pacquiao (41-3-1, 32 KOs) knocked out Erik Morales (48-4, 34 KOs) in round ten Saturday night at the Thomas & Mack Arena in Las Vegas. After falling behind early, Pacquiao turned up the heat in round six and started a brutal beatdown of Morales, who went down twice in the tenth.
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Good two-way action in round one from both fighters. Round two was even better. Pacquiao nearly dropped Morales but Morales fought back bravely. Morales got the best of round three with some good flurries. Morales' jab started to become more of a factor in round four as he was able to move Pacquiao backwards. Morales had the edge again in round five. The turning point was in round six when Pacquiao launched a furious attack leaving Morales staggering back to his corner. Morales tried to take the initiative in round seven, but Pacquiao was now outmuscling Morales. Erik's nose appeared to be badly broken. The Pacquiao onslaught continued in the eighth although Morales had an effective spurt toward the end of the round. Pacquiao continued stalking Morales in the ninth and Morales was looking like a beaten fighter. Pacquiao floored Morales twice with a barrage of punches in the tenth. After the second knockdown, the fight was stopped by referee Kenny Bayless at 2:33. The win avenges Pacman's loss to Morales last March.
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The fight contract includes a rematch clause and after the fight Pacquiao said he's willing to give Morales a third fight, however Morales (who has now lost three of his last four) stated he wants to take a long rest before coming back. Meanwhile there is an offer from Golden Boy Promotions for Pacquiao to face WBC super featherweight champion Marco Antonio Barrera on March 25, although that's likely too soon after a tough fight. Pacquiao also commented that the Cleto Reyes gloves he wore in this fight made a difference
