LAS VEGAS -- As an eyewitness during the WBO welterweight duel between Manny Pacquiao and Juan Manuel Marquez at the MGM Grand last November 13, I am respectfully confirming that the Filipino ring superstar indeed won the fight by a majority but close decision. I have the Compubox as my solid basis, the document handed to us by the Nevada State Athletic Commission officials immediately before the start of the post fight press conference. Actually, there is no need to argue; we should judge the fight according to facts, not emotion. If Pacquiao wasn’t able to knock out Marquez, it didn’t mean that Marquez won the trilogy only be­cause he survived the 12-round distance. Here’s how the Compubox scored it: Pacquiao connected 176 of 578 punches thrown after 12 rounds. Marquez connected 138 of the 436 punches thrown. Pacquiao connected 59 of Marquez's 38 of the 182 thrown. Pacquiao connected 117 of the 274 power punches thrown as against Marquez’s 100 of the 254. Pacquiao had an average of 49 punches thrown and con­nected 14 per round as against Marquez’s 36 punches thrown with 11 connected per round.

I’m aware that a number of sports commentators have cast doubts on the victory of Pac­quiao. I’m not very surprised with this because many are perhaps used to seeing the Filipino boxing champ score always spectacular wins over his opponents. As a former boxer myself who had competed internationally and in the Olympics, I know from what I witnessed that Pacquiao indeed triumphed over his Mexican foe. I  have also coached national boxers in the Philippines, and I think I have an eye for these things.

The facts cannot lie. In my own personal scorecard, Pac­quiao won by a slim margin. If the fight was very close, the judges, with all their wisdom and candor, would naturally award the fight to the champion.
The challenger must be the one to press the fight and he can­not expect to grab the crown by just refusing to mix it up and wait for the final bell. He must exert extra efforts to at least lead by a mile and convince the judges he did his best and unloaded his best shots to upstage the defend­ing champion.

I suggest that Marquez reviews the way how his corner called the fight. I understand that during the match, he was constantly told by his trainer-coach that he was lead­ing. This could probably explain why the Mexican fighter seemed to have played a defensive stance in the last rounds, rather than go­ing all the way.

It is almost always the case that in high-stakes boxing com­petitions, the prize is given to the reigning champion if the fight is very close. Challengers need to demonstrate that they have dom­inated the fight.
Having said these, I tip my hat to Marquez for his big heart. There can only be one winner, and no doubt it was Pacquiao.

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