Yordenis Ugas out landed Pacquiao with an incredible 59% of his power shots en route to a unanimous decision (115-113, 116-112, 116-112).
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Manny Pacquiao looked all 42 years of his age on Saturday. Now, the living legend must decide whether his boxing future is behind him. Yordenis Ugas (27-4, 12 KOs), who took the fight on just 11 days’ notice after unified champion Errol Spence Jr. withdrew. Ugas relied on defense and hard counterpunching to defend his WBA welterweight title. He upset the pro-Pacquiao crowd inside T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Manny Pacquiao makes what could be the last ring walk of his illustrious career. #PacquaioUgas pic.twitter.com/0RmWy40uBu
— ESPN Ringside (@ESPNRingside) August 22, 2021
A former Olympic bronze medalist from Cuba, Ugas out landed Pacquiao by a margin of 101 to 88, according to CompuBox. He landed an incredible 59% of his power shots en route to a unanimous decision (115-113, 116-112, 116-112).
The defeat left Pacquiao (62-8-2, 39 KOs) unsure about his fighting future as rumors continue to swirl that the Filipino Senator will make a run at the presidency in 2022 for his native country.
“I’m sorry that we lost tonight, but I did my best,” Pacquiao said. “I don’t know, I don’t know. Let me rest first and relax [before] I make the decision of whether I will fight or not.
“I will make a final announcement [about running for president] next month. I know that I am facing a big problem that’s more difficult than boxing but I want to help the people. We want to help them.”
I want to thank God for giving me the strength to fight. I thank my family for always standing beside me. I wish to congratulate Ugas and his team. Although, I hoped for a different outcome, I wish him the best. pic.twitter.com/jsx6vi0DY3
— Manny Pacquiao (@MannyPacquiao) August 23, 2021
Ugas, 35, turned out to be a problem Pacquiao had trouble solving, especially in the second half of the fight. Fighting behind his high guard, he was defensively strong enough to prevent Pacquiao from over powering him. Ugas’ flashy combinations were slick enough to counter Pacquiao.
More importantly, Ugas was creative and the frustration began to show for Pacquiao. Boxing’s only eight-division champion, Pacquiao, had trouble picking up Ugas’ sidearm body shots and looping right hands, which left the “PacMan” with a cut above his left eye and a swelling below his right by the end of Round 12.
Ugas was upgraded to as full champion during Pacquiao’s 25-month layoff. Pacquiao had captured the WBA title in 2019 by outpointing Keith Thurman while Ugas originally held the interim belt.
“I’m very excited but most of all, I want to thank Manny Pacquiao for giving me this moment in the ring today,” Ugas said. “I told you that I’m the only champion of the WBA. He’s a great competitor and I have a lot of respect for him but I won the fight.
“The double jab was the lead punch. We only had two weeks of training but I listened to my corner and it all worked out.”
Ugas made adjustments throughout the fight. He managed to nullify the speed advantage of Pacquiao. The living legend blamed the lack of time to prepare for the fight as the reason for his loss after Spence pulled out, needing surgery for a torn retina suffered in training camp.
“I had to make an adjustment for [only] a few days. It’s good but that’s boxing,” Pacquiao said. “I know I was having a hard time in the ring making adjustments about his style. That was a problem for me because I didn’t make an adjustment right away and my legs were tight. It was hard to move.”
Pacquiao did a good job staying with Ugas in the first half. But his output lowered the more frustrated he got as Ugas dared to play chess with the future Hall of Famer while standing right in front of him at close range.
“Now the plan is to unify the title at welterweight,” Ugas said. “Everybody said he’s the champion but now they know who the real champion is.”
Elsewhere on the card, fellow Filipino Mark Magsayo made a thunderous statement with a vicious 10th-round knockout of Julio Ceja. Magsayo, 26, put Ceja out cold with a pair of punches up against the ropes that left the former champion motionless for several moments before he was helped up onto the stool and eventually out of the ring. Magsayo now sits as the No. 1 contender for the WBC featherweight title, currently held by Gary Russell Jr.
