Pacquiao keeps belt

MANILA, Philippines (AP) -- Manny Pacquiao gave the home fans plenty to cheer about Sunday July 2, battering Mexico's Oscar Larios to claim a unanimous decision and retain his WBC International super featherweight title.

In the same arena where Joe Frazier and Muhammed Ali slugged it out in the "Thrilla in Manila" 31 years ago, the 27-year-old Pacquiao constantly showed off his speed and power in the 12-rounder, knocking down Larios twice while raising his record to 42-3-2.

Most analysts had expected Pacquiao to come out strong and look for an early knockout, but Larios appeared to win two of the first three rounds. The Mexican sprinted out to start the third, and a strong left hook had Pacquiao reeling on the ropes and looking close to going down.

But Pacquiao withstood the rally and opened a cut over Larios' left eye later in the round. Flurries of punches left the 29-year-old Mexican looking slower as the match wore on.

Pacquiao took control in the sixth, putting together several effective combinations that appeared to hurt Larios and reopen the cut. The crowd went crazy as a right hook dropped Larios (56-5-1) to one knee early in the seventh.

There had been speculation that commercial endorsements which Pacquiao landed after beating Erik Morales in January -- along with a late-night lifestyle and the shortest training period of his career -- might erode Pacquiao's skills and leave him running out of gas if the fight dragged on.

But Pacquiao demonstrated unexpected stamina. He was still throwing punches with sting at the end, knocking Larios down with less than a minute to go. The Mexican shook it off and got back up, and Pacquiao tried in vain to finish him off.

The judges scored it 117-110, 118-108 and 120-106, all for Pacquiao.

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On the undercard:
Gerry Penalosa (50-5-2, 31 KOs) battled his way to a ten-round decision over Tomas Rojas (22-9, 14 KOs) in an action packed, seesaw battle. Penalosa hopes to challenge for a title later this year. Score: 97-93, 98-92 and 98-93.

Jimrex Jaca (26-2-1, 11 KOs) and Hector Javier Marquez (28-17, 21 KOs) battled for seven rounds until a severe cut over the eye of Jaca forced the doctor’s stoppage. The cut was caused by an accidental headbutt and thus the fight went to the scorecards. Winner by TD7, Jimrex Jaca. All three judges scored the bout 60-53.

Late replacement Michael Domingo (25-14-3, 11 KOs) showed surprising power, battering Alejandro Felix Montiel from pillar to post for the better part of six rounds before the referee finally stepped in and stopped the contest at 1:04 of round seven.