LAS VEGAS – And Father Time remained unconquered.
Mario Barrios denied ring icon Manny Pacquiao a piece of boxing history as their 12-round fight for the World Boxing Council welterweight title ended in a majority draw before a sellout crowd at the MGM Grand Garden Arena Sunday (Philippine time).
One of the judges (Max DeLuca) had the champion winning the bout, 115-113, while the two others (Tim Cheatman and Steve Weisfeld) had it 114-114, allowing Barrios to retain his crown in a stunning decision.
“I thought I won the fight. It was a close fight, " said the 46-year-old Pacquiao shortly after the verdict was announced.
The 30-year-old Barrios trailed in the scorecards of all three judges after the eighth round, and needed to win the last three to complete the biggest win of his career so far.
"I don't think the fight was getting away from me, but I knew I had to step it up to solidify a win," he said.
Barrios, who kept his distance from Pacquiao through his solid jabs, raised his record to 30-2-1 (18 KOs), and reportedly earned a cool $1 million paycheck while retaining his title for the second time.
READ: Barrios gets biggest payday in Pacquiao fight - win or lose
Pacquiao, who appeared to have control of the historic fight, fell short of his bid to become the second-oldest fighter to win a world title after retired undisputed middleweight champion Bernard Hopkins.
It was also the first draw of his illustrious career since that memorable first fight with Mexican rival Juan Manuel Marquez in 2004 for the International Boxing Federation featherweight crown.
In all, he's 62-9-3 (39 KOs) and has lost his last two fights, including this one.
"I hope this is an inspiration to boxers that if you have discipline and work hard, you can still fight at this age," said Pacquiao, who will turn 47 this December.
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