The Ring Featherweight Champion WBA No. 1 Ranked Featherweight IBF No. 2 Ranked Featherweight The Ring No. 5 ranked pound-for-pound fighter 3-division world champion
Result
Morales wins via 12-round unanimous decision (115–113, 115–113, 115–113)
Erik Morales vs. Manny Pacquiao, billed as Coming With Everything, was a super featherweight boxing match.[1] This match occurred on March 19, 2005, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States and was distributed by HBO PPV.[2][3] The bout is the first of the Pacquiao-Morales trilogy,[4] widely considered one of the greatest boxing trilogies of all time.[5][6][7]
Background
Pacquiao was a 7-5 betting favourite.
The fight
Morales controlled the pace of the close fight. In the fifth round, Pacquiao suffered a cut over his right eye caused by Morales' right cross.[8] At the end of 12 round all three judges scored the bout 115–113 for Morales.[9]
Both the Associated Press and Harold Lederman, HBO's unofficial scorer, had the fight 116-112 for Morales.