• Manny Pacquiao v Juan Manuel Marquez

Pacquiao beats Marquez amid controversy

Manny Pacquiao defended his WBO welterweight title in Las Vegas © Getty Images

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• Profile: Manny Pacquiao

Manny Pacquiao retained his WBO welterweight title in controversial circumstances after a narrow points victory over Juan Manuel Marquez in Las Vegas.

In a third showdown between the pair, Marquez celebrated victory after 12 rounds, only for Pacquiao to be awarded to win by two of the three judges, prompting the Mexican to storm out of the ring.

Pacquiao edged the early exchanges, and while Marquez produced a strong finish, two judges felt Pacquiao had done enough, with Dave Moretti scoring the fight 115-113 in the Filipino's favour and Glenn Trowbridge 116-112, while Robert Hoyle had it down as a 114-114 tie.

Pacquiao started brightly but Marquez gradually took control, and after taking a crashing right in the fifth, Pacquiao's corner had to give him a pep talk. Marquez drew blood in round eight, but Pacquiao hit back in the an explosive ninth round. But despite a late flurry from the Mexican, Pacquiao managed to hold on.

Marquez clearly felt he had done enough as he raised his hands in triumph at the final bell, but his smiles soon turned to disbelief as the scores were revealed.

The fight was billed as the one to end all doubt in a ferocious rivalry spanning back to 2004, but the third fight finished in disappointment for Marquez once again. The first ended in a draw in 2004, while Pacquiao took the second on a narrow decision in 2008 - Marquez felt aggrieved at both decisions.

And he was equally furious at the judges' decision on Saturday night at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. "This was the second robbery and this one was the worst. We won with clearer punches," he said. "It's hard when you're fighting your rival and the three judges too."

Meanwhile, on the undercard, Timothy Bradley defended his WBO light welterweight title with an eighth-round technical knockout of Joel Casamayor. It was a convincing win for the American, who knocked down his opponent three times, prompting Casamayor's corner to stop the fight in the eighth.

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.