Why Manny Won and Why It Shouldnt Be Controversial

Since wala namang na-knockout nor na-disqualify by any means, the fight was determined by decision, a decision given by three ring-side judges. Modern professional boxing uses the 10 point must system. 10 point must system Simply put, a judge must award one boxer with 10 points (he being the winner of the round) and the other one with 9 points. Hence the name 10 point must. However, there are deductions to be assigned for each violation a boxer incurs. A knockdown, and if he was completely dominated, will limit the loser up to 8 points only; 7 points if a second knockdown occurs. Both boxers receive 10 points if a judge deemed the round even. Pero as much as possible, iniiwasan ang ganitong bagay. If each boxer was knocked down once, the knockdowns are disregarded and the winner of the round receives 10 points, while the loser receives 9 points. Deductions due to fouls made by a boxer are made after the first computation. So, if a fighter wins a round, but is penalized for a foul, the score changes from 10-9 to 9-9. If that same fighter scored a knockdown in the round, the score would change from 10-8 in his favor to 9-8. The boxer that has the most accumulated points after the match wins.

Outcomes Merong 4 possible outcomes na mangyayari using the 10 point must system : 1. 2. 3. 4. Unanimous decision : 3 judges in favor of one boxer Split decision : 2 judges in favor of one boxer, 1 judge to the other Majority decision : 2 judges in favor of one boxer, 1 judge declares a draw Draw : 2 judges declare a draw or 1 judge in favor of one boxer, 1 judge in favor to the other and the last 1 declares a draw.

Subjectivity of the system By now, makikita ninyo na kahit point system ang gamit, napaka-subjective parin niya. It still goes down to the judges discretion. That is why; there are four categories a judge must educate himself in to be able to correctly score a fight. To quote : 1. Effective aggression - The key to the first category is the word "effective." One may be going forward, trying to get at ones opponent, forcing them back, but not throwing punches, or missing badly. In order to be "effective" one must have success landing consistently while moving forward. It should be noted that the opponent, who is "out-boxing" or keeping the fight at a distance, can be the "effective aggressor" by initiating the punching exchanges.

2. Defense - A badly over-looked aspect of boxing, especially in scoring a fight. Defense is a part of combat. In boxing it is the ability to hit the opponent without being hit in return. Defense may include ducking, dodging, bobbing and weaving, parrying, blocking, slipping, and sidestepping, as well as effectively utilizing the clinch. 3. Ring Generalship - The person who dictates the tempo of the fight and controls the action in the ring is the ring general. The boxer who makes the other man fight his fight. If fighter A keeps the fight in ring center, and nullifies the "aggression" of fighter B he is the better ring general." Or if fighter B effectively cuts off the ring and forces fighter A to the ropes where he can go to work he then is the better ring general. 4. Clean and Hard Punching - This should be obvious, but it's not. Since many fans and sportswriters ignore the two previous categories they often fail to understand what is actually taking place in the ring. A "clean" blow is one that lands flush without being blocked by his opponent. But how many times has one heard an announcer "Oh what a left hook by so and so!" The problem is the punch landed on his opponent's glove and only made a loud noise and didn't score at all. Some blows are "partially blocked"; meaning it did not land with its full force. Such blows are not "clean" punches. Also it is not the amount of punches that are thrown the matters, but the amount of blows that land. Hard punching is important as the amount of damage a blow causes counts in the scoring. In the amateurs a knockdown is only as good as a jab, but in the pro's its worth much more. One hard right that staggers the opponent though is not worth ten hard jabs that snap back the opponent's head. Damaging blows and their value are difficult to assess and that is why boxing is subjective. However it should be noted that landing 3 or 4 punches that hurt an opponent in the last seconds of a round are not enough to make up for losing the first two and a half minutes of the round where he was out-boxed. After all the name of the game is boxing not slugging!

Point-wise talking Ngayong familiar na tayo sa point system na ginagamit sa boxing, and how the judges award them to the boxers, tignan natin kung paano nanalo si Manny sa scorecards.

As we can see, one factor for a boxer to win a round is by the clean and hard punches he lands (and not by its percentage). Since ito lang naman yung talagang objective part ng scoring, ito lang yung relevant na ipakita sa atin. The next image will show how the three judges scored the two boxers in each round :

The other 3 aspects of scoring (Effective aggression, Defense and Ring Generalship) we leave that to the judges themselves. All we can do is to observe the statistics given and showed to us.

The intangibles and unwritten rules As what Emmanuel Steward said you have to take the crown from the champ, you must win decisively. Another journalist put it this way as a challenger, you have to upstage champ to win. Close fights always go to title holder. To sum it up, Marquez fought well but as we all say, sometimes good aint good enough. We shouldnt expect all of Mannys fights to be one sided and we should be able to accept the fact that there will come a time that it will be a close fight decided by the judges scores. This shows that Manny is not only a strong fighter, but also a smart one. Was this a satisfying win for him and us? Probably not. Was it a victory? Definitely a yes.

You can read more at the following websites: 10 point must system : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Professional_boxing http://boxing.isport.com/boxing-guides/how-the-pro-boxing-scoring-system-works Factors affecting a judges score : http://coxscorner.tripod.com/scoring.htm Scorecards and compubox : http://michaeldsellers.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Compubox-Final-PunchstatsPacquiao-Marquez-3.jpg http://www.interaksyon.com/interaktv/assets/2011/11/judges-scorecards-pacquiaomarquez.jpg Other blogs : http://michaeldsellers.com/blog/2011/11/12/pacquiao-split-decision-win-over-marquez-mayentice-mayweather-to-finally-fight-pacquiao/