CompuBox: Manny Pacquiao's Dominance

by Scott Christ on Nov 17, 2009 3:48 AM EST in CompuBox Statistics and Analysis

The last three fights of Manny Pacquiao's career have transformed him and turned him into not just one of the best fighters in the sport, but one of the two biggest as well. For years, Pacquiao was one of "our" fighters, an exciting, dynamic, can't-miss-him-fight sort of guy that translated to the hardcore audience. His size seemed a deterrent for him ever being a major star, and the fact that he isn't American or Mexican also seemed it might be a hindrance in the States, too.

But his performances in major money fights against Oscar de la Hoya, Ricky Hatton and Miguel Cotto have not just been shockingly dominant, but they've introduced him to the casual audience, and that audience can't get enough of him. CompuBox looks at the numbers for Manny's last three bouts:

If you have trouble reading the numbers, a larger resolution version of the same chart can be seen here.

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One other thing I found interesting: Pacquiao’s last three have just been totally jabless. Combined, he and his opponent land about 9 jabs a round in these fights. It’s a weapon that has been totally taken away, though this wouldn’t really matter with a Floyd fight. Floyd’s not that jab-heavy anyway.

Bad Left Hook
"Well Howie, I think I'm going to stay outside and outjab him." -- Tex Cobb telling Howard Cosell how he would approach Larry Holmes

by Scott Christ on Nov 17, 2009 7:17 AM EST reply actions

He seems to land a lot more punches than it looks like he does.

I though his “connected” percentage would be a lot lower. He throws a billion punches a round but often doesn’t connect with very many.

I think thats why he gives these welters a problem. I don’t think he’s very strong at the weight but if your out throwing your opponent significantly even what little you do connect will wear your opponent down after a few rounds.

by MannyPacquiao on Nov 17, 2009 11:50 AM EST reply actions