Filipino boxing sensation Manny Pacquiao opened up during an interview with Boxing Scene about how he coped with the controversial loss he suffered during his first match against Timothy Bradley in 2012.
"That is boxing. It is part of the game and you cannot let yourself get too upset over it or else it will consume you," Manny said. "Judges are human. You cannot expect them to be perfect."
He continued, "In the first fight against Timothy Bradley, I was over it before I returned to the dressing room. To Freddie Roach and me, and apparently everyone else who watched the fight -- except for two, I won the fight. The first thing I said to Freddie when we saw each other in the dressing room after the fight was, 'He ran just like we knew he would.'"
"We never discussed or debated the decision because it was so obvious that I had won the fight and nearly every round," Pacquiao added.
Thanks to his supporters, Pacman believed and felt that his loss to Bradley was just a number on his professional fight record. He never experienced the feeling of being a beaten boxer after their fight. "It never felt like a loss to me and no one treated me any differently," he said.
"I was treated as the winner. I just moved forward and began training for my next fight, which was against Juan Manuel Marque," the boxer recalled.
But for the rematch, Manny is making sure that the events during his first encounter with Bradley will not happen again. After a barrage of taunts from the American boxer, Pacquiao is feeling more motivated than ever to regain his WBO Welterweight title.
"There are a lot of people who doubt I can fight the same way I fought when I knocked out Oscar De La Hoya, Ricky Hatton, Erik Morales and Marco Antonio Barrera. I want to prove to them that I am the best. I am inspired, "Manny said.
He continued, "I am the challenger. I know that I will need to outbox and outspeed Bradley. And that is what I will do. This is the first time I have challenged for a world title that I lost. Do I want it back? You bet I do. And I want it back from Tim Bradley."