Manny Pacquaio vs Timothy Bradley 3: Pacquiao beats Bradley by decision

LAS VEGAS -- If this was truly Manny Pacquiao's final fight, as he has said, he went out with a near-vintage performance.

He knocked rival Timothy Bradley Jr. down twice, in the seventh and ninth rounds, and cruised to a unanimous decision in their welterweight fight Saturday night before 14,665 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.

In the best fight of their trilogy, Pacquiao, perhaps bringing the curtain down on his legendary, 21-year career, won going away 116-110 on all three judges' scorecards. ESPN.com also scored it for Pacquiao 117-109.

Pacquiao (58-6-2, 38 KOs), 37, rebounded nicely from May's unanimous decision loss to Floyd Mayweather in their megafight, which was followed by surgery to repair a torn right rotator cuff.

"I was looking for a knockout in every round," Pacquiao said. "He's a very tough fighter and a very good counter-puncher. Bradley is a good boxer, a great fighter and a good man. It was not easy tonight, [but] my right shoulder was fine. It gave me no problems."

Pacquiao officially won the trilogy 2-1. Bradley was awarded a hugely controversial split decision when they met for the first time in 2012, and Pacquiao appeared to dominate that fight. Then he got a unanimous decision in their 2014 rematch, which he also dominated. He dominated Bradley (33-2-1, 13 KOs), 32, of Palm Springs, California, again in fight No. 3.

"Manny was very strong in there. Very heavy punches. He was also very patient," said Bradley, who has won five world titles in two weight classes. "I wasn't professional enough to stay patient myself, and I walked into shots."

Although Pacquiao, who likes Bradley and invited him to his Sunday prayer breakfast after the fight, looked sharp, he declared that he was indeed retiring.

"Yes, as of now I am retired," Pacquiao said. "I am going to go home and think about it, but I want to be with my family. I want to serve the people [of the Philippines]."

He intends to retire to a life of charitable work and politics in the Philippines, where he is a two-term congressman running for a senate seat. The election is next month, and he is favored to win one of the 12 seats up for election.

culled from ESPN