Negrense world boxing champion Donnie Nietes said Manny Pacquiao’s dramatic victory over Juan Manuel Marquez serves as an inspiration for him and other Filipino boxers, who are also hoping to make it big in the sport.

“His win is a big morale boost for us, professional boxers,” Nietes, who comes from a family of boxers in Murcia town and Barangay Granada, Bacolod City, told the DAILY STAR last night in a telephone interview.

“We draw a lot of inspiration from Pacquiao,” Nietes added.

Pacquiao won over Marquez via split decision Saturday night in Las Vegas to capture the World Boxing Council super featherweight title, making him the fifth Filipino world boxing champion in the span of eight months. He earned $5 million for the fight.

Nietes said Pacquiao had trouble dealing with Marquez’s fighting style. “An aggressive fighter like Pacquiao will always have difficulty fighting counter-punchers like Marquez,” he added.

Nietes further said that he felt Pacquiao was not in his best shape when he fought yesterday. “There was something missing from his arsenal. He was not as quick as before,” Nietes added.

Nietes suspected that Pacquiao’s fighting weight of 147 lbs., 18 lbs. more than when he tipped the scales for the weigh-in the day before, may have also affected to the Filipino’s performance.

“He gained a lot of weight and it probably affected his speed,” Nietes said.

Nevertheless, Nietes hailed Pacquiao for his brave stand, especially the way he fought despite the cut under his right eye.

“It’s always difficult to have cuts like those of Pacquiao. Your vision is blurred. Maybe, it could have also been the reason why he was not able to knock out Marquez,” Nietes said.

Nietes is scheduled to defend his World Boxing Organization mini flyweight belt against Daniel Reyes of Colombia on April 18 in Dubai. *CPT

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