Pacquiao vs. Algieri Highlights: Recap, Results, Analysis of Complete Fight

The key word of the night was "survival."

For much of the pay-per-view card Saturday night at The Venetian Macao, culminating in Manny Pacquiao's dominant win via unanimous decision over Chris Algieri, there was at least one boxer in the ring just looking to survive the match rather than win. 

It started with Vasyl Lomachenko winning all 12 rounds of his bout with Chonlatarn Piriyapinyo, continued with flyweight Zou Shiming scoring several knockdowns against Kwanpichit OnesongchaiGym and finished with Pacquiao (57-5-2) knocking Algieri (20-1-0) down six times in a match that the Filipino legend had under control from the first round on.

HBO Boxing has the scores from the judges, and they weren't pretty:

The bout was Pacquiao's first defense of his WBO welterweight title since taking the belt from Timothy Bradley earlier this year. For Algieri, this was his first fight outside of his home state of New York, and home probably never looked so good considering the punishment he endured in Macau, China. 

Algieri was deferential to his opponent in the resounding defeat, per HBO Boxing:

The Associated Press provided a look at Algieri's battered visage toward the end of the fight:

The two pugilists established the pattern of the fight early on in the first round. Algieri, jittery and bouncing on his toes, looked to maintain a safe distance from Pacquiao by establishing his jab and moving around the ring constantly.

Pacquiao, ever the experienced fighter, was undeterred by this simple strategy. After feeling out his opponent for a couple of minutes, Pac-Man darted forward and unleashed right jabs and left crosses designed to soften up Algieri's midsection. His expert timing and ability to move backward before Algieri could unleash a counterpunch with his right proved to be devastatingly effective. 

Kin Cheung/Associated Press

Pacquiao, looking to win his third straight fight since a knockout loss to Juan Manuel Marquez in 2012, scored his first knockdown in the second round, unleashing a strong straight that sent Algieri staggering backward. It wasn't the best blow and in hindsight appeared to be more of a slip.

Algieri, unwilling or perhaps unable to attempt many combinations, couldn't handle Pacquiao's quick hands and took a number of strong blows to both the chin and midsection. The bout truly came to a head in the sixth round, when Pacquiao scored two knockdowns.

The first was a left cross that sent Algieri tumbling head over heels on the canvas. The second was more of a glancing blow that merely dropped Algieri to his knees momentarily, but the ref gave him a count regardless.

SportsCenter noted Pacquiao's growing control over the match:

Pacquiao was able to just move through Algieri's limp punches and land his own whopping blows. His control over the fight was unimpeachable, and the ninth round was perhaps his best. The 35-year-old notched two more knockdowns in this round, and the first was a beauty.

Algieri finally opened up his right side by sending a hook in Pacquiao's direction only for the shorter man to quickly duck and come right back with a cannon of a left cross that rag-dolled Algieri and put him flat on his back.

Chris Hyde/Getty Images

The hits just kept on coming. Algieri's best and perhaps only option was to hold Pacquiao at bay with his jab, but the strategy just appeared more and more laughable as the fight went on. Here's Roy Jones Jr.'s take, via HBO Boxing:

Algieri's trainer, Tim Lane, gave his prizefighter some dubious words of encouragement, only to see him go out and get pumelled yet again. Top Rank's Crystina Poncher relayed the ironic development:

By the 11th round, it was clear Algieri would need a comic-book twist to get out of this one with a win, per journalist Jay Caspian Kang: 

"

Algieri's gameplan is to survive to the 11th round, get bit by radioactive spider, transform into Clubber Lang. Knockout in 12th.

— jay caspian kang (@jaycaspiankang) November 23, 2014"

Pacquiao would score his sixth and final knockdown in the 12th round, which had a strangely perfunctory feeling considering how many times Pac-Man had sent Algieri to the canvas. The judges had it easy Saturday night, and Pacquiao looks nowhere close to being washed up as a fighter. 

Algieri will disappear from the limelight after the disastrous result, although he did show plenty of heart. Pacquiao has the opportunity to pick and choose his next opponent. Hopefully, for the sake of the boxing world's collective sanity, that boxer is Floyd Mayweather. With Pacquiao looking this strong, it could be the fight of the young century.