Jimuel draws in pro debut

MANILA, Philippines — Jimuel Pacquiao shrugged off the pressure of living up to his father’s name and marked his pro debut by battling high school teacher Brendan Lally to a four-round majority draw in a lightweight fight at the Pechanga Resort and Casino in Temecula, California, Saturday night (yesterday morning, Manila time).

Pacquiao, 24, got off to a hot start and took the first two rounds in the judges’ scorecards but slowed down in the last two frames as Lally, 23, turned on the heat to escape defeat. Judges Eddie Hernandez and Ron Stevens scored it 38-38 while judge Damian Walton saw it 39-37 for Pacquiao. The match was slam-bang with both fighters displaying a lot of aggression as the bout was far from tactical.

Boxing icon Manny Pacquiao, who watched at ringside beside wife Jinkee, said he was satisfied with his son’s performance under the circumstances. “Good experience that Jimuel went the full four rounds in his first pro fight,” he said. “I believe he can be better. He didn’t have a long amateur career and he just became a father so his performance was understandable.”

Pacquiao advised his son to work harder. “Jimuel needs more improvement, more training and has to develop a killer’s instinct,” he noted.

For his part, Pacquiao’s son said he’ll push it more in his next fight. “I’ve only had about 10 amateur fights so this was a big step for me to gain experience,” he said. At the weigh-in the day before, Pacquiao scaled 134.8 pounds and Lally, 134.2.