Young Pacman gobbles up Gates

TEMECULA, California — Jimuel Pacquiao, son of the eight-division great Manny Pacquiao, gave a bare-knuckle fighter a bad beating Friday night (Saturday morning in Manila) at the Pechanga Resort Casino.

The young Pacquiao halted Darrick Gates, a New York-based Irish banger, at 1:34 of the second round of their scheduled four-round lightweight showdown to nail his first win in the professional ranks.

After being held to a draw in his debut late last year, Pacquiao Jr. put on a performance that left his illustrious dad and mother Jinkee smiling all night long.

The 25-year-old father of a four-month-old daughter had a shaky start as Gates scored with wild blows that were a cause for concern not just for his corner but for his parents as well.

But as soon as the son and namesake of the legend stepped up the attack, the tide immediately turned to his favor as Gites back-tracked.

A barrage of punches to the body saw Gates melting away on the ropes, prompting referee Rudy Barragan to call a halt to the match at 1:34.

Even though Gates was able to beat the count, it was apparent that allowing him to continue would be futile and even dangerous.

The victory raised Pacquiao Jr’s. record to 1-0-1 win-loss-draw with one win inside the distance while the loss was Gates’ second straight setback.

“There are still a lot of things to learn,” admitted the victorious Pacquiao, who plans to resume his career in the coming months.

“That was just a little part of boxing. Still many more things to learn. I am going to train harder,” he said, noting that he would give himself a rating of seven (out of ten) for disposing of the 36-year-old Gates.