Arum’s correct, but not on winner

Bob Arum was right there was going to be a knockout. AP Photo

LAS VEGAS—Promoter Bob Arum was right all along.

The fourth showdown between Manny Pacquiao and Juan Manuel Marquez was a blockbuster and it did end via knockout.

Only it was his favorite fighter, Pacquiao, who ended up on the losing end in a shocking sixth-round stoppage.

Early sales figures would have been enough to put a smile on the face of Arum, who turned 81 on fight night Saturday (Sunday in Manila).

A full-house crowd of 16,348 at MGM Grand Garden Arena, gate receipts of $10,886,000, strong pay-per-view and closed-circuit sales, and phenomenal foreign television returns were right on target, as Arum predicted.

“We did good,” said Arum, adding that Pacquiao-Marquez 4 is certain to eclipse the returns of the third edition. “There was no discount, no nothing, no nonsense.”

“Didn’t I say that there’s going to be a knockout (in this fight),” said Arum.

While he is willing to stage a fifth fight, Arum hinted it may take a while due to the nature of punishment both fighters endured.

Arum also said he wasn’t entirely surprised that the 39-year-old Marquez got the better of the 34-year-old Pacquiao.

“(George) Foreman knocked out (Michael) Moorer when he was 44.”

Then he said the punchline: “Look at me.”