Manny Pacquiao confirmed his place as the number one pound-for-pound fighter on the planet when he added WBO welterweight champion Miguel Cotto’s name to his impressive list of big-name scalps which includes Oscar De La Hoya, Ricky Hatton, Erik Morales and Juan Manuel Marquez to mention a few.

With the 12th round victory over the Puerto Rican, the 30-year-old secured his 50th win and became the first fighter in history to claim world titles at seven different weight divisions. This was the Filipino’s second fight at 145 lbs after dismantling De La Hoya 11 months ago over eight rounds, despite starting his professional career at 107 lbs.

Cotto, whose record slips to 34-2, started strong at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas on Saturday, but the night was to be a defining one for the Filipino, who floored his opponent twice in the early round before the referee stopped the fight with only 55 seconds into the 12th round.

Pacquiao, whose record now stands at 50-3-2 (38 KOs), said patience had been the key to wearing down the durable Cotto.

"I heard that he was bigger than me and stronger than me and that's why I tried to be more aggressive and fight toe to toe and try to [negate] his power.

"Our strategy for the fight was not to hurry, take our time, because we knew his strategy was that he was going to counter.

"We were very careful in the early rounds then I controlled the fight and tried to put him under pressure."

Pacquiao said of the first knockdown: "I was looking for a knockout shot, that's why I didn't throw a lot of punches. It was timing and in the last minute I hit a good punch with the right hook."

Pacquiao flew ahead on the scorecards with a second knock down in the fourth round, but this made him weary of Cotto’s need for a knockout if he was to retain his title.

"As the rounds went on I really focused and was careful with my timing because he was looking for a big shot, a one-punch knockout.

"I kept pressuring him and was very careful about his counter,” he said. "We tried our best to knock him out because that's what my trainer said. I thought they were going to stop the fight in the 11th round and I was surprised he made it to the 12th round."

Cotto paid tribute to his conqueror and the speed and accuracy with which proved too much for the 29-year-old.

"It really made the difference," Cotto said. "The jabs he throws made a big difference because I couldn't see from where the punches were coming and I couldn't protect myself from those punches.

"I've fought everybody. Miguel Cotto comes to fight the best boxers and Manny is one of the best boxers of all time."

Pac Man’s trainer Freddie Roach praised his fighter but admitted being concerned in the early rounds after such a strong start from Cotto.

"I thought we could break him down and if Manny put pressure on him he could get him out of there and he finally did," Roach said.

"Early in the fight he was tested with Miguel's power and laying on the ropes a little too much but once he got his rhythm on the fight it was all over."

"I was worried because Cotto came out and fought a great fight at the beginning. He was fighting very smart and Manny had to make the adjustments.

"Once Manny used his pace and his movement he had too much speed [for Cotto]. He wasn't using that at the beginning but once he started getting into his rhythm it was no problem."