Millions of Filipinos across the country on Sunday cried in jubilation after People’s Champ Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao knocked out Britain’s Ricky “The Hitman” Hatton during their “Battle of East and West” showdown in Las Vegas.

Filipinos were celebrating in sports stadiums, restaurants and cinemas across the country on Sunday after watching Manny Pacquiao knock out Hatton.

Those who could not afford to watch the live feed listened to the contest on radios, leaving streets in the Philippines deserted on Sunday morning as the nation's sporting flag-bearer was adding another victory to his record across the Pacific.

Congratulations poured in for the Filipino boxing icon led by President Arroyo, who left for Egypt’s Cairo on Saturday for a working visit. Arroyo’s press secretary Cerge Remonde said a hero’s welcome awaits Pacquiao once he comes home.

Filipinos cheered as Pacman floored the Hitman twice in the first round before ending the fight with a hard left to the jaw that sent Hatton sprawling to the canvass.

The fight ended 2 minutes, 59 seconds into the second round.

In Quezon City, a wide screen had been set up along Sergeant Esguerra St. to allow residents to watch the fight for free. The residents were jubilant over Pacman’s victory.

Free viewings held

“Magaling!. Magaling ang pinakita ng champion natin. Talagang overwhelming [ang] performance niya. Kanina pa kami dito pero talagang alam namin mananalo talaga si Manny,” said one of Pacquiao’s fans.

Another said: “Kung titingnan mo talaga, lamang si Manny. Mabilis. Bago kumilos si Hatton, sapol na agad.”

An estimated 5,000 people also watched the fight in an elementary school in Rosario, Cavite where a free viewing of the match was held.

Cheers could also be heard from the headquarters of the Philippine Army in Fort Andres Bonifacio in Taguig City. Soldiers and their families packed the headquarters’ gym for free viewing of the showdown.

There were more than 3,000 people, some of whom even brought their own seats, inside the gym to watch Pacuiao, an Army reservist, according to military spokesman Lt. Col. Romeo Brawner Jr.

The fight was also shown in Armed Forces’ headquarters Camp Aguinaldo, Villamor Air Base, V. Luna Medical Center and in a military headquarter in Jolo, Sulu, a report said. The match was also televised live at the multi-purpose hall in the Philippine National Police national headquarters in Camp Crame in Quezon City.

About 200 of Manila's movers and shakers, including politicians and celebrities, watched an invitation-only live airing of the fight at a cafe in the upscale The Fort area in Taguig City, hosted by one of Pacquiao's kit sponsors.

"It's a proud day for Filipinos," said Robert Mananquil, a former government official among the crowd at the cafe in The Fort area.

"Not this fast"

"We knew he would win but not this fast," RJ Ledesma, editor of local men's lifestyle magazine "Manual" told Agence France-Presse (AFP). "We were expecting a brawl," he added.

The crowd went wild and jumped and shouted for joy when the Filipino boxing idol -- the biggest sporting star in the country -- floored the Mancunian twice in the first round.

In Manila's impoverished Tondo district about 2,000 people, many of them shirtless, crowded into a gym where the city officials had set up a giant screen to show the fight.

The raucous crowd chanted Pacquiao's name and raised their fists in the air after Hatton fell unconscious to the canvass.

Tempers flared among the capacity Tondo crowd, including shirtless men, when a technical hitch briefly interrupted the feed but the fans roared Pacquiao's name and raised their fists when Hatton fell unconscious to the canvas.

"Happy again"

"Thanks to 'Pac-man', the entire Philippines is happy again," 41-year-old taxi driver Felix Soza said after listening to the fight on radio because missing work would have led to a hefty fine from his cab company.

The 30-year-old southpaw needed less than two rounds to wrestle the IBO title away from the Englishman, whose two knockdowns in the opening three minutes were greeted by wild applause in one packed cinema in the capital Manila.

"I thought the match would take longer but it turned out Hatton was a weakling compared to Manny," said 50-year-old Dante Enriquez, who paid P551 (around $11) for his ticket.

"But I'm not complaining. Seeing Pacquiao win every time is all worth it," Enriquez said after forking out a relatively large sum of money for six minutes of action in a country where nearly 50 percent of households live on less than $2 a day.

Sold out

The SM group, the country's largest cinema operator, sold nearly 6,000 tickets at SM North EDSA in filling its biggest complex for the Pacquiao-Hatton match, an official said.

Giant screens were set up in public arenas by local officials around the country and the bout also made some Filipinos richer through gambling winnings.

"I won, I won, Pac-man you're great! My idol!" motorized tricycle driver Boyet Fernando said in Pacquiao's hometown of General Santos City after doubling his money by betting a full day's earnings of P300 on the Filipino.

The mayor of General Santos City, Pacquiao's hometown in the southern part of the archipelago, said the city would prepare an elaborate welcome for the boxer regarded as the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world.

At least 10,000 people watched a free airing of the fight in General Santos City, local radio said,

"I join the whole nation in thanking Manny for the glory he is bringing to our country," said Darlene Custodio, the local House of Representatives member, who beat Pacquiao in 2007 elections.

“Zero crime again”

With little activity on the streets during the bout, the police also had time to take a welcome break.

"There was zero crime during the fight," said national police spokesman Nicanor Bartolome, who watched the fight along with 1,500 policemen on a giant screen set up at the police headquarters.

"We wish Manny would fight every day so we will have no problems in security," said Bartolome.

Only one crime was reported in Manila, a gun-ridden metropolis of 12 million, by Sunday morning. Police also rushed a fan to a hospital after he suffered a heart attack while watching the bout on television.

Troops in the southern island of Jolo in Sulu province, where Abu Sayyaf bandits are holding hostage an Italian Red Cross engineer, also watched the fight, officials said.

Pacquiao's International Boxing Organization junior welterweight title means he has equaled the record of world crowns in different divisions, and is considered the world's best pound-for-pound fighter.

The victory also offers a welcome moment of celebration for the Philippines, often a victim of natural disasters, political upheaval and corruption and whose already struggling economy has been hit hard by the global slowdown.

"It was a hard punch. It was a solid punch," Pacquiao said of the left hook that floored Hatton.

"I hit him on the chin and I didn't think he would get up."

He is widely considered the world pound-for-pound champion. With reports from radio dzMM, ABS-CBN News, Agence France-Presse and Reuters