“This is a harder fight than anyone thinks it is. Think of Winky Wright and you have the modern version of him in Clottey. And Clottey is big. I think [he] was born at 147 pounds. He’ll enter the ring at least 10, if not 15, pounds heavier. He’ll be around 160, maybe more, when he rehydrates. And you know, he might have the style to pull it off. He’s not just going to run in like [Ricky] Hatton did.”
Promoter Bob Arum has to walk a fine line. He knows Pacquiao is his cash cow and a Pacquiao win would benefit him more than a Clottey win, but he also needs the public to buy Clottey as having a chance in order to maximize pay-per-view sales.
“I tried both places [San Francisco and Los Angeles] and the people I was dealing with wanted to do it on my dime and wanted me to pay the cost of doing one of these fights, which made it economically not feasible,” Arum said. “But Jerry is paying me to come here and he will get his costs back. And the Yankees are giving me a guarantee and then they get their costs back, so it is economically feasible to do it in both places.”
Promoting Pacquiao-Clottey at Cowboys Stadium became a reality when Arum got together with Jones, who has landed several major events for his lavish facility, including last month’s NBA All-Star Game (which drew more than 100,0000) as well as a future Super Bowl and NCAA Final Four.
What’s more, aside from the difference in class, I think that the stylistic factors working to aid Clottey are far exceeded by the stylistic factors working to aid Pacquiao. In some ways, it’s hard to imagine a better match-up for Pacquiao than an opponent who comes straight forward and does nothing but stand there when you punch him. From what I can tell, that’s as sophisticated as Clottey’s plan is for this weekend. He asserted this week at news conferences that he would block Pacquiao’s punches. Well, no duh. I think Clottey will block a good many of Pacquiao’s punches. But Pacquiao won’t throw at a single punch at a time, the way Clottey does. Pacquiao will fire a combo that tries to penetrate Clottey’s gloves through the middle, then down low, then around the side — and then he’ll fire three more punches before he’s done with the combo. Some of that’s going to get through, and all of it will be harder and more dangerous than any volley he’s ever encountered. And by the time Clottey fires back, Pacquiao will already be gone, out of range.
By Brett Mauren
This Saturday night, Manny Pacquiao will put his streak of brilliance on the line in one of the world’s most remarkable buildings. Four months ago the Dallas Cowboys’ brand new billion dollar stadium was poised to hold the long awaited showdown between Pacquiao and Mayweather, but it was …
When Manny “Pac Man” Pacquiao 50-3-2 (38 KO’s) meets Joshua “The Grand Master” Clottey 35-3 (20 KO’s) at Cowboys Stadium in Texas on Saturday night, this great matchup will come down to one issue – whether or not Pac Man can break through the tough shell defense of the Grand Master. Though on paper this appears to be one of the toughest fights of Pacquiao’s career, if the Filipino superstar can overcome the one obstacle of Clottey’s defense he will make this fight look similar to his one-sided win over Oscar De La Hoya.
Some would argue that size will present the greatest determining factor, and for good reason. At When the 5’6½” Pacquiao fought the 5’10½” Oscar De La Hoya, this was a case of a great fighter fighting a great promoter. Oscar had seen better days, spent more time in the office than the ring, dropped too much weight to make the limit, and should not have been fighting a hungry world champion. In short, his height advantage meant nothing. The Oscar who fought Shane Mosley or Felix Trinidad might have at least had a chance.
Much was made about the size advantage of Ricky Hatton and Miguel Cotto prior to their bouts with Pacquiao, when in fact Hatton stood only one inch taller than Pacquiao, who actually possessed a two inch reach advantage over Hatton! Miguel Cotto stood only half an inch taller than Pacquiao with an identical reach. Clearly the topic of sized advantage was only smoke and mirrors to make these fights seem more impressive for the seven division champion. Against Clottey, however, Pacquiao faces a fighter with a one and a half to two inch height advantage and a three inch reach advantage.
By Brian Wilbur
Manny Pacquiao is the best boxer in the world, holding the pound for pound crown with an iron fist. He is an active, fighting champion, set to step in the ring again this Saturday just four months after dispatching of Miguel Cotto. Four months may seem …
It will be interesting to see how Pacquiao handles a big, strong welterweight who is athletic, rugged, can get dirty, and has never been hurt before. If he steamrolls Clottey, I will be very surprised.
After a very exciting first third of the fight, look for a combination of Pacquiao's workrate and Clottey's tendency to grow passive when his opponent will not go away to take over. My initial expectation was a 116 – 112 type of unanimous decision for Manny Pacquiao.
The magazine isn’t going to strip Pacquiao. Editor in Chief Nigel Collins is simply going to ask Team Pacquiao what weight class he plans to stay in after the Clottey fight. Roach has gone on record saying that Pacquiao is staying at 147 pounds because that’s where the big fights and the HUGE money’s at. If this is true and Pacquiao has no intention of dropping back down to 140 pounds, there’s no sense in allowing him to hold onto the junior welterweight title. It’s not fair to young guns like Tim Bradley, Devon Alexander and Amir Khan, who could be fighting for it.
Tecate, cerveza con carácter, demonstrates its commitment to boxing through a regional marketing campaign designed to create buzz and bring adult boxing aficionados closer to the March 13encounter between Filipino WBO Welterweight Champion Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao (50-3, 38 KO’s) and the hard-punching former title holder from Ghana, Joshua Clottey (35-3, …
“I know Pacquiao’s good, but he’s human and I think Joshua will shock the world and show everyone the potential he has.”
Unquestionably, Pacquiao shares with Clottey the attributes of being fueled by a youthful struggle. What separates the champion is that Pacquiao has showcased his ring skills so superbly in recent brilliant performances that his opponents are relegated to underdog status.
Be it Oscar De La Hoya, Miguel Cotto or even Juan Manuel Marquez, it’s never the practice of Manny Pacquiao to take his opponents lightly.
More so now against the bigger and stronger Joshua Clottey.
“I never underestimated Joshua Clottey,” Pacquiao said before a throng of media men that showed up to cover his public workout Tuesday (Wednesday in Manila) at the Gaylord Texan Texan Hotel and Convention Center in Dallas, Texas.
A week into the March 13 showdown, the Filipino southpaw has been installed as an 8-5 favorite.
In as much as he’s prepared for the 12-round title fight at the Dallas Cowboys Stadium for the World Boxing Organization (WBO) welterweight bout, Pacquiao also believes his challenger from Ghana is in the same frame of mind as well.
“I think he’s also ready for the fight. He’s bigger than me and strong. He’s 100 percent conditioned,” said the world’s top pound-for-pound fighter today, who was cheered on by a crowd of 400 during the workout that took about two hours to be completed.
By Mark Vester
We are only a few days away from Manny Pacquiao (50-3-2, 38 KOs) defending the WBO welterweight title against former champion Joshua Clottey (35-3, 20 KOs) at Cowboys Stadium in Texas. Pacquiao’s trainer Freddie Roach wants his fighter to get the winner of May’s welterweight bout between Floyd …
Clottey is regularly criticized for not throwing enough punches. His loss to Cotto serves perfect example of why he is a fighter that can do far more on the offensive end, but for one reason or another, chooses not to. Rather than going to take the title from the champion by making sure his hands were consistently busy, Clottey had too many Punchless spurts and cost himself the fight; as he did against Margarito.
Pacquiao throws terrific combinations and moves well enough to avoid return shots from his much slower opponent on Saturday night. The Filipino icon’s busy hands and Clottey’s inability to get going on a steady basis will spell trouble for the latter. Clottey’s natural size advantage, good chin and defense will likely help him make it to the final bell, albeit as a loser in the majority of the rounds.
In summary, it is going to take a true professional fighter who is focused and dedicated to a well-scripted game plan of not allowing Pacquiao to dictate the pace and range of the fight. Along with that, the discipline to stick to the game plan even when that tingly feeling creeps up and wants you to prove your gall in the face of the pound-for-pound king. Let’s see if Joshua Clottey is going to be the man that takes advantage and puts all of his tools, mental and physical, together and boxes his version of a perfect game in order to win. Let’s see if his trainer is on to these “keys” to victory, or if he has a totally different set of keys to use.
Seven-time world champion and “Fighter of the Decade” Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao arrives in Dallas with his wife Jinkee on Monday night for his upcoming world welterweight championship against challenger Joshua Clottey on Saturday at Cowboys Stadium in Dallas, Texas.
HBO Sports present “Road to Dallas” : Pacquiao vs Clottey, a thirty (30) minutes special analyzing the upcoming welterweight showdown between Pound for Pound King Manny Pacquiao and challenger Joshua Clottey that will mark the first-ever Pro-Boxing event at the Landmark $1.2Billion dollar Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas. The intriguing fight will take place on Saturday, March 13 and be televised on HBO PPV.
Freddie will be spending the day doing what he loves to do most, working with his fighters, including Fighter of the Decade Manny Pacquiao who is preparing for his world welterweight title defense against former world champion and current No. 1 contender Joshua Clottey. THE EVENT: Pacquiao vs. Clottey will take place Saturday, March 13 and will be produced and distributed live on HBO Pay-Per-View from the $1.2 billion Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas, where over 35,000 tickets have already been sold.
By GREG BISHOP
Bob Arum promoted the last boxing match at the old Yankee Stadium, back in 1976 when Muhammad Ali beat Ken Norton. Now, Arum and Top Rank Boxing will promote the first fight in the new Yankee Stadium, between Miguel Cotto and Yuri Foreman on June 5.
The contract needs …
“This is the closest I’ve been to being an in-camp publicist since I spent several weeks in Leonard’s camp for the Hearns rematch,” Sternburg said. “This camp reminds me of those days because of the celebrities that come by to see Ray, who trained at a PGA resort in Palm Beach, Fla. I remember guys like Burt Reynolds dropping by to watch him.
“He should be getting his Visa shortly. As soon as he does, we're going to set up a fight with Lamont Peterson and let's see. Valero could be, down the line, a huge, huge oppponent for Manny Pacquiao,” stated promoter Bob Arum as he talked about Manny Pacquiao's upcoming clash with Joshua Clottey. Check out what else he had to say as Arum reveals a number of potential futue bouts for Pacquiao. Plus, Arum discusses a future clash between Edwin Valero and Lamont Peterson, Miguel Cotto's upcoming debut as a jr. middleweight when he takes on champion Yuri Foreman this June, and much more. read more
Seven-time world champion and “Fighter of the Decade” Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao arrives in Dallas with his wife Jinkee on Monday night for his upcoming world welterweight championship against challenger Joshua Clottey on Saturday at Cowboys Stadium in Dallas, Texas.
Freddie will be spending the day doing what he loves to do most, working with his fighters, including Fighter of the Decade Manny Pacquiao who is preparing for his world welterweight title defense against former world champion and current No. 1 contender Joshua Clottey. THE EVENT: Pacquiao vs. Clottey will take place Saturday, March 13 and will be produced and distributed live on HBO Pay-Per-View from the $1.2 billion Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas, where over 35,000 tickets have already been sold.
Loading ...
