Roach: “This [Pacquiao-Clottey] could be our last fight” if the Mayweather fight doesn’t happen next

In a bombshell interview at East Side Boxing’s On the Ropes online program, trainer Freddie Roach revealed that this could be the last fight for his fighter World Boxing Organization welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao. Roach says “If Mayweather doesn’t come and fight us next time, this [Pacquiao-Clottey] could be our last one.” Roach is obviously speaking only of Pacquiao, because I can’t see Roach retiring anytime soon.

But this is fairly earth shattering news if Roach isn’t just blowing smoke up our backsides with this, because by the recent statements coming from Floyd Mayweather about him wanting Pacquiao to take even more blood tests in the future if he plans on fighting him, it seems to suggest that the Clottey fight could be Pacquiao’s last bout of his 15-year pro boxing career.

That would a huge disappointment if Pacquiao does decide that this will be his last bout, because it would leave opponents like Edwin Valero, Mayweather and Paul Williams without the opportunity to test Pacquiao to see if he’s as good as the recent hype that’s been generated about him due to his wins over Ricky Hatton, Miguel Cotto and Oscar De La Hoya. As things are looking, it’s highly doubtful that Pacquiao and Mayweather are going to be able to come to any kind of agreement for a fight in the future with Mayweather insisting on random blood tests all the way up to the fight.

And Mayweather is now saying that if his May 1st fight against Shane Mosley does better financially than Pacquiao’s March 13th bout against Clottey, then it means he should get the bigger slice of the revenue for a Pacquiao-Mayweather fight. That’s just another reason to doubt that there will ever be a fight between Mayweather and Pacquiao in the future.

As for the Pacquiao vs. Clottey fight, Roach says “Obviously we have to break him [Clottey] down. It’s [a possible knockout for Pacquiao] going to be in the late rounds. It won’t go 12 rounds. We’ll get him at some point along the way. It’s going to be a battle up to that point. I do think the body shots and work rate will be too much. I don’t think Clottey will keep up with us.”

Most of the betting money is being put on Pacquiao to win. Indeed, Clottey appears to be way over his head in this fight despite being ranked by the WBO as the number #1 contender. Oddly enough, Clottey is ranked number #1 despite the fact that he was beaten in his last fight by Miguel Cotto. Usually when a fighter is beaten, they slip in the rankings, but not in the case of Clottey.

He’s ranked number #1, above Cotto for some reason. Cotto was just beaten by Pacquiao in his last fight by a 12th round knockout. But beyond Cotto and Clottey, the talent pool is abysmal in the WBO top 15. Most of the fighters are more prospects than contenders in my view, and deeply flawed. It’s more than a little sad and disappointing to see how poor the opposition is in the top 15 for the WBO, and perhaps for that reason we have Clottey ranked as number #1, even though he just got beat.

For more Pacquiao vs Clottey updates, visit http://pacquiao-vs-clottey.cebuspace.com/.

Source: boxingnews24.com

PACQUIAO PLEASED WITH CONDITION FOR CLOTTEY FIGHT

Pound-for-pound king Manny Pacquiao laughed when he was prodded about his supposed very good condition and great training camp with less than 1 month away until his “The Event” match with Ghanaian Joshua Clottey.

His laughter turned out to show his pleasure with the condition he has achieved.

“Maganda kasi na nakuha ko agad ang kundisyon ko kasi hindi ako masyadong matagal nagpahinga,” Pacquiao told ABS-CBN Sports commentators Ronnie Nathanielsz and Dyan Castillejo during the live telecast of Pinoy Power 3/Latin Fury 13 on Sunday.

“Last fight ko November so January, nakapag-training agad ako. Nandoon agad ang kundisyon ko,” he added.

Pacquiao made history when he won the World Boxing Organization (WBO) welterweight title last November 14 as he became the only 7-division world champion.

He defeated Puerto Rican Miguel Cotto via a 12th round technical knockout at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

He will put his WBO title on the line against Clottey at the Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas on March 13.

Pacquiao is currently training in Los Angeles. His coach, Freddie Roach, even wanted the Filipino boxing superstar to slow down for fear that he could reach his peak too soon.

Advice to fellow boxers

Pacquiao made a last-minute appearance at the Las Vegas Hilton on Saturday (Sunday in Manila) to show support for his fellow Filipino boxers Mark Jason Melligen, Bernabe Concepcion, Gerry Peñalosa, Ciso Morales and Nonito Donaire, Jr.

He chatted with Nathanielsz and Castillejo during the fight of Morales against Mexican Fernando Montiel.

“Ninerbyos ako ah,” remarked Pacquiao at the onset of his brief interview.

After a few minutes of conversation, Castillejo, Nathanielsz and Pacquiao were stunned by Montiel’s knockout of Morales in Round 1. The Filipino fighter suffered a blow to the stomach.

“Talagang walang matibay kapag reduce ka… walang matibay sa sikmura,” Pacquiao said after Castillejo noted that Morales was on a diet of crackers because he had to lose 12 lbs. before the fight.

“Kaya ‘yan ang sinasabi ko sa mga boksingero—kailangan kung gaano kayo hard na mag-workout sa kamay niyo… kailangan yung body i-workout niyo nang mabuti,” he continued. “Minsan kasi ‘pag natapos na sa workout, tamad na mag-sit-up, magpa-ano ng abs eh. Mahirap yun ‘pag dating ng fight.”

The world’s best pound-for-pound fighter then explained the importance of strengthening the midsection: “Kasi mas malaki sa mukha mo ‘yan eh.”

Wrong decision

Pacquiao also commented on the other fights that took place in Pinoy Power 3.

For him and Roach, Peñalosa should have won against Puerto Rican Eric Morel.

“Talagang panalo si Gerry… Lamang siya ng pitong (7) rounds,” he said. Peñalosa lost via split decision.

The scores were 115-113 and 116-112 in favor of Morel, and 115-113 in favor of the Filipino boxing veteran.

Proud manager

Pacquiao was also delighted with the result of Concepcion, whom he manages.

“Proud ako sa boksingero ko. Next fight niya is Juan Manuel Marquez… ‘Pag lumaban siya, ako nandoon ako lagi araw-araw sa training niya.”

Concepcion posted a unanimous decision win in his 10-round bout over Puerto Rican Mario Santiago with the scores 98-91, 96-93, 97-92.

Pacquiao, however, said that Concepcion still has to a lot to work on.

“Kulang lang ‘yung timing. Coordination sa paa niya at saka sa kamay niya,” he noted.

Help for Gorres

Injured boxer ZC Oliveros “Z” Gorres, who is recovering from 2 major brain surgeries, was also at ringside.

He was supposed to be featured in Pinoy Power 3

“Meron kaming ibibigay ‘di na siguro natin sabihin,” Pacquiao said of the assistance he will give Gorres.

He even invited the crowd at the Las Vegas Hilton to attend his fundraiser for Gorres.

“We already gave Gorres our help, Bob [Arum] and I… At sana suportahan po natin. Kung gusto niyo pong tumulong, ipangalan sa foundation ko, Manny Pacquiao Foundation.”

Other results of Pinoy Power 3 are Donaire’s 3rd round knockout of Mexican Manuel Vargas and Melligen’s 6th round TKO victory over Raymond Gatica of the US.

“Maraming, maraming salamat din sa ating kababayan at siyempre sa inyo, nagpapasalamat ako. Sa lahat ng mga nanonood… Maraming, maraming salamat sa inyong walang sawang pasuporta,” he stated.

“Kaming magkakasamang mga boksingero, gagawin namin ang lahat para makapagbigay karangalan sa ating bansa para ‘di masayang ang mga pagdasal ninyo at pagsuporta niyo sa amin. Maraming salamat, mga kababayan.”

For more Pacquiao vs Clottey updates, visit http://pacquiao-vs-clottey.cebuspace.com/.

Source: insidesports.ph

Is Pacquiao ready for Clottey? Roach “Not yet, almost” plus Pinoy Power exclusive coverage

On Saturday, February 13^thI had the pleasure of watching Nonito Donaire go to work. Las Vegas Hilton looked like an ant farm, booming with people running around in excitement for their favorite fighter to display their skills, and make the fellow countrymen proud. It was a high energy environment, as the staff and fighters of the Pinoy Power and Top Rank began showing up for their warm-up in the dressing rooms. Who made the biggest splash? Of course Nonito himself brought the crowd to a tremendous roar as he arrived, with people screaming his name and waving the “Filipino Flash” flags. But that was nothing in comparison to what the arrival of Manny Pacquiao did to the fans who never expected him to show up. The high-pitched screams of the females and the overwhelming macho roar of the men at Manny’s arrival were so loud, that even my video camera microphone was unable to handle the frequency. There were others who pleased the fans with picture taking and short interviews, such as Winky Wright, Freddie Roach, and Juan Manuel Lopez.

At the beginning of the event, everything went pretty much as expected. Fights were interesting, but still lacked that crowd effect that brings the energy to the venue. As the undercard bouts progressed, more and more people started showing up, and the venue started looking like the read deal. Matt Korobov was able to keep his record blemish- free, stopping Lamar Harris at 1:05 of the first round. When speaking with Matt post fight, he assured me that this was as expected, and that he is ready to fight the top dog any time.

Eric Morel and Gerry Penalosa, in the first half of the fight, Morel was able to cause some cuts by accidental head-buts for the most part, making Gerry’s face a bloody mess. After Freddie Roach made some very aggressive hand gestures, Penalosa put on some pressure in the remainder of the fight, making it seem like the decision was his to win without any doubt. Gerry was landing clean power shots, making Morel wobble a couple of times. When Morel was announced the winner, a very small percentage of the crowd was clapping and screaming in excitement, while the majority booing made the other guys very hard to hear. Scores were 115-113, 116-112 Morel, 115-113 Penelosa.

Many expected Fernando Montiel to get a run for his money from previously unbeaten Ciso Morales. Apparently, Montiel had a different plan in mind. Just after 2:06 of the first round, Morales was on the floor, seemingly in a terrible amount of pain, after Fernando landed a solid left hand to the body. Morale’s first loss was one that he will always feel in the back of his mind, painful and too quick to analyze.

Manuel Vargas was the substitute for Gerson Guererro in his fight against Nonito Donaire. After failing the physical exam, Guererro was unable to proceed with the fight, and Vargas was given this golden opportunity. Some would have called it a blessing then, but are likely calling it a curse now. Vargas seemed out of place when the bell rang. For three consecutive rounds, he had nothing to give or return as Nonito made the fight seem like a sparring session. At 1:33 of the third round, Donaire delivered a left uppercut, sending Vargas to the canvas for good. Vargas did have to go up in weight two divisions to make this fight happen, but the way Nonito handled the fight, it’s hard to believe the weight had anything to do with it.

Before and after the event, I had the opportunity to speak to a few people and ask them some questions. Here are some of the quotes:

Freddie Roach:

V: Is Pacquiao ready for the fight against Clottey?

F: No. Not yet. Almost.

For more Pacquiao vs Clottey updates, visit http://pacquiao-vs-clottey.cebuspace.com/.

Source: Vitali Shaposhnikov, diamondboxing.com

Pacquiao-Clottey: This fight has mismatch written all over it

In looking at the March 13th fight between Joshua Clottey and Manny Pacquiao it doesn’t seem likely that Clottey is going to be able to pull off a win over the faster Pacquiao. This fight appears to have everything in Pacquiao’s favor. You name it, Pacquiao is the much superior fighter. I got to give credit to Top Rank, the promotional team for Pacquiao, they found the perfect opponent for him to not only get a win again but also have a good chance to look against.

However, is Clottey really the best opponent for boxing fans if they wanted to see Pacquiao tested? I mean I’m alright with watching a mismatch every now and then, but I prefer to not know ahead a time about how bad of a mismatch it is so I can save my time and money watching the thing. But this fight has mismatch written all over it from the word go, and it’s somewhat unsettling that the fight is being put on pay-per-view and placed in a huge stadium like the Dallas Cowboy stadium, in Arlington.

It seems to me that those kinds of things should be put aside for fights that are actually supposed to be a competitive afraid, not an organized slaughter. In match making, I know they want to make sure they put Pacquiao in fights that they know he can win, hence Pacquiao not being matched up against the likes of Paul Williams.

It’s about match making and keeping your fighter in fights that they can actually win, but for me, I hate the idea of watching a fight that’s a mismatch going in. What’s the point if you know one of the fighters has basically no chance of winning. Yeah, I know Clottey technically has a slight chance of beating Pacquiao, but I see it as being so small that it’s not even appealing.

If I wanted to see a slaughter, I’d watch one of the free fights that they show on one Friday nights where they match a top prospect against a scrub fighter. It’s about as interesting watching those fights as it will probably be to watch Pacquiao beat up on a vastly over-matched Clottey. Again, I don’t mind seeing a mismatch, but not one that I have to pay to see. And when you look at how crummy the undercard is, it makes it even worse.

For more Pacquiao vs Clottey updates, visit http://pacquiao-vs-clottey.cebuspace.com/.

Source: Chris Williams, boxingnews24.com

Pacquiao Ready To Batter Clottey; Valero Wants Marquez

“Fighter of the Decade” and pound-for-pound icon Manny Pacquiao has been “rejuvenated” leading up to his showdown against Ghana’s tough Joshua Clottey in “The Event” at the $1.2 billion Dallas Cowboys Stadium on March 13.

Pacquiao’s trusted adviser Michael Koncz told us that Pacquiao “is really motivated, he is excited to go to Dallas and that fantastic stadium over there. So far 30,000 in ticket sales. These new things in the regimen like the stadium, the big crowd its rejuvenating him and he’s really excited and training hard.”

Filipino trainer Restituto “Buboy” Fernandez said Pacquiao was in good condition which he indicated was 90 percent. Fernandez said “he peaked immediately because he didn’t lave a long layoff (from the Miguel Cotto fight) which lasted twelve rounds so he doesn’t have any problems with his condition returning right away.”

When asked about reports that Pacquiao was mauling his sparring partners, Fernandez replied “that’s what happens when he’s in condition and we’re hoping his training will go well all the way.”

Meantime, WBC lightweight champion Edwin Valero, the undefeated Venezuelan knockout artist with 27 KO’s in 27 wins continues to push for an eventual clash with Pacquiao which most fight fans believe will be a far more exciting fight than a Pacquiao clash with Floyd Mayweather Jr.

On returning to Venezuela, Valero who proved he can box as well as punch in his demolition of Antonio DeMarco said he was “ready to go up to whatever weight Manny wants in order to fight him.” At the same time Valero stressed he would “not require that he be tested for anything . I just want to get into the ring with Manny.”

He added, “whoever beats Pacquiao becomes the top dog in boxing. Pacman is my main objective for 2010.”

Before taking on Pacquiao, Valero indicated he would like to face Juan Manuel Marquez saying Marquez “is a great fighter and it would make for an exciting bout.”

For more Pacquiao vs Clottey updates, visit http://pacquiao-vs-clottey.cebuspace.com/.

Source: boxingscene.com

The third man in the ring for Pacquiao-Clottey?

Being a referee is a very tough job. It is in the referees' hands to keep the fights in violent order. The job requires tremendous physical and mental competence, as well as strength of character to come up with quick accurate decisions. We have to understand that sometimes a punch can travel 0.004 seconds, almost invisible to the naked eye, plus add the adrenaline and hoopla of the fights, can make any referee get confused and make a wrong judgment or misjudgment.

All men make mistakes. It happens all the time in all officiating officials of any sport. More so in our sport of boxing, back in the day, celebrity champion boxers were tapped to officiate a fight. This is so to amp up the hype and sell more tickets. And the result can be horrible. If we take a look back at Ali vs. Liston 1, former World Heavyweight champion Jersey Joe Walcott was asked to be the referee in the fight. Although Jersey Joe was a very good champion, he was totally inexperienced as a referee! That's why when Ali got Liston down, he couldn't decide if he'll count, or stop the fight or take Ali to the neutral corner. Pandemonium erupted at that moment and he decided to announce Ali as the new champion. But sometimes even a very experienced referee can make a bad judgment or bad misjudgment just like what happened during the Soto vs. Lorezo 1, when Joe Cortez couldn't decide what to do consulting the Nevada State Athletic Officials on the
ring-side while Lorenzo was on the canvass bleeding profusely, then later on decided to announce Lorenzo as the winner by disqualification. But as the saying goes "Nobody is perfect, even referees make mistakes."

But what about if the referee makes too many bad calls?

When I watched Kelly Pavlik vs. Espino fight, I was appalled on how biased the referee in favor of Kelly Pavlik! I have no doubt that Kelly won that fight, but does the referee needed to blatantly side in favor of Kelly Pavlik? You have to wonder why does the referee pulls Espino away but does not push Pavlik? And at the end of the rounds the referee shoves Espino hard. There was one time when Pavlik was taking some punches from Espino and out of nowhere the referee jumped in the middle and broke off the fighters even if there were no clinch! Watch the video clip in youtube at 3:52 second mark. Hilarious!

Now let's try to take a look at the proposed referee for Pacquiao vs. Clottey fight.

Jim Rex Jaca vs. Juan Manuel Marquez: There was a clash of heads in round 8 that bloodied the face of Juan Manuel Marquez. Referee Cole stopped the fight and called for a time-out. He brought Marquez in a corner and had him checked by the ring-side doctor, and you know what he told Marquez? Watch.







He was asking Marquez if he wants to stop the fight and told him he is ahead on the scorecards! What kind of unbiased referee would say something like that?

Now, let's take a look at Pacquiao vs. Barrera 1







Round 1, how the heck can Referee Cole calls that a knockdown in favor of Barrera when Barrera didn't even threw a punch? Round 6, 12 seconds remaining in the round, two solid upper-cuts landed on Barrera's head that sent him crashing to the canvass. And what did Referee Cole called it? A slip!

And now, Referee Laurence Cole was reportedly the referee for the Pacquiao vs. Clottey fight despite of all of these evidence of his bias officiating?

For one, I agree with promoter Gary Shaw when he advocates against these incompetent officials. And what should we do about it? Boycott them!

These incompetent and biased referees and judges, they give boxing a really bad image.

For more Pacquiao vs Clottey updates, visit http://pacquiao-vs-clottey.cebuspace.com/.

I hope that the powers may be could do something about this.
Source: 8countnews.com

Not a Sure Thing: Joshua Clottey’s Manny Pacquiao Challenge

Just to be clear, I am not going to begin my article with a lot of reasons on why the Manny Pacquiao – Floyd Mayweather, JR., mega fight never happened.

The ugliness of steroids overall is a horrible yet unfortunate reality about today’s modern athlete. Fingerpointing and lecturing aside, I’ll refrain from further comment that the fight negotiations were just – how can I put this?

Ugly?

I’m just saying that there’s a whole year left. I don’t count out the possibility just yet.

For now, Pacquiao definitely looks like he’s gearing up for the fight against Joshua “Grand Master” Clottey, 35-3, 20 KO’s, set for March 13th at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas. But given some thought about Clottey as an opponent, I’ll argue that he may give Pacquiao some competition.

Some competition meaning that the fight is going to end with a unanimous decision in favor of Pacquiao over 12 rounds. However, Clottey is not and should not be taken lightly because there is never a sure thing for a fighter – even for Pacquiao – once he steps into the ring.

I had to look back at some of Clottey’s previous bouts. And, l always feel that looking at a fighter’s losses are more telling and if whether his post loss matches were better or worse. Clottey’s fight record is a veritable list of who’s who in the current welterweight division. And, unlike Pacquiao, he’s always fought at welterweight so he’s established himself at that weight against some heavy hitters and can definitely take some punishment at the hands of his opponents.

From footage I’ve seen, Clottey fights great inside. He has a good jab-hook combination that if properly executed, rocks his opponents. He goes to the body with left uppercuts, followed by barrages of hooks.

Clottey is definitely at his best when he’s in the middle of the ring. He has a tendency to get cornered and as such, doesn’t work too hard to dominate, especially if he’s against the ropes and in the corner. Once he establishes close in-fighting exchanges, he does not back down at all.

Clottey easily loses points when he fails to be aggressive and works tentatively showing moments of strong fighting and winning by points, but then somehow takes times off in a round or two without establishing his will on his opponent. Clottey’s lackluster ring generalship allows his opponents to win rounds he could have easily won if he weren’t so reluctant to exchange.

Now, I just stated that his ring generalship is a little lackluster, but it’s not lacking too much. This is where I just love to theorize about boxing tactics because I definitely think Clottey has an awareness of the referee. Call it “dirty tactics,” but I think Clottey is very aware of the referee in the ring and what he can possibly do to his opponent depending on what the referee may or might not be seeing. Yes, fight fans, others have said it. Clottey is notorious for the timeliness of his clashing of heads. And, it’s usually his opponents that get the worst of these accidental head butts.

Back in 1999 in his fight against Argentina’s Carlos Baldomir, Clottey scored a DQ. He lost two points for his headbutting of Baldomir in the 10th round and repeated a headbutt again in the 11th resulting in the disqualification. Again, timeliness of the head clash, but in this case, he lost big because he was ahead on the judges’ scorecards at the time the fight was stopped.

Back in June 2009, Clottey faced Miguel Angel Cotto. Clottey had suffered a knockdown in the first round. But later, towards the end of round three, Cotto had suffered a cut above his left eye again by an accidental headbutt. Cotto went on to win the fight by split decision over 12 rounds, but the cut didn’t exactly take one or two stitches. According to reports, the cut took 20 total stitches (14 over and 6 below the eye – ouch!)

In this fight, Clottey definitely gave Cotto a hard time despite the knockdown in the first round, but still didn’t really looked like he could beat Cotto.

Clottey is definitely a different type of opponent for Pacquiao. He has solid talent, has shown definite ability to work and exchange on the inside. But as a slow starter, he cannot afford to be tentative. It’s a big moment and venue for the fighter from Ghana. If Clottey can step up his game and the occasion, he has nothing to lose by any means. Given his history of accidental headbutts, Pacquiao’s southpaw stance makes him even more vulnerable to the possibility of a clash of heads.

Pacquiao must show even more technical ability, combined with his speed and power, to take the fight quickly. However, it’s up to Clottey to make this his fight and not make the fight about his opponent Pacquiao. So, was Clottey the safer choice for Pacquiao? Probably, but maybe, just maybe, Clottey will make this fight about giving some competition to Pacquiao.

Will he win?

I say no, but I don’t see him exactly standing there getting beat up either.

For more Pacquiao vs Clottey updates, visit http://pacquiao-vs-clottey.cebuspace.com/.

Source: ringsidereport.com

Roach slows down Pacquiao training

MANILA, Philippines – Coach Freddie Roach is slowing down World Boxing Organization (WBO) welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao's training since he may peak too early for his March 13 fight against Ghana's Joshua Clottey.

Top Rank promoter Bob Arum told Philboxing.com that with still over a month to go before the fight, Roach had to "slow him [Pacquiao] up" to avoid peaking early for the bout.

Arum said he is impressed with the conditioning of Pacquiao.

He said Pacquiao is "getting rave reviews on his performance in the gym, and everybody is saying they can’t believe how great he’s looking.”

Arum said it seems that Pacquiao “can [even] fight tomorrow”.

Alex Ariza, Pacquiao's conditioning coach, echoed Arum, saying the 7-division boxing champion seems to get better and better in each sparring session.

“He looked the best that I’ve probably seen him. His footwork, speed, power was unreal,” Ariza said in a report by Inside Sports.com.

Sparring mate hits below belt

During his recent sparring session, Pacquiao nearly knocked down his sparring mate Mike Dallas. This was after Dallas, a 23-year-old light welterweight with an 11-0-1 record, reportedly hit him below the belt by accident.

Ariza said coach Freddie Roach was obviously happy with Pacquiao’s performance. The boxing trainer said things are going on as planned.

Ariza said Roach had “a big smile on his face." "He was happy, and when he and Manny are happy, I am happy,” he added

He said Roach will also bring in another sparring partner to challenge Pacquiao’s abilities.

The new sparring mate is Abdullai Amidu, a welterweight from Ghana who is undefeated in 18 fights, with 17 wins coming by way of knockouts.

The Filipino champ has been dominating sessions with his sparring partners as he prepares to defend his crown against Clottey at the Cowboys Stadium in Dallas, Texas on March 13.

He earlier beat up journeyman boxer Bryan Brooks in four rounds.

Roach said Pacquiao followed the game plan well during the four-round sparring session. He also said Brooks was hurt a few times.

“[Pacquiao] did really well. He’s already following the game plan. This was a good sparring partner for Shane Mosley but I don’t think I’m going to bring him back… he got hurt a few times. Manny was too much for him,” he said.

For more Pacquiao vs Clottey updates, visit http://pacquiao-vs-clottey.cebuspace.com/.

Source: ph.news.yahoo.com

Manny’s Meteoric Rise – Part 2

After winning a paper title, Manny hit the boxing jackpot by landing a fight against De La Hoya. De La Hoya’s last fight was against Steve Forbes, at 150 lbs. Oscar’s trainer said after the fight that he “thought Oscar would have had more power than he had.” If the fight would have been at a higher weight. Oscar had been fighting at 154 or higher for 7 years. Boxing analyst Travis Marks wrote afterwards “The troubling aspect about Oscar’s fight last night was that he was at his best, at least he was at his best at this stage in his career.” He went on “…Steve Forbes was never hurt. Forbes surprisingly was able to land some of the cleaner more effective power punches. The underdog caused a mouse under De La Hoya’s left eye, he puffed up the right eye, and bloodied both Oscar’s lip and nose. No one could have expected that.” Mr. Marks went on “Psychologically De La Hoya can not be a good place. “He finished his column “…last night’s bout points to Oscar having a pretty nasty send off from the square ring.” James Slater wrote about the bout “…De La Hoya’s performance against Steve Forbes left a lot to be desired.” De La Hoya had to lose three more pounds and was seven months older. Travis Marks couldn’t have been more right, in his prediction of Oscar’s send off.

Next up for Pacquiao was Ricky Hatton at 140. Hatton had got knocked out three fights earlier against Floyd Mayweather Jr. After that Hatton battled Juan Lazcano. Boxing analyst Jim Dwyer wrote afterwards

“…I was watching…Ricky Hatton absorb tremendous punishment in the 8th and 10th rounds by light-hitting Juan Lazcano, who hurt Hatton badly in both rounds, in finally dawned on me that Hatton, perhaps, can no longer take a big shot at this stage in his career. Some people are of the opinion that Hatton’s chin was damaged earlier in his career.”

After this Hatton beat the feather-fisted Pauli Malignaggi. Then against Pacquiao he suffered another knockout.

Then in his last outing Manny Pacquiao took on welterweight Miguel Cotto. But he made Cotto fight at a catchweight of 145. Also worth noting, is the fact that Shane Mosley, who’s regarded as the best welterweight, had been practically begging for a fight with Pacquiao. He offered to go down to 143 and a 60/40 purse split for Manny. If that was his opening offer, Manny surely could have gotten an even better deal. Pacquiao’s trainer Freddie Roach was even quoted on Insidefights.com an official partner of Fox Sports as follows: “Shane came to the gym twice to ask me to let him fight Manny… I told him “no” both times, and both times for the same two reasons: First, there isn’t enough money there, and second, you’re too good a fighter.” Cotto on the other hand had suffered a horrendous beating by the possibly plaster-wrapped hands of Antonio Margarito. He took an easy fight and then he fought Joshua Clottey. Cotto-Clottey was an extremely close fight that Cotto won by decision, but some thought Clottey should have gotten the nod. After that bout Frank Lotierzo wrote on thesweetscience.com “The reality is Cotto isn’t an overwhelmingly strong welterweight. Miguel Cotto is no longer the catch and kill style fighter he was earlier in his career.” Teddy Atlas on ESPN following the fight said Cotto “…looked like the ghost of Margarito was hovering over him…it looked like Cotto was in some ways pscyologically suffering.” Then before his fight with Pacquiao an article by Brett Okamoto ran in the Las Vegas Sun, stating “Roach has said many times Cotto hasn’t been the same since taking the worst beating of his career in an 11th round TKO loss to Antonio Margarito.” Roach was then quoted as saying “’… a fighter is …not the same following a knockout like that.” The column continued “Some agree with Roach that the 29-year-old fighter looked different in a 12 round split decision with Joshua Clottey.” Manny Pacquiao went on to prove people right again by battering a Cotto that looked shot for 12 rounds. Now Manny has turned his attention to the Clottey. Yes, the same Clottey that lost to a shot Miguel Cotto.

In review, after his first title defense ended in a draw against Marquez, Manny fought the loser of Barrera-Morales III, Morales again when he was coming off a loss to Zahir Rahim, Oscar Larios coming off a loss, Jorge Solis, Barrera coming off two narrow victories over Juarez and getting dominated in his last fight, a rematch with Marquez that many feel Marquez won, the easiest title-holder at 135, a washed up De La Hoya, a Hatton that could no longer take a punch, and a shot Cotto. Now a fighter who has lost to Carlos Baldomir, Margarito, and a loss in his last fight to Cotto. It seems like Manny Pacquiao continually picks someone coming off a loss or coming off a victory in which it is widely reported that the fighter looked like a shell of his former self in the victory. Now that many consider Manny to be a top pound-for-pound fighter its time he starts taking on opponents like a top pound-for-pound fighter.

For more Pacquiao vs Clottey updates, visit http://pacquiao-vs-clottey.cebuspace.com/.

Source: boxingnews24.com

Manny’s Meteoric Rise – Part 1

Manny Pacquiao is currently regarded by many as the best pound-for-pound fighter in the game today. So, exactly how did he get there? Here’s an honest look at the rise of Manny Pacquiao. In 2003, Manny Pacquiao was the International Boxing Federation super bantamweight champion with a record of 37-2-2. Both losses were by knockout to average opponents. Marco Antonio Barrera was the champion one weight class above at 126 and widely regarded as one of the best boxers at the time. Pacquiao proved too much for Barrera overwhelming him with power shots. However, Barrera had his training disrupted when he was forced to leave Big Bear, where he was training, in the middle of training due to wildfires. Regardless, Pacquiao came in great shape and did his job and did very, very well.

In his next match he took on the underrated Juan Manuel Marquez. Pacquiao dropped Marquez three times in the first round. Marquez got up every time though and got back in the fight by steadily winning rounds. At the end of the night, the bout was ruled a draw. After that he went back to his home country of the Philippines for an easy match against an opponent with seven losses. Undoubtedly, a great move though, giving his fans a chance to see their now known world champion in action. In the meantime, Barrera had just finished his trilogy with Morales in which he added to his legacy by beating Morales. He also won their second fight. Barrera and Marquez both wanted rematches since their first fight against Pacquiao. So Manny comes back to the states and fights… Morales. Morales had just lost his last fight. It turned out to backfire on Manny as Morales handed Pacquiao the third loss of his career, the first by decision.

After this Manny fought a confidence builder against Hector Velazquez, who had 10 losses on his record. Next, Morales being the consummate champion that he is gave Manny a rematch, even though Manny had refused this to Barrera and Marquez. While Pacquiao beat Velazquez, Morales had lost another fight, this time to a Zahir Rahim. Pacquiao got his revenge. Manny went back to fight Oscar Larios in the Phillipines. Larios, like Morales, had lost the last time he got in the ring. Manny then came back to the states and gave Morales a rubber match, which Manny easily won.

Jorge Solis was Pacquiao’s next opponent. Solis was undefeated at the time but still not considered a top tier fighter as he hadn’t been in with anyone of Pacquiao’s caliber. Meantime, Marquez won a lopsided decision over Barrera. Before that, it took everything Barrera had to squeak out two wins against Rocky Juarez. So the great champion, would surely give Marquez the rematch, right? Wrong, he instead chose to take on Barrera again, who had looked poor in his last three matchups. After beating Barrera, there weren’t any big fights out there except for Marquez. The public and Marquez had been wanting a rematch for four years. Finally, feeling the pressure of the public, Manny finally gave in and fought Marquez for a second time. This was an extremely close contest. At the end of the night, one judge gave the fight to Marquez, and two gave it to Pacquiao. There are many who feel Marquez did more than enough to win and clearly got robbed. The public demanded a rubber match. Marquez asked for another fight. Manny ignored them and moved up to 135 and fought the worst title holder at that weight class.

For more Pacquiao vs Clottey updates, visit http://pacquiao-vs-clottey.cebuspace.com/.

Source: boxingnews24.com