GRAPEVINE, Tex. - Lenny DeJesus has been around boxing for over 40 years. In that time he has had many roles - amateur boxer, bucket boy, stool man, adviser and cut man. But he is a locksmith by trade.
So DeJesus, who lives in the Bronx, knows a thing or two about keys and locks. And he has drawn an assignment that will test all his skills - inside and outside the ring.
DeJesus will be working Joshua Clottey's corner as his trainer when the former welterweight champion takes on Manny Pacquiao, the No. 1 "pound-for-pound" fighter, at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington Saturday night.
He must find the right combination for Clottey (35-3, 21 KOs) against Pacquiao (50-3-2, 38 KOs), who has been unstoppable for the last two years. Compounding the difficulty, DeJesus was a late replacement when Clottey's longtime trainer Godwin Kotey had trouble getting a visa to travel from Ghana to the U.S.
DeJesus has only been working with Clottey for seven weeks. But the trainer said he has given Clottey a plan that will succeed.
"If he listens to me, we'll have a winner," DeJesus said yesterday.
If he doesn't, then Clottey will become just the latest victim of the Pacquiao Express, which has steamrolled Oscar De La Hoya, Ricky Hatton and Miguel Cotto in the last two years.
Has DeJesus gained Clottey's respect and confidence enough to propel his fighter to victory?
DeJesus is the key. He was the cut man for Pacquiao for four fights when Murad Muhammad promoted the boxer. When trainer Freddie Roach became more involved in the management of Pacquiao, DeJesus was fired. Roach said he doesn't think DeJesus is still carrying a grudge about that. But Roach added, "I don't think I would be too happy if I got fired."
That was the last thing on DeJesus' mind as he prepared the 32-year-old welterweight, who was schooled in boxing in the tough neighborhood of Bokum in Accra, Ghana. Fighting on the street was not only a rite of passage, it was a favorite pastime. In New York most kids would go to the courts and play a pickup game of basketball. In Bokum, the boys would pick up the gloves, lace them up and start swinging.
DeJesus must get Clottey to tap into that fighting spirit tomorrow night.
The book on Clottey is that he has a granite chin, but holsters his offense late in fights. He did it against Antonio Margarito and Cotto, whom he nearly knocked out before Cotto rallied in the last two rounds to pull out a split decision.
Clottey cried when he found out that Kotey could not get out of Ghana in time to help him prepare for this bout. Vinny Scolpino, Clottey's manager, asked DeJesus to train Clottey instead.
DeJesus, who works out of John's Gym in the Bronx, where Clottey also trains, jumped at the challenge. He got on a plane, leaving behind the snow in New York, and began working with Clottey in Hollywood, Fla.
DeJesus said his most valuable asset is his experience in the corner, where things can get chaotic during the heat of the fight. He wants his voice to be the only one that Clottey hears between rounds. He has told the others in the corner not to lead the cheers.
"I told them if they holler, they're out," DeJesus said.
He wants Clottey to be relaxed and calm no matter what is happening in the fight.
DeJesus saw what happened in Cotto's corner when he faced Pacquiao. Cotto had an inexperienced trainer, Joe Santiago.
"He was not prepared to motivate the kid during the fight," DeJesus said. "They panicked."
It won't take long to determine whether DeJesus and Clottey are clicking. Pacquiao will make sure of that. But DeJesus knows it will take only one mistake by Pacquiao and one well-placed punch by Clottey to unlock the door to an upset.
"You could be walking across the street," DeJesus said, "look one way and forget to look the other way and get run down."
tsmith@nydailynews.com
Source: nydailynews.com
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