By Chris Robinson, Examiner.com
Last night at the Dallas Cowboys Stadium, Manny Pacquiao delivered a thoroughly convincing performance in decisioning Joshua Clottey over twelve lopsided rounds. With the win Pacquiao successfully defended his WBO Welterweight belt while moving his record to 51-3-2 with 38 knockouts as well as keeping the possibility of a huge showdown with Floyd Mayweather alive.
Pacquiao wasn’t able to dispatch Clottey in the emphatic fashion in which he did Oscar De La Hoya, Ricky Hatton, or Miguel Cotto but he did just about everything that could be expected from his end. Pacquiao’s non-stop attack saw him land 246 out of 1231 punches while showing an improved attack to the body. Clottey never had an answer and seem resigned to the fact that his only victory would be a moral one in lasting the full twelve rounds.
As is the case with any big event in the sport, people in boxing circles were watching last night’s developments with a curious eye. Following Pacquiao’s win the talk revolved around his performance in the ring as well as what he is exact future holds. Tommy Rainone, a Welterweight prospect out of New York, knew what he was getting with a Pacquiao-Clottey fight well ahead of time.
“Pac fought just how I thought he would fight,” Rainone claims. “He threw over 1200 punches and stayed very busy. Freddie Roach is the best trainer in the business and they tried to implement a couple of statagies that no one had tried on Clottey. Pac managed to go hard to his body and was able to force him on his heels and back him up. This was definitely something they worked on in sparring but Clottey is still too big and durable to get rid of. What stood out to me is the variety of ways he tried to fight Clottey. He switched gears on him all night and put on a real workmanlike performance.”
Aaron Skinner, a correspondent for 8 Count News, feels that last night wasn’t about what Pacquiao did as much as what Clottey didn’t do. While being impressed with certain elements of Pacquiao’s attack the Key West native can’t shake the feeling that Clottey simply could have done more.
“It was a one-sided fight,” Skinner notes. “If Clottey would have let his hands go it would have been interesting. When he threw he was landing but when he wasn’t he was just eating punches. It could have been compelling. I was impressed that Pacquiao kept his speed at 147 pounds and he hasn’t had a work rate like that at any weight.”
411 Mania Correspondent Ryan Bates, based out of Las Vegas, used to work for Top Rank and has assisted on various Pacquiao events in the past. Bates has seen first how impressive the Filipino has been in the past yet was still taken back by last night's display.
"It was a good performance, a great one really," Bates says. "I wouldn't say it was his best performance, that was probably against Ricky Hatton. Against Hatton he left no doubt and there was nothing that could have changed the outcome of that fight. The only thing Clottey will be able to say after last night was that he was one of the few men to last the full twelve rounds with Pacquiao."
Boxing Scene columnist Ryan Songalia feels that while nobody will remember Pacquiao for having a sensational performance last night, it was obvious that he struck some type of fear into his African opponent. Elaborating further, Songalia reminisces of another champion from years’ past.
“One measure of a fighter's greatness is the amount of fear he instills in the competition,” Songalia points out. “Last night was no great fight but it added another note to the Pacquiao legend. It reminds me of when Marvin Hagler was a champion and he couldn’t get anybody to fight him. No matter how much money someone was going to make they simply didn’t want any part of him in the ring.”
Side El Harrak, an East London native and Welterweight prospect, recently relocated from Las Vegas to Texas and still has kept a close eye on the sport. Heading into last night’s contest Harrack was very high on Clottey yet came away with a completely different impression of him after his showing.
“It’s hard to judge Pacquiao’s performance,” Harrak feels. “Anyone can look good against a moving punching bag. I’m not a fan of many fighters but I was of Clottey. I though he was underrated and never got the credit he deserved. After the performance tonight I can’t defend the man anymore. Fighters today fight with no pride. I’d rather swallow my blood than swallow my pride.”
Taking things to a different level, Harrack continues to vent on his frustrations towards Clottey. When looking back on Clottey’s recent performances Harrack feels that there very well could be much more going on behind closed doors than people realize.
“Bob Arum knew what he was doing by putting Clottey in with Pacquiao,” Harrack states. “I don’t know if Clottey is being paid off or what. He controlled the first four rounds easily against Margarito and all of sudden backs off. Tony wins and goes on to a mega fight with Cotto. Clottey fights Cotto and has a dead man in front of him but lets him off the hook the last three rounds. Cotto then goes on to a mega fight with Pacquiao. Now Clottey fights Pacquiao and he didn’t do a damn thing and it looks like Manny will go on to face Mayweather. People in the suits that have never laced up a pair of gloves in their life are the downfall to this beautiful sport.”
It’s obvious that last night’s main event elicited different reactions from people watching as some are pointing to Pacquiao’s greatness while others are blaming Clottey’s lack of desire. When looking at what the champion’s future holds, the views also seem to differ. Rainone personally feels that last night showed how much draw Pacquiao has and that no matter whom he fights, people will be watching.
“Pac is a huge PPV and live gate draw,” Rainone claims. “There were 51,000 fans at the fight and they were not there to see Joshua Clottey. Pacquiao is going to do huge numbers regardless of who he fights and even bigger numbers against the big names in and around his weight class. There is the Mayweather-Mosley winner but even if that doesn’t come to fruition Pac has plenty of options like fights with Andre Berto, Timothy Bradley, which I would love to see, and the Amir Khan-Paulie Malignaggi winner.”
Darrell Jones, an undefeated Welterweight fighting out of Philadelphia, also feels that fights with Berto and Khan, and even a matchup with Cory Spinks, who he claims would give Pacquiao angles, would all be interesting affairs. Harrack seems to believe that if Pacquiao were to ever indeed fight Mayweather it would be the fight everyone would ‘want to see’ and that Floyd would emerge victorious because he is a beast, and a true fighter, as he claims.
In closing Skinner feels that no matter what happens Pacquiao should be able to find someone in or around his division to due battle with. Even if it isn’t the fight we all immediately want, there are willing combatants between 140 and 154 pounds.
“Everyone would love to see him fight Mayweather or Mosley but even after that he had a few decent fights. A third fight with Juan Manuel Marquez would be decent. He could also fight Bradley at 140 or even Alexander, who just beat Juan Urango. That would be a great fight. Another possibility might be going up to 154 to fight Yuri Foreman if he beats Miguel Cotto this summer.”
Source: examiner.com
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