By Danny Howard | February 23, 2010
To the lot of us, this is the fight that nobody wanted. Many are still focused on the past and future of Pacquiao vs. Mayweather. Although nobody seems to realize that two of the best Welterweights in the world will be fighting for a title, or the fact that boxing's pound-for-pound best might be in for a rough night, everyone will still watch a watered down substitute for what could have been. That said, will Pacquiao's historic career claim Joshua Clottey as its next entrant in the "W" column? Or will Clottey, a former Welterweight champion himself, rise to the biggest occasion of his career and shock the world?
Let's go to the board:
Manny Pacquiao **WBO Champion**
* Age: 31
* Height: 5'6 ½"
* Reach: 67"
* Record: 50-3-2 (38 KO)
Joshua Clottey
* Age: 32
* Height: 5'7"
* Reach: 70"
* Record: 35-3 (20 KO)
From their statistics, both fighters are very well matched and neither will have any glaring physical advantage over the other. This fight will basically be Clottey's counterpunching vs. Pacquiao's speed. You'll see a lot of Clottey coming forward, throwing straight punches, while Pacquiao will be strafing him with shots at all angles.
While neither fighter is a heavy hitter, Clottey probably throws the harder punches and will have to rely on landing good body shots early to slow down the champion. One thing Clottey does best is force his way through with his high guard and lets his hands go when he decides to. Clottey has a good jab, something Pacquiao has had trouble with in the past. He shouldn't press for power punches like he did against Zab Judah, but he shouldn't be too afraid to let his hands go either.
The biggest problem for Clottey is that while he may start off strong and land some good shots, he spends a good amount of time being inactive with his high guard, hoping to time a big counter shot. After Pacquiao dropped Cotto in their November fight, Cotto abandoned his gameplan and tried to land one shot at a time. As a result, he was pummeled by the seemingly endless punches from Pacquiao. Being a strong chinned and defensively sound fighter, Clottey is unlikely to be hurt by Pacquiao's shots, but he might be loading up too long and the rounds will pile up against him.
Pacquiao will be looking to attack Clottey from all angles and will try to force him off balance. It will not be in Pacquiao's best interests to take a straight shot from Clottey or stay on the inside for too long during the early goings. The best option for Pacquiao will be to take advantage of Clottey's high guard and hit him high and low. Clottey is a bulky fighter and although Pacquiao's shots won't get through for serious damage, it will tire Clottey and may force him to drop his hands.
There is very little Pacquiao can do wrong here besides backing himself up into a corner and giving Clottey opportunities to land. Pacquiao seems eager to force a fight to break out at times and that fighter instinct will have to take a backseat to allow his technical skills to carry the match. What works best for him is that Clottey is an awful finisher and cannot keep a fast pace for a whole round; this might work out better for Pacquiao than anything else.
In the end, Clottey is just like Pacquiao's last four opponents: a good fighter who is too flat-footed to give him chase and won't be able to adjust to his style. Clottey is still a more dangerous opponent than Miguel Cotto, who Clottey narrowly lost to last June, but he's stylistically perfect for Pacquiao because of his inactivity and tendency to fade in the later rounds. It wouldn't be too far of a stretch to say that Clottey may put a beating on Pacquiao in the process though to the latter's own victory.
A Pacquiao decision will likely be the outcome here with the possibility of a referee stoppage in the 11th round. I don't think Clottey can overcome Pacquiao's speed. With his bad habits of fighting slow and steady, it should work to the champion's advantage. Even if the fight is close, Clottey's style is too rough around the edges to give him the benefit of the doubt compared to the blazing style of his opponent. He'll have to win by KO or on cuts if he is to win at all.
Source: fighthype.com
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