By Matt Stolow - Veteran welterweight Joshua Clottey of Ghana has emerged as the probable opponent for Manny Pacquiao on March 20 at either the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas or Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas according to media reports.Clottey, almost 33, is 35-3 (20 KO's), and probably the most dangerous opponent Pacquiao, to his credit, could have chosen.
He is 5'8 to Pacquiao's 5'6 and his reach is 70 inches to Pacquiao's 67. He's right handed compared to Pacquiao being left handed.
Now living in The Bronx, NY, Clottey is no Yuri Foreman or Zab Judah.
His last fight was in June when he lost a spirited split -decision to Miguel Cotto.
I think Clottey has had some bad luck in all his losses and could easily turn out to be Pacquiao's toughest fight ever.
I'm so glad Pacquiao vetoed Borcsht Belt favorite Yuri Foreman as his next opponent. I'm sure it had everything to do with the 154 champ Foreman being almost six inches taller at 5'11. But more than that, Foreman would have been a cheesy pick. It would have been trying to appeal to fans at the most primitive level - being the eighth championship in eight weight divisions gimmick.
No where yet has the opinion been heard of the Hall of Fame matchmaker on the Top Rank payroll that actually got Pacquiao to the heights he has achieved. That being Bruce Trampler.
Trampler gives fans true dollar value for their ticket purchase rather than the instant gratification a gimmick fight like Pacquiao vs. Foreman would have been. Trust me Foreman isn't going anywhere. If Pacquiao needs him as an opponent he'd be available on a moments notice down the road.
So it appears Pacquiao will face the dangerous Clottey on March 20. Floyd Mayweather, Jr. has found a graveyard he's going to rob also for March 13 at his home away from home, the MGM Grand. Hopefully both opponents will be confirmed within a few days.
I'm glad Zab Judah wasn't the pick. Heck, Pacquiao might as well have fought Mayweather if he decided on Judah. Judah is basically Mayweather without the talent or brains after two rounds.
I'm guessing that a Floyd Mayweather, Jr. fight is around the corner though for Pacman. Maybe in early September. But he better not look past Clottey. Right now the fans are a little upset the Mayweather fight wasn't made for March but they should be pleased with the choice of Clottey.
These promoters won't leave that big a chunk of money on the proverbial table for long without closing this deal. It is a calculated risk Pacquiao or Mayweather will lose, get seriously injured before they meet, or just life and time being the great equalizer, but it was a chance they decided to take in pushing this fight back at least six months.
Both fighters have now released statements and no surprise blame the other for the talks collapsing for the March fight date over the intrusiveness of the blood tests Mayweather has demanded.
The decision against Foreman was not hard to see. Although the eight knockouts looked inviting, he was all wrong for Pacquiao. It would have been an artistic disaster.
I remember it took years for other big fights of my time to be made. Sugar Ray Leonard vs. Marvin Hagler for one took over five years before it happened in 1987.
The other was my favorite, Larry Holmes vs. Gerry Cooney. This classic took years also and it had to fight through numerous injuries. I started following the making of this fight while I was in high school in Pennsylvania (1978) and it was finally my college graduation present to myself in the summer of 1982 in Texas.
I want to send a personal shout out to my friend and former boxing radio talk show co-host Mad Max Hammer. We co-hosted an hour -long weekly boxing show in something like 28 cities including Houston and Pittsburgh over the former Prime Sports Radio Network. We even put on tuxes to announce an early TVKO broadcast at Foxwoods Casino back around 1996! More on that later. Max is out in Tennessee these days but is on my subscriber list so he keeps up with my columns as you all should!
Source: examiner.com
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