Manny Pacquiao Moves On... and Into a Wall!

By Ron Pegram - Alright, I’m done with the steroid debate. It is what it is. Let’s talk about something a little more exciting – in moving on to fight Joshua Clottey, Manny Pacquiao may be taking on the biggest challenge of his career.

Don’t dismiss this fight because Clottey recently lost to Miguel Cotto, who has since been positively thumped by Manny Pacquiao. That’s ‘Amateur Night’ boxing analysis. This fight, if it comes off, will be more about willpower and the mastery of space within a boxing ring than who beat whom.

Manny Pacquiao is a master of the come-forward style. There are moments in his fights in which you realize the other opponent simply cannot resist him. Watch his first rematch with Erik Morales for an example of this. The early going was surprisingly competitive, but by the mid rounds, it was apparent that Morales could not hold Pacquiao off.

Despite a climb of several weight classes, the result was no different when Manny fought Miguel Cotto. Simply put, if you back up against Manny Pacquiao, you’re essentially shark bait in the ring.

But to back up Joshua Clottey consistently? From a head that looks like it should have an Easter Island logo to a high guard right out of the Winky Wright playbook, Clottey is a fortress.

Can Manny hurt this guy? I’m not sure he can even get to him.

Yes, Manny is much faster. But Clottey has that high guard and agonizingly economical approach to punching. There may not be counter opportunities for Manny.

And yes, Manny is surprisingly strong at 147 lbs but Clottey come into fights weighing almost 160 lbs - and he does so looking fit and strong.

Manny builds on momentum. He’s a flood in the ring. Even if you resist his early surge, he keeps coming. The waters keep rising. Eventually, he drowns you.

But Clottey is resolute, if not active in the ring. His biggest weakness is his tendency to take his foot off the gas at times but that’s a flaw when you’re expecting a fighter to pursue his opponent. Against Manny, Joshua will always be within reach because Manny doesn’t run. Sure, Manny is awesome at darting in and out but doing that against a counter-puncher like Clottey who also has a good jab and tight defense isn’t exactly a home run strategy.

If Manny can break Joshua, I’ll be more impressed than I was by him breaking down Cotto. Clottey may not have the accomplishments of a Miguel Cotto but he has a more difficult style for Manny to solve, and, in boxing, that’s what matters.

My take on this one – Manny may stun Clottey early but by mid rounds, you’ll see Clottey stalking and Manny using all of his skills at the ‘in and out’ style to try to win a decision. What you will not see is Manny stopping Clottey before the final bell.

In fact, I think this could resemble the Miguel Cotto/Antonio Margarito fight. Manny will be the sharper guy but Clottey will be the hard to hurt, much bigger guy. Manny’s sharper than Cotto, however, and Clottey’s not as active as Margarito so Manny should win.

But it’s no sure thing. When you run into a wall at full speed, the wall usually wins.

Source: theboxingbulletin.com