Pacquiao vs Clottey
By Roy Luarca
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 03:17:00 03/09/2010
HOLLYWOOD—It’s easy to see why Filipino ring superstar Manny Pacquiao exudes confidence just six days before he tangles with Ghanaian challenger Joshua Clottey.
Unlike before, Pacquiao has been training at the Wild Card Gym here on a full stomach.
“Kain ng kain (I keep on eating),” Pacquiao told Manila-based sportswriters Sunday in his unit at the gated Palazzo residences here. “Sobra-sobra pa (And I had a lot more).”
No wonder, Hall of Fame trainer Freddie Roach has lavished superlatives on his favorite ward’s training form.
Boxing writers, observers, photographers and visitors gushed at the way Pacquiao has toyed with experienced sparmates and sweated it out for over two hours each day.
And betting odds only underscore Pacquiao’s seeming invincibility going into the World Boxing Organization welterweight title fight on Saturday (Sunday morning in Manila) at the Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
According to bookmakers, Pacquiao is now at minus-800 and Clottey at plus-550.
It means that an $800 bet on a Pacquiao victory will earn just $100 while a $100 bet on a Clottey win will yield $550.
An attractive proposition is in the “will go” the distance (minus-180) and “won’t go” the distance (plus-140) betting.
If the bout lasts less than 9½ rounds, a $100 “won’t go” bet will earn $140. A “will go” bet of $180 will net just $100.
Pacquiao’s speed, power and strategy have so impressed Roach that the trainer said he expects the Filipino superstar to inflict Clottey’s first knockout defeat.
Because it was Sunday here, Pacquiao took a break and attended to his spiritual obligation. He heard Mass and skipped road work.
“Okay na, ready na,” said Pacquiao, who continues to evade questions regarding the outcome of the pay-per-view tussle. “Good luck to both of us.”
The seven-division world champion closes training camp Monday morning with four rounds of sparring against Raymundo Beltran at Wild Card.
Team Pacquiao will take the three-hour flight to Dallas on a chartered plane along with an entourage of some 150 people.
Clottey’s team flew to Dallas on a commercial flight Sunday.
Source: sports.inquirer.net
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