Roach predicts Pacquiao to win by knockout in the ninth

Pacquiao vs Clottey
By Granville Ampong
PhilBoxing.com
Thu, 04 Mar 2010

HOLLYWOOD, California, March 3, 2010 - The world's biggest name of the decade in boxing, Pound-for-Pound King Manny Pacquiao, seeks to sustain his momentum to craft an entertaining, yet sweeping victory on March 13 at the Dallas Cowboy Stadium over the tough panther from Ghana, Joshua Clottey, whose record exhibits 35 wins and 3 losses, with 20 knockouts. The fight, dubbed "The Event", exhorts a contest in the welterweight division at 147 pounds limit, of the which the former's WBO Welterweight Championship belt is on the line.

Pacquiao, in an exclusive interview during the open workout for the media today at the famous Wild Card Gym in Hollywood, says he is one hundred percent ready for Clottey this March 13.

Asked if he expects a knock out win over the "black panther", he says: " If I knock him out, then that's a gift for me. You know, Clottey is a very good fighter. He is strong, too, with good defense."

However, Freddie Roach predicts otherwise.

"Clottey has a good defense but not too strong and he can be as solid as shell," says Roach, the celebrated trainer, whose tutelage on Pacquiao has molded the latter from being a singular fisted fighter into a multi-dimensional knockout artist. "But Pacquiao has a game plan specific to break Clottey's shell of defense and I believe Pacquiao's both hands are too fast for Clottey's defense."

"I know Clottey has a good chin, but Manny (Pacquiao) will break him down to the body," says Roach.

In fact, "I believe a win by knockout in the ninth is likely," says Roach over Clottey who has never been knocked out of his three professional losses.

"But, Clottey has a very difficult style and Pacquiao has a game plan that suits his style and he is ready to go for twelve rounds," Roach adds while wearing his vest to prepare his mitts session with Steve Forbes, a fast-punching of orthodox stance from Portland, Oregon and one of the current sparring partners of Pacquiao.

Forbes and Pacquiao had a common foe, Oscar de la Hoya, whom Pacquiao devastatingly won over by referee technical decision in round 8 in 2008, which prior to that match in the same year Forbes lost to De la Hoya via unanimous decision. But such result was seen by many boxing experts as a controversial win by De la Hoya considering the damage that the former had delivered to the Mexican-American legend. Forbes is set to fight this Saturday, March 6, against Harrison Cuello in Connecticut.

On the other hand, Top Rank Godfather Bob Arum sides no one as to which of the two fighters, Pacquiao and Clottey, is likely to win.

"Clottey is a difficult fighter because he is a tough fighter who can fight back with big hooks and jabs even after a knockdown," says Arum, referring to Clottey's controversial loss to Miguel Cotto mid of last year just before the latter fought Pacquiao last November. "Everyone is scared to fight Pacquaio, but Clottey takes the challenge to fight him and even without any bullshit."

Arum fires up judgment upon the failed negotiation of the Pacquiao-Mayweather fight, which he thinks Pacquiao as faultless of his persistent refusal over Mayweather's cumbersome demand on drug testing by a series of blood draws inside 30 days of the fight date, that which has erupted a widespread controversy and lawsuit against the Mayweather camp and its cohorts, putting as well in question the integrity and validity of Pacquiao's kingship in today's boxing world.

"But, Floyd Mayweather, Jr.... he's scared to fight Pacquiao. He has a lot of excuses. He is scared of getting knocked out!" Arum adds.

Arums says he is excited to make this Pacquiao vs. Clottey boxing event to happen. "This is historic to the Dallas Cowboy Stadium and to the boxing world. And Jerry Jones, owner of the said 1.3 billion dollar facility in Arlington, Texas, and I are happy to give this special boxing event a better venue in the annals of the history of boxing - all for the boxing fans."

Source: PhilBoxing.com