Pacquiao Wins Says Ledwaba; Cotto Wins Says Ndou
By Ronnie Nathanielsz
Former IBF super bantamweight champion Lelohonolo Ledwaba, who lost his title in a crushing 6th round TKO to Manny Pacquiao in the Filipino southpaw’s US debut at the MGM Grand un Las Vegas, Nevada in June 2001, has picked Pacquiao to win in his WBO welterweight showdown with champion Miguel Cotto on November 14 at the same venue.
Ledwaba quit boxing after he suffered a detached retina and is now a trainer said that while he picks Pacquiao to win he believes it will be a tough fight that is likely to go the distance.
Well-known sportswriter David Isaacson quoted Ledwaba as saying “Manny’s in his prime, but he’s fighting a really tough guy. Manny doesn’t like fighting a boxer who likes attacking the body, and Cotto is good at that. I’d still say Manny will win, but he must stay on the outside. He can’t afford Cotto to get inside.”
On the other hand Lovemore Ndou who dropped a points decision to Cotto in 2004, according to Isaacson, reckons Cotto will have the advantage. He said “I fought Cotto – he’s a strong, smart fighter. I don’t think it will be easy, but if I had to bet, I’d put my money on Cotto.”
Ndou who was also a former sparring partner of Floyd Mayweather said he had no doubt who would win if Pacman and “Money” ever got it on. “Mayweather will win with one hand behind his back.”
Both Ledwaba and Ndou were present at a press conference on Tuesday ahead of a big tournament in Johannesburg this weekend.
Ndou, the IBO welterweight champion, is scheduled to defend against Matthew Hatton, Ricky’s brother, on November 13, and he’s confident of keeping his belt. “He’s living off his brother’s name. He’s like a donkey in a horse race. You can feed him carrots and make him think he’s a race horse, but I’ll show that he’s just a donkey.”
