You guys are really undersestimating Clottey.

[-Spinal-]

Clottey is a good fighter, but he aint on Mannys level,
its a pointless one sided fight

What's even more pointless on paper is that Clottey just came off a SD loss and Pacquiao just stopped the guy that beat Clottey. So on paper, it's a bad fight but I am pretty sure that Clottey will come to win and give it all he can before he gasses out. Doesn't change the fact that, on paper, he just came off a loss to Cotto and then Pacquiao goes and stops Cotto.

[- JCHING -]

IMO Clottey's only chance is to try and absorb as much of Pac's attack as possible with his high guard, lose the first half of the fight whilst allowing Manny to tire himself out, and then start to open up on Pac in the second half.

The problem is, Pac more than likely won't tire, and Clottey would more than likely get caught with something big and lose his head.

The fact is, Clottey is not being underestimated. Most admit he's a solid fighter, but he's perfect stylistically for Pac. At times, Cotto's speed and power was too much for Clottey - how much more will Pacquiao's?

[The_Sneaky]

What's even more pointless on paper is that Clottey just came off a SD loss and Pacquiao just stopped the guy that beat Clottey. So on paper, it's a bad fight but I am pretty sure that Clottey will come to win and give it all he can before he gasses out. Doesn't change the fact that, on paper, he just came off a loss to Cotto and then Pacquiao goes and stops Cotto.

On paper Cotto beat Mosley and Margarito stopped Cotto. What happened between Margarito and Mosley? Mosley stopped Margarito.

Why? Styles make fights. Clottey's style is very different from Cotto's. He is right handed and is a defense first fighter. He only opens up if he is quite sure he can hit you and hit you cleanly without taking fire in return. He doesn't believe in taking punishment to give punishment or overwhelming you with his offense. He religiously practices hit and don't be hit.

When he does open his offense is very impressive. He throws in combinations and very fast ones as that. He doesn't throw wide or looping punches and is very accurate. His punches are also crisp and clean whether they are straights, hooks, jabs or uppercuts. He is not slick or fast-footed but his footwork is very impressive. He is almost always in the correct position(against all types of fighters but especially southpaws) to attack or defend and doesn't waste energy or time in achieving this.

Doubt me? Watch his fights with Judah, Cotto, Margarito, Corrales. Watch the whole fights without the biased commentary and form your own opinion.

Pac main advantage in this fight is not power or offense. It's his quick feet, punch output, durability and stamina. He can look the busier fighter and get the decision even if Clottey is landing the more cleaner, effective punches. It'll be a mistake to try and break down Clottey, Pac will take too much punishment to do that and risks being broken down himself.

[Doctor_Tenma]

IMO Clottey's only chance is to try and absorb as much of Pac's attack as possible with his high guard, lose the first half of the fight whilst allowing Manny to tire himself out, and then start to open up on Pac in the second half.

The problem is, Pac more than likely won't tire, and Clottey would more than likely get caught with something big and lose his head.

The fact is, Clottey is not being underestimated. Most admit he's a solid fighter, but he's perfect stylistically for Pac. At times, Cotto's speed and power was too much for Clottey - how much more will Pacquiao's?

Well said man

In my opinion, you can never discredit a win because the opponent is taylor made. If Pacquiao wins (Which he will) it's a solid win and neither of us can deny that, but style wise, I don't see the competitiveness in this match. Thats the main issue here.

[- JCHING -]

Well said man

In my opinion, you can never discredit a win because the opponent is taylor made. If Pacquiao wins (Which he will) it's a solid win and neither of us can deny that, but style wise, I don't see the competitiveness in this match. Thats the main issue here.

Yea, exactly.

Pac beating Clottey will not be a bad thing necessarily - the guy is a top fighter. The thing is, Pac has beaten guys like Clottey a million times before and his style thrives on opponents like him.

So IMO it's a pretty pointless fight at this stage of his career.

[The_Sneaky]

IMO Clottey's only chance is to try and absorb as much of Pac's attack as possible with his high guard, lose the first half of the fight whilst allowing Manny to tire himself out, and then start to open up on Pac in the second half.

The problem is, Pac more than likely won't tire, and Clottey would more than likely get caught with something big and lose his head.

The fact is, Clottey is not being underestimated. Most admit he's a solid fighter, but he's perfect stylistically for Pac. At times, Cotto's speed and power was too much for Clottey - how much more will Pacquiao's?

I agree about Pac's stamina. That's a huge advantage he has in his arsenal. Somehow, he is as fresh in the 12th round(if not even fresher) than he is in the first round.

I disagree about the strategy however. Clottey doesn't just defend from the shell, he also counters and attacks from within that shell and he's explosive when he does that. He throws in very fast combinations. His game plan should be to break Pac down and slow him down in the first half of the fight.

He won't be as busy or dynamic but the punches he does throw should be very hard and accurate. He did do that successfully against speedy, fast-footed southpaw Judah. He can also keep Pac at bay using a stiff jab from behind the tight guard because he has a longer reach. Winky used that effectively against Shane.

And what part of the fight did you see 'Cotto's speed and power' bother Clottey? As I saw it it was Cotto on the retreat for most parts of the fight and especially the last four rounds.

[Joe Ko!]

imo this is a mismatch and Pacman owes him from 1-12 and maybe get the knockout late on

[rocky_balboa23]

Yea, exactly.

Pac beating Clottey will not be a bad thing necessarily - the guy is a top fighter. The thing is, Pac has beaten guys like Clottey a million times before and his style thrives on opponents like him.

So IMO it's a pretty pointless fight at this stage of his career.

who were the guys in Pac's resume that have the same fighting style as Clottey? Clottey is a beast and I will say it's a step up from Cotto fight.

[IMDAZED]

Really? Where is Baldomir now? You call a former world champion a loser? You call the most avoided welterweight a loser. If he was don't you think a lot more top ranked welterweights will fancy a fight with him? At least to stay busy and get a good name on their resume. The only time he's being given a chance was when the champion had no other options. That includes Margarito, Cotto, Mosley and Pac. That is because he presents a serious threat in the ring. Even then he has had to do that against biased refereeing and judging. Don't tale my word for it, watch his fights with Baldomir, Margarito, Cotto yourself. Tell me your opinion of the refereeing and judging in those three fights.

Every elite boxer says of Clottey: high risk, low reward. They'll fight him if they have no other viable options, even then they aren't enthused about it. Did you hear Mosley say Clottey is no good? Or insist on fighting Clottey after the December 26 fight fell through? The only people you'll hear saying Clottey's no good are fans and commentators who haven't watched his fights and only repeat what the media says(or watch fight highlights) and Roach, Mayweather Sr who have a vested interest in saying so. All welterweights boxers themselves respect what Clottey brings into the ring.

Give me a break. Most avoided? He's fought Margarito, Judah, Cotto in the past two years. And I've seen all of those fights...you're blaming the reffing and judging? Really? Did the ref tie his hands in the championship rounds against a clearly weakening Cotto? How about the Margarito fight when he took, oh, five rounds off before his mysteriously injured hands recovered? And how in the WORLD can you blame a ref or judging in the Baldomir fight? If you repeatedly use your head to try and break the other guy's face (guess what?) you're going to get disqualified!

Look, I won't be surprised if Clottey's natural size gives Pac hell and he even pulls off a shocker. But that's what it will be because nothing he's done in the past shows that he knows how to win a big fight. Only lose.

[- JCHING -]

I agree about Pac's stamina. That's a huge advantage he has in his arsenal. Somehow, he is as fresh in the 12th round(if not even fresher) than he is in the first round.

I disagree about the strategy however. Clottey doesn't just defend from the shell, he also counters and attacks from within that shell and he's explosive when he does that. He throws in very fast combinations. His game plan should be to break Pac down and slow him down in the first half of the fight.

He won't be as busy or dynamic but the punches he does throw should be very hard and accurate. He did do that successfully against speedy, fast-footed southpaw Judah. He can also keep Pac at bay using a stiff jab from behind the tight guard because he has a longer reach. Winky used that effectively against Shane.

And what part of the fight did you see 'Cotto's speed and power' bother Clottey? As I saw it it was Cotto on the retreat for most parts of the fight and especially the last four rounds.

I agree Clottey should aim to use his jab early on, but I think absorbing Pac's early power shots would allow him to be more affective with his countering in the second half of the fight.

If Clottey tries too early to open up and break Pac down, he's gonna get caught big like Cotto did and that's game over. IMO I think he should take a very defensive stance early, drain some of Pac's power and then start to counter.

In the Cotto fight, Clottey was caught with some big shots and was even knocked down - albeit, he was off balance, but Cotto's speed caught him out. If he gets hit with shots like that against Pac, he's going down or being stopped.