Roach now thinks Pacquiao will knock Clottey out

By Dave Lahr: I knew trainer Freddie Roach would eventually work himself around to the point where he would predict a knockout win for his fighter WBO welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao over Joshua Clottey on March 13th. In an article at GMA News, Roach had this to say about the Pacquiao-Clottey fight: “I’m not saying we can’t knock him [Pacquiao] out. I think we will somewhere along the way. But we’re gonna be ready for 12 hard rounds.” There it is. Roach now thinks that Pacquiao will knock Clottey out.

Like I said, I knew that Roach would reverse course and predict a knockout after reading recently where he said he thought Pacquiao would beat Clottey by a 12 round decision. This is classic Roach for you. Now all we need is Roach to start trimming off the rounds to the point where he has Pacquiao stopping Clottey between the 1st and 3rd rounds. I mean it’s hard to come up with new sound bites, so by trimming off rounds every so often for his predictions, Roach is coming up with new stuff to say to the media.

I don’t believe for a second that Pacquiao will get anywhere close to stopping Clottey. That won’t happen. That’s my prediction. Clottey’s chin is too tough and Pacquiao probably won’t be interested in standing in front of Clottey long enough to make it happen. I think Clottey can be stopped, but for that to happen, Pacquiao would have to camp in front of him for five to six rounds and throw a steady diet of hard shots to get him out of there.

The problem with that is Pacquiao would take a nasty beating himself in the process by the larger Clottey and probably end up looking like someone that crawled off the Civil war battlefield. Clottey isn’t a huge puncher, but if you let him put his hands on you for five to six rounds, his shots have a way of adding up.

But Pacquiao won’t be standing in front of this guy, you can bet on that. Roach will be going apoplectic in the corner screaming his longs out if Pacquiao tries to trade with Clottey for any length of time. He doesn’t need to. Clottey has limited movement, and tends to just stand in one place for long periods of time just covering up with both gloves glued to his face.

Pacquiao won’t have problems against an opponent like this. This kind of primitive fighting approach may work against 2nd tier opposition, but Pacquiao won’t have problems against Clottey unless he makes problems himself by trying to go to war with him.

About the training for the Clottey fight, Roach says “Manny’s a very intelligent fighter. Now he understands how to study fights. Before, he didn’t care. He just did what he did. But now, he sees it. And when you see it, you can execute it.” I think Pacquiao would do fine against Clottey regardless of whether he studies for him or not.

What’s there to think about when a fighter posts himself with his back against the ropes and covers up while his opponent shells away at him? I think Pacquiao could figure Clottey out just fine even without tape on him. Come off of it, Roach. This isn’t like going up against a slick fighter like Floyd Mayweather Jr. or Shane Mosley. Clottey will be there to be hit all night long for Pacquiao, and Manny could see that plain as day without studying Clottey.

Source: boxingnews24.com