Source: By Joaquin Henson (The Philippine Star)
“I’m a little disappointed with Clottey,” said Roach. “This was a championship fight. This was his chance to win a title and beat Manny. But I think all he wanted to do was to go the distance.” Roach said he couldn’t ask more from Pacquiao’s offense.
“Manny’s offense was excellent,” he continued. “He did exactly what we prepared for in the gym. He threw everything he had. If there was something that I found lacking, it was probably his defense. I thought he got hit with Clottey’s right hand once too many. Other than that, it was a perfect fight.”
Roach said if only Clottey threw more punches, Pacquiao would’ve broken through the Ghanaian’s turtle-shell defense.
“Clottey was afraid to open up because he knew Manny would hit him,” said Roach. “That’s why he didn’t throw as many punches as he should have. If he did, Manny would’ve located the openings to land his hooks and straights.”
Roach said it was a case of too much speed and skill for Clottey to handle.
“Manny was too fast for Clottey,” he said. “We wanted Manny to throw combinations then move away before Clottey could counter. We wanted Manny to bang the body so Clottey could bring down his defense. Clottey was just as we expected, a tough guy. He took a lot of Manny’s shots. But let’s face it, if Clottey engaged Manny, it probably wouldn’t have gone 12 rounds.”
Roach said Pacquiao was prepared to deal with foul tactics in case Clottey resorted to dirty tricks.
“Manny didn’t give Clottey a chance to do anything crazy,” said Roach. “He kept stepping on Manny’s foot at the start but I’d like to think that was because Manny’s a southpaw and Clottey’s right-handed. Manny took care of business and controlled the fight.”
The punchstats showed a wide disparity in punches thrown by both fighters. Pacquiao landed 246 of 1,231 punches compared to Clottey’s 108 of 399. While the figures indicated that Clottey had a higher rate of connection, Pacquiao was clearly the dominant fighter.
The judges’ scorecards reflected the lopsided nature of the bout. Duane Ford, 72, scored it a shutout, 120-108. It was Ford’s fourth assignment in a Pacquiao fight after Miguel Cotto, Juan Manuel Marquez (rematch) and Erik Morales (rubber match). Levi Martinez and Nelson Vasquez both saw it 119-109, awarding only the third round to Clottey.
Referee Rafael Ramos, a retired US Army sergeant first class, said he had no difficulty working the fight.
“It was definitely more exciting than the Juan Manuel Marquez-Julio Diaz fight I did last year,” said Ramos. “I couldn’t believe the crowd. It was an amazing experience. Manny’s the best in the world. It was an honor to do the fight.”
Ramos, 53, is a Puerto Rican who lives in San Antonio. He has worked over 300 fights, including at least 50 world title bouts.
“I wanted to make sure the fight would be fair and square,” said Ramos. “There are a few instances where Clottey butted, hit below the belt, elbowed and stepped on Manny’s foot. But I immediately gave him a warning. I don’t think it was deliberate on his part. Anyway, the infractions weren’t major and Manny was in total control of the fight.”
Ramos was in Pacquiao’s dressing room after the fight and congratulated the champion.
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