Champ Pacquiao remains cautious of foe Clottey

Be it Oscar De La Hoya, Miguel Cotto or even Juan Manuel Marquez, it’s never the practice of Manny Pacquiao to take his opponents lightly. More so now against the bigger and stronger Joshua Clottey. "I never underestimated Joshua Clottey," Pacquiao said before a throng of media men that showed up to cover his public workout Tuesday (Wednesday in Manila) at the Gaylord Texan Texan Hotel and Convention Center in Dallas, Texas. A week into the March 13 showdown, the Filipino southpaw has been installed as an 8-5 favorite. In as much as he’s prepared for the 12-round title fight at the Dallas Cowboys Stadium for the World Boxing Organization (WBO) welterweight bout, Pacquiao also believes his challenger from Ghana is in the same frame of mind as well. "I think he’s also ready for the fight. He’s bigger than me and strong. He’s 100 percent conditioned," said the world’s top pound-for-pound fighter today, who was cheered on by a crowd of 400 during the workout that took about two hours to be completed. With Freddie Roach beside him and within hearing distance, the American trainer disagreed that size will decide the outcome of the match. Like in Pacquiao’s previous fights opposite bigger opponents such as Oscar De La Hoya and Ricky Hatton, Roach said speed and skill will again proved to be the big difference. "I don’t think size wins fights," said Roach, the four-time Trainer of the Year. "I think skill does. He (Clottey) may be a little stronger than Manny on the inside, he might hit a little harder, but I think our speed will nullify that." When Pacquiao was asked to predict about a possible knockout, Roach butted in and said, " that’s my job."

For the latest Philippine news stories and videos, visit GMANews.TV Roach said he already had the 32-year old Clottey all sized up. "He’ll wait for you to throw a combination and then, when you’ve stopped, he’ll throw back. So if you stand in front of him, you’re an idiot," said the Roach, who turned 50 just a week ago. "We’re not going to do that. He’s not going to be able to find us." Aware that Clottey also has the penchant for headbutting and using his elbow when fighting, Roach said even that had been worked out. "Sometimes he uses his head. If you fall into the pocket with him, his best punch is an uppercut and his second best punch is a headbutt. So we’re not going in there. We’re going to fight him at a distance." Roach and Pacquiao sparred for several rounds at the mitts, bringing cheers to a mixed crowd of Filipinos and foreigners who watched him tirelessly at the sidelines and repeatedly chanted Manny! Manny! Manny! The Filipino boxing champion shadowed box for several minutes, went down the ring and did the speed ball to the delight of the fans, then went up again for a few abdominal exercises. When it was over, Pacquiao quickly dressed up and obliged in signing autographs and allowing photo ops. – GMANews.TV