Countdown to Pacquiao-Clottey

SI Staff | Mar 11, 2010

Countdown to Pacquiao-Clottey /

Countdown to Pacquiao-Clottey

Manny Pacquiao (left) will defend the WBO welterweight championship against Josh Clottey on Saturday, March 13 (9 p.m., HBO PPV) at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

Pacquiao is entering the ninth year of a partnership with Freddie Roach (left), a four-time BWAA Trainer of the Year and one of most respected corner men in the sport.

"Manny Pacquiao is the lone star of boxing," Top Rank founder and CEO Bob Arum (center) said. "There isn't a more appropriate place in the world for him to fight."

With November's dramatic 12th-round stoppage of Miguel Cotto, Pacquiao captured the WBO welterweight title and became the first fighter to collect world championships in seven different weight classes, between 112 to 147 pounds.

Clottey's last fight was a controversial split-decision loss to Cotto at Madison Square Garden in June.

Cowboys Stadium will be configured to seat up to 45,000 spectators for the fight with elevated floor seating.

"I have wanted to bring a major boxing event to North Texas for many years, so why not bring in the biggest and the best?" Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said. "Manny Pacquiao is boxing's No. 1 pound-for-pound attraction and the world champion. Manny defending his title against Joshua Clottey is not just a great fight, it is the event, and one we can showcase to the fullest in Cowboys Stadium."

The March 13 showdown is one of the biggest world championship fights to be held in a major U.S. sports stadium since Muhammad Ali met Ken Norton at Yankee Stadium for the heavyweight title in 1976, an event also promoted by Arum.

Clottey, a Ghana transplant and Bronx, N.Y., native, captured the vacant IBF welterweight title with a victory over Zab Judah in 2008. He vacated the belt to fight Cotto rather than make a mandatory defense against Isaac Hlatswayo of South Africa.

Pacquiao's résumé includes victories over future Hall of Famers such as Oscar De La Hoya, Ricky Hatton, Marco Antonio Barrera, Erik Morales and Juan Manuel Marquez.

Clottey's best victories include a unanimous decision over Diego Corrales and a majority decision over undefeated contender Richard Gutierrez.

Pacquiao, a dynamic southpaw who was SI.com's Fighter of the Year in 2008 and '09, is a 6-to-1 favorite to retain the title.

Published Mar 11, 2010

SI STAFF