Brian’s Boxing Mailbag (Wladimir Klitschko Wins, Manny Pacquiao's Next Move)
By Brian Wilbur
Hi all, thanks for coming to Ringside Report and checking out my weekly mailbag. On Saturday we saw another dominant title defense by Wladimir Klitschko. The Klitschko brothers seem to be falling into the same category as Larry Holmes in the 80’s. They are so much better than the competition that they get a bad rap. The Klitschkos may have the talent to stack up against the all time greats, but we can’t say for sure because they lack the quality of opponents needed to prove their greatness. Being dominant in a weak era is a curse to the champion.
HBO decided not to televise Wladimir vs. Eddie Chambers despite having Klitschko under contract. HBO did not think that Chambers was good enough and the match up did not excite. For the first eleven rounds, HBO looked like geniuses because the fight had little action. Wladimir was content to control with a long jab. However in the 12th round, Wladimir listened to his trainer Emanuel Steward and came out guns blazing. By that time Chambers was a dead man walking in survival mode. Wladimir’s added aggression paid off as he landed a hard left hook that toppled Chambers in the final moments of the bout. Klitschko closed the show to answer his critics, and had fans leaving the arena happy. I’m not saying that HBO made a mistake by not showing this fight on their network, but they have shown far worse in the past.
Eddie Chambers was a top 10 heavyweight, and the best American in the world, but he could not even compete. In the first question of this week’s mailbag I give my opinion on which heavyweights have the best chance of really pushing the Klitschko brothers instead of being pushovers.
Also in the mailbag we have some remnant discussions regarding Manny Pacquiao’s recent domination of Joshua Clottey. We also talk about Pacquiao’s future, including the mega match that every boxing fan is still lusting after: Manny Pacquiao vs. Floyd Mayweather.
This is one of my best mailbags in a while so please enjoy. As always, I look forward to your emails.
Who the Klitschkos Should Fight Next?
Eddie Chambers was supposed to be good right? Well he wasn’t. At least not good enough. Vitali and Wladimir are fighting scrubs. But the truth is, these scrubs are the best that the division has to offer. It’s not like there is a Clubber Lang hanging around gunning for a title shot and getting ducked. If there is I haven’t heard about him or seen him.
Most of the guys in the top 10 heavyweights list have already fought and lost to one of the brothers. I hate to say that they have cleaned out the division since the division was already pretty much spic and span. Anyway, who do you think the Klitschko brothers should fight next? Who makes the best fights and pushes them the most?
-Roy
Roy,
First off, breaking news is that Vitali Klitschko has selected Albert Sosnowski to be his next opponent. Sosnowski is a joke but I see this as more of a “stay busy” fight until Vitali has a chance to fight for the WBA belt.
The Klitschko brothers are very good. I think they would have done well in any era. I wouldn’t completely give up on this era though. There are still a few interesting opponents and match ups to be made. Here are 5 heavyweights who I think are the toughest challenges that the Klitschkos have yet to face:
Alexander Povetkin – Olympic gold medalist with good boxing skills and a fan-friendly offensive minded style to boot. The only reason I would favor the Klitschkos over him is that he is short so I have a hard time seeing him consistently getting past the jab. This blue chip contender should still put up a good fight because of his pedigree.
David Haye – Haye currently holds the coveted WBA Heavyweight title that Vitali Klitschko wants so bad in order to complete the goal of two belts per brother. Haye is a former cruiserweight and I am unsure if he can compete with an elite heavyweight like Vitali. However, he is a very interesting opponent because of his personality. Haye has the charisma that most heavyweights lack these days. Haye vs. either Klitschko is the most bankable match out there because of Haye’s big mouth, power punching style, and lightning rod cocky attitude. Plus the fact that he is from England with a built in audience doesn’t hurt. I’m really looking forward to the day that Haye gets his crack at the Klitschkos because of the hype, not because I think Haye has a real shot at winning. Haye has to get by John Ruiz next month before this can happen.
Nikolay Valuev – So I have not been all that impressed with Valuev because he is slow and awkward. However, he is 7 feet tall and 330+ pounds, so his size alone makes him an opponent that the general public would be interested in seeing fight. If he fought Vitali they should market the fight as “Goliath vs. Goliath”.
Tomasz Adamek – Like Haye, here is another former cruiserweight. Tomasz is tentatively on this list because he has not yet proven himself as a legitimate heavyweight contender yet. However if he defeats Chris Arreola in his next fight then he becomes a very legitimate and accomplished foe for the Klitschko brothers, albeit undersized.
Odlanier Solis – The second Olympic gold medalist on the list. Solis is a star Cuban defector in the mold of Yuriorkis Gamboa, Joel Casamayor, and Guillermo Rigondeaux. These guys were ready to fight for world titles almost immediately after their pro debuts because of their vast amateur background on a world-class level. Solis is working his way up the ranks, but he has the most potential out of everyone on the list due to his talent and class. Cuba has an awesome boxing program and these Olympic defectors are the cream of the crop. Once they are used to fighting without headgear, going twelve rounds, and professional rules, put them in against the champ because they are ready.
Pacquiao v. Clottey Provides Insight On Pacquiao vs. Mayweather
Hey Brian,
I think I called the fight almost perfectly except for the ref or corner stoppage which could have happened if Clottey wasn’t too scared to fight back. He looked like a human punching bag but I guess we can’t blame him for having no answer for the Pacquiao juggernaut. Now I think Mayweather would avoid Pac even more after he saw what Pac did to Clottey and his defense because I don’t think Floyd could keep up with that kind of pace the whole twelve rounds and I don’t think Floyd has half the chin that Clottey has and I don’t think Mayweather can block 1000 punches without it affecting him. I can’t imagine how Clottey’s arms and elbows are feeling now after “blocking” those 1000+ punches.
Mayweather really is a master of defense and the best defense he knows when dealing with Pacquiao is not fighting him, keeping his undefeated record intact because that is about the only thing that makes him a winner.
Before the Pacquiao vs. Clottey fight, I used to think that “Money” Mayweather would be the more difficult opponent for Pacquiao than Shane Mosley. I even had Mayweather as the slight favorite to beat Manny. But after what I saw what he did to Joshua Clottey and his defense, I now think Mayweather would be an easy night for Pacquiao.
When Clottey, with his iron chin and good defense, was terrified to fight back I don’t know how Mayweather would react when he faces that kind of an opponent and I’m quite sure he doesn’t have the same whiskers as Clottey. And with Floyd’s hit and don’t want to be hit attitude, I cant’ see how he can fight back with all those punches coming his way non-stop for 3 minutes over 12 rounds (that’s assuming he can go the distance which I now think he wouldn’t). Well maybe Mayweather could if he fought to survive and not to win like what Clottey and Marco Antonio Barrera did in their 2nd fight.
I would want Shane Mosley to win the upcoming fight with Mayweather because I think he wouldn’t be afraid to fight Pacquiao, even though I really would love to see Manny vs. Floyd. I don’t think Floyd wants a piece of Pacquiao. Floyd tells us how great he is, while Pacquiao shows us how great he is.
-Vinjo
Vinjo,
Good call on the fight breakdown. I agree with you about Mayweather possibly getting nervous about fight Pacquiao after that performance. Pacquiao perfectly showed how to deal with an A level defense. Volume punchers tend to give defensive fighters fits and Pacquiao proved that he could throw over 100 punches per round without an issue. His punches were well placed and timed as well so it wasn’t like he was just winging punches because he could.
The Clottey win, even more than any of his other recent fights, makes the best argument that Pacquiao would do well against Mayweather. Clottey’s style, though different, is closer to Mayweather’s than say Hatton or Cotto. When a guy like Pacquiao relentlessly comes at you like that, you have to hurt him or get his respect in order to get him to relent. Mayweather going into a defensive shell and pot-shotting like he did against Marquez and De La Hoya isn’t going to cut it against Pacquiao.
About your next point though, I would never say that Floyd Mayweather is an easy fight for anyone. However I do see your point that after watching what Pacquiao did to Clottey I definitely feel that Pacquiao would have a better shot at beating Mayweather than I did before the Clottey fight.
I also agree with your notion about wanting Shane Mosley to beat Mayweather. I am secretly hoping for that as well (even though I believe it is highly unlikely) because we know for a fact that Shane Mosley would sign the contract immediately. There would be no problem at all getting Mosley to agree to a Pacquiao fight. As we have recently seen, the Mayweather vs. Pacquiao negotiations are not as simple and may never be resolved. With both of them finding an excuse to turn down 40+ million dollars already, I am not optimistic that a compromise can be reached.
Mosley vs. Pacquiao, with Mosley coming off of a fresh win over Mayweather is almost as appealing as a Mayweather vs. Pacquiao fight is right now.
“The Event” Post Fight Comments
Sir Brian,
Greetings! It’s been awhile since the last time I wrote to your mailbag, though I have religiously followed your column every week.
Please allow me to share some of my observations regarding what transpired in “The Event” between Manny Pacquiao and Joshua Clottey:
1.) Lawrence Cole shouldn’t be given the right to referee championship fights. I would have loved the fight between Humberto Soto and David Diaz much, much better if he weren’t the third man in the ring that night. The idea that he was even considered to be the third man in the ring for the main event was ridiculous! He is slow and was clearly not committed – more like he’s afraid of getting hit by a punch from the boxers. He is slow in untangling boxers when they are holding each other. Every time the bell rang, he was way too far from the boxers that they end up hitting each other long after the bell had already rung. He does not know how to position himself so he could easily stop both boxers from making extra shots. Heck, I wonder what would have transpired if he were the referee during the Abe Concepcion vs. Steve Luevano fight – the former might just have scored a knockdown! This man should try a desk job at his dad’s office.
2.) The other star of the fight was the stadium itself with its monstrous TV, not Clottey. Nevertheless, it was a great achievement for Pacquiao knowing that he drew half (51,000 plus) the crowd of the most-attended NBA all star game in history at the same venue (over 100,000), considering that he was arguably the only draw in that event as compared to more than 20 NBA superstars. Also, he has surpassed Oscar De La Hoya in terms of live gate attendants in Texas (47,000 in Sun Bowl, El Paso), but fell short to Julio Cesar Chavez’s 65,000 at the Astrodome.
3.) I think I have found what Clottey’s supposed secret strategy was (I remembered him talking about a secret strategy though I can’t recall where I read it) for beating Pacquiao and it was not to tire Pacquiao out but rather, stepping on Pacquiao’s lead foot so he could not utilize his trademark footwork. Unfortunately for Clottey though, it didn’t pan out. I was surprised that nobody noticed it, not even the referee. Isn’t it a violation to do that? If you haven’t noticed it as well, you could check it for yourself and review the tape. Heck, you can include his previous fights and you will see that it was only in this particular fight that he did try to step on Pacquiao’s lead foot, intentionally for that matter. I don’t believe that he expected Pacquiao to get tired because, as much as he denies he never watches an opponent’s previous fights, I believe he was convinced Pacquiao never gets tired and that was his only way to win.
4.) I don’t know if it was just our PPV, but I must say that the commentators were so bland! Where were Jim Lampley and Larry Merchant?
5.) After “The Event”, I am curious to where Pacquiao lands in your welterweight rankings. Who are in your top ten welterweights right now?
Till then. Thanks for your very informative mailbag. More power and GOD bless!
-Reagan A. Loberternos
Reagan,
Here are my thoughts on your questions:
1. Wow harsh words for Mr. Cole. I didn’t really notice him in that fight, which I usually see as a good thing. He didn’t strike me as a particularly poor referee that night but I wasn’t paying that much attention to him, like I said. I enjoyed the Soto vs. Diaz fight. Soto dominated early on but then Diaz came on strong to the point where winning the fight was within grasp since he appeared to be wearing Soto down. Then Soto sealed the deal with the 12th round knockdown to cap off an entertaining and competitive bout. The other two undercard fights disappointed though, especially Jose Luis Castillo who is clearly ready to retire.
2. The attendance was very impressive, proving that local venues in large markets (as opposed to having the fight in Las Vegas every time) is a large source of potential revenue. Getting that many fans to the arena to watch boxing is also great for the sport. Those were 50,000 real fans, not high rollers who only came to watch the main event. Texas deserves another big fight.
3. I noticed Clottey’s attempted foot fouls as well. The commentators pointed it out to at one point. Nonetheless, if that was Clottey’s secret strategy for beating Pacquiao it didn’t work at all! He was trying to foul to gain an edge in a way where he thought he could get away with it. Unfortunately for Clottey, he didn’t need just an edge; he needed a crowbar.
4. The commentators for the HBO PPV telecast were Jim Lampley, Max Kellerman, and Emanuel Steward. They were a bit bland that evening I must admit. Lampley started yelling out “Bang, Bang, Bang!” at one point giving Pacquiao’s punches sound effects and I felt embarrassed for him because he sounded ridiculous.
5. Here are my current top 10 welterweights:
1) Manny Pacquiao
2) Shane Mosley
3) Floyd Mayweather
4) Andre Berto
5) Joshua Clottey
6) Vyacheslav Senchenko
7) Jan Zaveck
8) Rafal Jackiewicz
9) Alfonso Gomez
10) Luis Collazo
I assume Miguel Cotto is at 154 pounds now. The drop off after #5 is pretty big.
Dissecting Game Plans
Hi Brian,
I didn’t really expect much from Clottey but what he offered (aside from his defense) was way below what I thought. What he was trying to do isn’t clear at all, and it looks to me like he was trying to make Pacquiao punch himself out, when that happens, that is where he would up gear and take over. But he/they miscalculated badly as Pacquiao delivered ~100 punches a round for 12 rounds. Was it like that or maybe team Clottey never really had a game plan at all, what do you think?
And as early as round 2, I saw Clottey trying to step on Pacquiao’s right foot( Plan B) :D, as referred to by Lenny De Jesus.
As for Pacquiao vs. Roach, they had a clear game plan at full display, attack the body early then capitalize on it on the championship rounds. It is only enough to outpoint Clottey but did not stop him. Do you think if Clottey had played the aggressor and let his hands go, it would open him up for Pac to counter? Which, in turn, would give Pac a better chance of KO’ing the Ghanaian?
-Pacboy
Pacboy,
Clottey’s trainer was unable to be with him on fight night so perhaps that killed his game plan. More likely, Clottey thought that he could get by on skill alone like he has in all of his previous bouts. Once he got in the ring and tasted Pacquiao’s speed he realized he was in error.
I am 100% sure that Pacquiao would have won by knockout if Clottey had thrown more punches and went on the attack. Clottey’s offense is porous and he usually gets away with it because he fires when his opponent is done punching and tired. Pacquiao doesn’t get tired so Clottey would have been ripped to shreds by the counter punches. With a guy who is fighting in a defensive shell like that, you can’t knock him out. All you can do is exactly what Pacquiao did, keep on punching and win an easy decision.
I was sad to see a world-class boxer fight to survive instead of trying to win during a fight of that magnitude. But I’m sure Joshua is thinking, “at least I didn’t get knocked out.”
8th World Title Next?
Brian,
If Miguel Cotto will defeat Yuri Foreman in their Jr. Middleweight title fight, is their any probability that Pacquiao claims his 8th world title in different weights in case Cotto will defend the title against Pacquaio at 154 lbs? If Cotto retains the titles what is your opinion? Can Pacquiao still TKO Cotto as in their welterweight title fight? Please give your prediction and outcome of this fight if this will materialize.
-Eddieboy
Eddieboy,
I don’t think many people will want Pacquiao vs. Cotto II. The first fight was so definitive that the second fight would be very hard to sell. If it did happen I would think that Cotto would be roughed up just the same regardless of the added weight.
But in reality, if Cotto wins that belt I don’t think Arum makes the rematch because nobody would want to see it. Pacquiao has a better chance at trying for his 8th world title if Yuri Foreman beats Cotto. Foreman would be a new opponent so there would be intrigue and interest despite Foreman being not very exciting. Both fights though are less than tantalizing and therefore unlikely.
The odds of Pacquiao getting that 8th world title are low. Not because he couldn’t do it (I think he is a strong favorite in either match), but because there is not a popular enough champion in that weight class that would make for a good, marketable fight.
Mandatory Weirdo Email
Hello, I’m Big Dick Kuklinski, and this is a question for your mailbag. Here you go:
1. Why do boxers go topless? Are there any sports that go bottomless and if so, do you compete, and can I watch?
2. Should Joshua Clottey be fined his whole purse for not fighting and, BTW, why does he own a purse?
3. Do you like Alice in Wonderland and if so, who is your favorite character?
4. If you answered the Mad Hatter, would you go as the Mad Hatter for a Halloween party called “The Mad Hatter Splish Splashing Affair?”
5. Is Mike Tyson coming back a good thing to boxing? Will he eat more ears?
6. Do you like ABBA?
7. Oscar De La Hoya womens panties pics: true or false
8. Manny vs Floyd: whom do you like
Thanks and will be reading your mailbag when you get it up for me.
-Richard Kuklinski
Richard,
Even though you are blatantly coming on to me I’ll humor you and answer your questions.
1. Boxers are topless because shirts would get in the way. Shirts could also potentially hide body pads.
2. Clottey shouldn’t be fined his whole purse, but perhaps he should get a penalty for fighting to survive because he did not help the sport by making that fight less interesting. The UFC has boring fight penalties like this.
3. I don’t know…Cheshare Cat?
4. No, I wouldn’t.
5. Tyson coming back isn’t necessarily bad. He brings a lot of publicity to the sport. As for Tyson, coming back is bad for his health but good for his bank account. If I were an odds maker I would set the odds of him eating more ears at unlikely but remotely possible.
6. Heck yes I like ABBA!
7. False…I think.
8. I have always said Floyd, but after how good Manny looked against Clottey I’m not sure anymore. I’m going to wait to see how Mayweather looks against Mosley to make my pick.
Speed Kills
Just a follow up to my latest email, I think we now know why Oscar De La Hoya had a very low punch output in his fight with Pacquiao. It’s the speed. After Pac throws his combinations he is out of there before the last punch even hits. And when there were times that De La Hoya could find an opening he was afraid to throw because he knew what was coming if he let his hands go.
That same thing that happened to Clottey, meaning he could not catch Pac, and was afraid of the counterpunches coming him way after he throws his own punches. I don’t think Oscar was that washed up, if you put him in there with Clottey or Cotto then he could give a good fight, but not against Pac. It’s the speed.
-Vinjo
Vinjo,
Good point. Speed kills and Pacquiao has the fastest hands in boxing. Pacquiao’s super fast punches are fired off after his opponents start to throw a punch, but his miraculously land first. And when they land they are straight, compact punches, landing with accuracy and severe damage.
He tagged Clottey with theses shots the few times that Joshua opened up and he knocked down Miguel Cotto with these punches. Pacquiao didn’t used to be this good of a counter puncher. Yet another reason why Manny is so much better than he used to be and proof that he continues to improve with each fight.
Alrighty folks, that’s all for now. Send in your comments, questions, and reactions. I hope to hear from you all. The mailbag will be back same time next week. Take care until then everyone!