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CALIFORNIA, United States?I must confess that, shortly before the fight, I found myself thinking that it also wouldn?t be bad if Joshua Clottey won. That?s mainly because, from the stories about the fighter from Ghana, he apparently has had a hard, tough life, even harder and tougher than the one Manny Pacquiao endured.
Sometimes, one just can?t help rooting for the underdog.
?Manny Pacquiao?s poverty makes an American kid?s poverty look like luxury,? Bob Arum, the boxing promoter told the New York Times. ?From what I?ve heard, Clottey?s poverty makes Manny?s poverty look like luxury.?
In the same news story, Clottey spoke of a life where ?there is no help from nowhere,? an existence in which ?you have to be hard, because if you don?t do that, you?re not going to eat.?
But as the fight progressed, I, like many others, just grew frustrated with Clottey. ?I have the mentality of a warrior,? he had also been quoted as saying in the Times.
From the way he fought Saturday night, he should probably have said, ?I have the mentality of a warrior? who wants to play it safe and not get hurt.?
With his gloves up in front of his face through most of the fight, Clottey looked like he came to Dallas determined to just keep his head down and wait for the fight to be over.
So we ended up with a boring showdown. Not the exciting, explosive encounters featuring Ricky Hatton and Miguel Cotto.
Clottey could, at least, boast that he survived a fight with Pacquiao without getting knocked out.
He did look strong. As a friend said, he was one of those boxers from Ghana ?who is made of stone.? He certainly looked like he could hurt Pacquiao?if he had tried to.
Which is why, in a way, the fight shows why Pacquiao is a great fighter, perhaps the best ever.
It was amazing to watch the bigger, brawnier Clottey always covering himself up, constantly backing away, not throwing punches against the smaller, shorter Filipino.
Manny Pacquiao fought a smart fight. He didn?t get careless. Clottey kept his gloves up to protect his head. So Manny went for the body?and just kept pounding away.
He didn?t get impatient, by punching away recklessly at an opponent who kept covering himself up, but who nevertheless could have hurt him badly with a lucky solid punch. Manny could easily have lost his head and gone for the spectacular endings of his previous bouts.
But he kept his head, and won an unexciting fight that nevertheless solidified his status as a great fighter.
Once again, there?s talk of a fight with Floyd Mayweather Jr. or perhaps Shane Mosley. Of course, we know Manny is eyeing another arena.
Manny Pacquiao adapted to an opponent?s frustrating, uninspired strategy. He has proven himself to be a strong, fast, and smart fighter in the ring.
Will he prove also to be just as strong, fast, and smart in the political ring?
Many Filipinos have rightfully been disappointed with the alliances he has formed. And these are ties that he didn?t really need, and could only hurt him as he ventures into a new arena.
Being a winner is more easily defined in boxing than in politics. You can win elections. But then the tougher fight follows. You don?t always appear like a winner. Just look at the outgoing tenant in Malacanang who has won every major election in her career.
Is Manny Pacquiao on the way to throwing his boxing legacy into the gutter?
A few times during the fight, Clottey?s own trainer became so frustrated that he could be heard telling Clottey, ?You?ve got to take a chance.?
The Pacman is doing just that. Many of us are worried about the outcome.
