Joshua Clottey in 'Best Shape' of His Career For Manny Pacquiao

A native of Ghana who is preparing for a March 13 challenge for the WBO welterweight (147 pounds) crown held by seven-division champion, Manny Pacquiao (50-3-2, 38 KOs), of the Philippines, Joshua Clottey (35-3, 20 knockouts), of The Bronx, N.Y., spoke to FanHouse on Friday from his sleeping quarters near his training facility at Fort Lauderdale's Contender Gym in Fla.

This is the second of four diaries translated from Clottey that is appearing regularly on FanHouse as the 32-year-old fighter enters the most lucrative and biggest fight of his career.



Joshua Clottey wept, openly, earlier this month when a work Visa to the U.S. was denied to his preferred chief second, Godwin Nii Dzanie Kotey.

Kotey is perceived by many in their native Ghana as legendary and a father figure, having been the trainer for former welterweight star, Ike Quartey, of Ghana. Kotey was to be in Clottey's corner for the first time against Manny Pacquiao.

Kotey's presence was sought after Clottey had split with Kwame Asante in a reported disagreement over money -- this after Asante had served as Clottey's chief second for June's 12-round split-decision loss to then-WBO king, Miguel Cotto.

But now, with the biggest fight of his life on the horizon, Clottey was trainer-less.

Enter Lenny DeJesus (pictured above, left, with Clottey), a man Clottey had known of prior to employing DeJeus as the cutman for the Cotto fight.

A resident of the Bronx, the 32-year-old Clottey had seen DeJesus working with other fighters at the John's Gym, a venue he, himself, frequents that is located not too far from Yankees Stadium.

"I knew of DeJeus, but I didn't talk to him. Vinnie introduced me to him," said Clottey, referring to his manager, Vinnie Scolpino. "So he was used as a cut man in my fight with Miguel Cotto because he's been around for a long time. He seemed like a good choice."

Clottey said that DeJesus turned out to be even more of an asset during the fight with Cotto,

"When he was my cut man against Miguel Cotto, he pushed me. He sort of wakes you up, tells me some good things. We established a good relationship during the Cotto fight, so I chose him" to be primary trainer for the Pacquiao fight, said Clottey. "It was an easy transition. He motivates you."

Another advantage, said Clottey, is the fact that DeJesus knows a little bit about Pacquiao, having worked as the Filipino superstar's cut man throughout much the early part of his career.

DeJesus was last in Pacquiao's corner for the latter's March, 2005 loss to Erik Morales at super featherweight (130 pounds), after which Pacquiao won his next 11 bouts, eight of them by knockout.

A southpaw, Pacquiao has gotten more-and-more powerful as his weight has risen, having stopped his past four opponents, David Diaz, Oscar De La Hoya, Ricky Hatton, and, Miguel Cotto, respectively, while weighing 134, 142, 138, and, 144 pounds.

"Does DeJesus know a little bit about Manny Pacquiao? Yes," said Scolpino. "But we also know that Manny Pacquiao is a different fighter now than he once was. We're prepared, but we're preparing for the Manny Pacquiao of today."

Clottey said that his respect for Pacquiao's power is among the reasons he will dethrone him.

"I have more confidence this time around because I'm taking this fight like if I win, I have bigger things ahead. I have so much respect for Manny, so that gives me more confidence because I respect the guy," said Clottey. "I respect the guy because, if he has the chance, he can stop me. So I respect him because of that, and because of that, I'm more confident."

Conversely, said Clottey, it was his lack of respect for Cotto that led to his demise.

"When I went to fight Cotto, I knew, within me, or at least my thinking was, 'I could beat Cotto because I knew Cotto had not faced a guy like me before.' That was my thinking," said Clottey.

"I didn't respect him like he was going to cause any damage," said Clottey. "So, compared to that, I respect this guy, Manny Pacquiao, because he's stopped a lot of good guys. So, I'm giving him respect, and the respect will carry me through the fight."

Clottey, who weighed out at 154 pounds on Thursday, claims to be in the best shape of his life, and punching with more power than ever.

"We're two weeks from the fight, and that's where I want to be right now. I don't want to come down too much or too fast from sparring because that might hurt you," said Clottey.

"I eat a lot of chicken and a lot of fish. It's African food. I don't eat any other meat," said Clottey. "Sometimes, I have salads -- things that make me strong and to wake up in the morning and go jogging, or which can make me go to the gym and work out. I drink a lot of water and I'm very strong in the gym at work."

In photos, the challenger (pictured above) appears to have a more muscular upper body than ever.

"This is the best shape that I've ever been in. Because, I know that I've got a really tough fight with Manny, Pacquiao. All that you've seen from my photos is from the hard work of training," said Clottey, who a week ago, already was sparring 10, four-minute rounds with a 30 second rest in between and little if any fatigue.

"You know, I'm always in shape. I train even when I'm not fighting," said Clottey. "I play soccer. So when I start training, it doesn't take long. After a three weeks or a month, I'm strong."

And that, for Clottey, has meant more energy during sparring sessions, and, throughout his training overall.

"I've been trainig to do what I have to do. When the opening's there, I'm going to find them. When he's running, and he's moving around, I'll be able to cut off the ring," said Clottey. "When he stops running, I'll throw punches. And when I throw a punch, and he's there, I will be able to land it."

There are some who have questioned Pacquiao's ability to rise from one weight class to another with power, believing that he is on steroids or some other performance-enhancing drug.

Clottey, however, said that he is not among those who believes Pacquiao is dirty.

"Manny is a good man. He prays a lot. God gave him his power. He is a great champion, and this is going to be a difficult fight," said Clottey. "However, I have a plan: Hard punching, back him up, don't let him take charge. I will pressure him."

Author: Lem Satterfield

Source: boxing.fanhouse.com

Clottey's $1.2 million question: Is he mentally prepared for Pacquiao?

There is concern within the Joshua Clottey fight camp as to the mental outlook of the March 13 Manny Pacquiao WBO welterweight title challenger.

You might call it the $1.2 million question as I've learned that the African boxer will earn $900,000 while his manager, Vinny Scolpino, gets the remainder.

But don't hit the panic button. It's par for the course, this wonderment about the Ghanaian's brain waves.

Gjin Gjini owns and operates Clottey's home training base in the South Bronx, John's Gym.

Clottey and his team were planning to return there this weekend but snowy weather around New York may delay those plans.

Clottey has been training in Fort Lauderdale.

Gjini, a former fighter orginally from Albania, said you never know what Clottey's mental state will be on fight night. It's not just that he's fighting the widely acclaimed pound for pound king of all boxing.

Clottey could have outpointed Miguel Cotto last June at Madison Square Garden but he went into a mental fog and stopped being aggressive in the final rounds. Clottey lost a split decision to the rugged Puerto Rican.

Gjin Gijini, owner of John's Gym in South Bronx where Joshua Clottey trains (Bronx Times, Your Nabe.com, Daniel Weissman Photo)

"You can't really know what's in Joshua's mind," Gjini told me on Thursday. "He's different in that way than guys like Pacquiao, like Cotto and Mosley. Joshua always come to fight and he will do so against Manny. He's not like Mayweather who just comes to run and do his moneymaking business.

"Physically, Joshua is always good. But you don't know what he will be like mentally. I don't know, either, and I will be with him and the team in Dallas."

Beyond the psychic wild card, Gijini envisions an enthralling scrap in Cowboys Stadium in Arlington.

"The fans will get their money's worth from this one. These two will give the fans what they're paying for, I think, as they should for a purse. People pay to see real fights, not to see one guy running around like a track meet."

Author: Michael Marley

Source: examiner.com

A Look At Pacquiao's Partners

Good sparring partners are a crucial element for fight preparation, and all reports coming out of the Wild Card Gym indicate that Manny Pacquiao is getting in some excellent work. I always find it interesting to look at the sparring partners elite fighters choose because it can sometimes give clues into things they are working on for their next fight, and provide a heads up on prospects the top trainers think are worth watching. In his preparation for Miguel Cotto, Manny Pacquiao sparred with Shawn Porter, who has lately been drawing attention with appearances on Showtime and ESPN's Friday Night Fights.

So let's take a look at Manny Pacquiao's sparring partners as he prepares for Joshua Clottey:

Raymundo Beltran:
Age: 28
Record 23-4 (15 KOs)
Weight: Fights between 130-135 lbs

Ray Beltran has been sparring with Manny for years and they are clearly quite comfortable with one another. While Beltran is much smaller than Clottey he has quick hands and provides Manny with good work. In his last fight, on January 9, which you can watch above, he shows that he has quite a bit of power. The KO is frightening and the ref should never be allowed in the ring again, but you can see that Beltran is good at putting his punches together.

In an interview with The Ring, Beltran talks about how he has seen Manny progress through the years, saying, "I remember when he fought Barrera the first time. He was more aggressive, aggressive, aggressive... Now, he's become a better boxer. He has better technique. He uses his brain more. He's much smarter now. You can see it in the way he fights. He and Freddie see weaknesses in opponents and they work on it."

Beltran is still only 28, so he may be able to make a move and challenge for a title in the future. It might be a long road back, however. Though he won in style last month, it was his first fight in nearly two years after suffering a shocking one-punch KO loss to Ameth Diaz in his previous fight.

Abdullai Amidu:
Age: 27
Record: 18-0 (17KOs)
Weight: 147 lbs

Amidu's record is obviously impressive, but a look at his boxrec page is cause for a little caution. Out of Amidu's 18 opponents we see a group of fighters with a combined total of 15 wins! An incredible nine of them were making their professional debut. This isn't to say that Amidu isn't a worthy sparring partner. It simply means we don't really know much about him. He has only fought in Ghana thus far, his native land. I'm certain Freddie Roach picked him partly for that very reason, as Ghanaian fighters tend to have similar styles. From Azumah Nelson to Ike Quartey and Joshua Clottey, they often fight with high guards and aggressive, powerful jabs.

Mike Dallas:
Age: 23
Record: 11-0-1 (2 KOs)
Weight: 140 lbs

Dallas is just starting his career and its obvious that Freddie Roach sees some potential in the young fighter if he has chosen to make him a key part of Manny's preparation. Dallas is the same height as Clottey and sports a similarly imposing physique. Speaking to The Ring, Dallas says of Pacquiao, "he's strong, even stronger than he was before the De La Hoya fight. He's a good counterpuncher. He's strong, he's fast and his legs are really something. His footwork is incredible He moves like a cat. He's real fast."

Dallas could be a prospect worth watching.

* * *

These, are Pacquiao's main sparring partners, but the Wild Card Gym has become a destination for many of the sport's top fighters and Pacquiao works with them all. Recent reports had him working with Steve Forbes, for example.

Joshua Clottey, meanwhile, appears to be sparring mainly with Damian Frias. All indications are that Clottey will be in terrific shape, but it's hard not to think Pacquiao's varied and accomplished sparring partners will be a big advantage on March 13.

Author: Avi "Shoefly" Korine

Source: sportingnews.com

Floyd Mayweather can feel his abilities slipping

Floyd Mayweather is feeling his age catch up with him slowly but surely. At some point every fighter realizes that they are slowing down, and that they can't do some of the same things they used to be able to.

Fortunately for Mayweather even at less than his best he's still a lot better than most, and will look to prove that once again when he takes on the comparatively ancient Shane Mosley on May 1st.

Speaking to his friend and longtime go to man in the media, Floyd sat down with David Mayo of the Grand Rapids Press today, and touched on all the usual subjects. How he doesn't get the recognition he deserves, how he is more intelligent than all of his opponents and so on ad nauseam.

(Incidentally, if the only way to stand a chance against Floyd is to be more intelligent than him, then perhaps he should take on one of the Klitschko brothers, who each hold a Ph.D. and can speak four languages)

More interestingly than the usual spiel though, Mayweather and his team acknowledge seeing signs that he is slowing down as he gets older. Could this have been why he took on Marquez in his first fight back, measuring just what he had left for another run?

Ron Burgess, Pittsburgh PA: "Do you think Floyd knowing he's slowing down is why he didn't want to fight Pacquiao?"

It could well have been one of the reasons, as well as wanting to be more in control of the terms of the fight. It could still happen after his fight with Mosley though, and Floyd will only be older and slower then, so we'll have to wait and see. If the fight does happen then obviously he isn't slowing quickly enough to affect his performance. If the fight doesn't go ahead for a fresh set of problems, then this seems a lot more likely.

Jesse Elliot, Pittsburgh PA: "Do you think Mayweather has declined and if so why is he still winning?"

Well if Floyd himself is admitting it, then it's probably true. He isn't a lot noticeably slower than he ever was, but once the decline starts it keeps going. Mayweather's style of moving and pot-shotting needs him to be fast, and his speed will be the first thing to go. That being said he has never taken a lot of punishment in his career, so as long as he increases his work rate, he might still be able to win at a high level even if he gets hit more often.

Pol Canonce Barugo, Leyte Philippines: "Mayweather was placed in a very compromising situation where he was really dent on this random blood tests by going to the commission level prodding the boxing community that he really want to clean the sport but his prime motive was really on going for the edge with Manny coz he knows that the guy could stained his zero loss record. He was put in the most difficult position when the Haiti Earthquake caused the Mosley-Berto fight cancelled. He was very hesitant in the post fight interview about fighting Mosley but was forced nevertheless to fight Mosley coz he will be really 100% exposed as cherrypicking opponents.Now you can run all you want inside the ring once you face Mosley come May 1 hehehe. You will be shaken by Mosley's strong and power punch combos!"

There is a good chance this will happen so long as Mosley has the right game plan and doesn't think he can just turn up and win without careful planning. I've been reading interviews where Mosley says he intends to out-box Floyd which he frankly isn't capable of. He needs to cut down the ring and use all the same tricks Oscar De La Hoya used in his close fight with Floyd. If he can do that, then Shane's power and strength will come into play and Mayweather will find himself outgunned against someone he can't shake off.

Author: Scott Heritage

Source: examiner.com

Pacquiao's Official After-Fight Party

Boxing's pound-for-pound king Manny Pacquiao will hold his Official After-Fight Party at the Memorial Center Auditorium - also referred to as the Dallas Convention Center - in Fort Worth, Texas which is near Dallas.

The Convention Center is located on One Amon Square, Fort Worth, Texas 76107.

The event will be held after the WBO welterweight title bout between the Filipino champion and Ghanaian title contender Joshua Clottey on March 13th.

The fight will be held at the new $1.2 billion Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

Most of the media and those associated with the bout will be staying at the historic and posh Gaylord Texan hotel in Dallas, the official hotel of the National Football League's (NFL) Dallas Cowboys team.

Pacquiao's Official After-Fight Party is expected to start at 8:30pm. Among others, the Kalsada Band and Will Rogers are expected to perform.

Lito Camo and Ashley Cortes are also expected to perform.

Fans looking to attend the event can reach organizers at (817) 871 - 8150.

Ticket prices are $30, 45, 60, 75, 100 and limited VIP seats.

Pacquiao sang several songs in an after-fight party on November 14th, after defeating Puerto Rico's

Miguel Cotto. Joshua Clottey is likely to be the largest opponent the Filipino will have ever faced in the ring. The Ghana native may possibly weight over 160 pounds on fight night.

HBO will conduct a special documentary on the fight on March 6th.

Cerveza Tecate is conducting a promotional campaign as the fight’s primary sponsor.

Author: Marv Dumon

Source: examiner.com

Exclusive photo gallery: Chris Farina covers Clottey’s Florida camp, says Joshua looks ‘ready’

Working for the biggest boxing promotional entity in the sport, traveling is a huge part of Top Rank photographer Chris Farina’s job and late last night the Las Vegas resident touched down in Fort Lauderdale, Florida to handle more business. The objective of this trip? To cover Accra, Ghana Welterweight Joshua Clottey in training as he gears up for a huge March 13th showdown with pound for pound phenom Manny Pacquiao.

Farina woke up Wednesday morning and made his way to Contender’s Gym off of Sunrise and I-95. Despite the rain coming down Farina easily found Michael Irving Park and soon set his sights on getting inside of the gym, which was located in the back of the structure. Upon entering the facility and seeing Clottey train first hand, Farina was impressed.

“Clottey looked awesome,” Farina said. “He’s completely ripped and toned. He was punching his sparring partners around the ring. He was going to knock out one of the guys with thunderous punches. It seems to me that they are almost slowing him down and backing him off because they don’t want him to peak too early. That was just my impression. He looks like he’s ready to jump through the building.”

Despite initial reports that his training camp wasn’t running smoothly due to confusion in his corner, Clottey appears to be completely primed for the contest. With less than three weeks to go towards the biggest fight of his life Farina notes that the former IBF Welterweight champion seems completely at peace with the world.

“[He’s] totally at ease. He was relaxed and calm. I was at his house that he is staying at he is just laid back guy. He’s a super guy. He’s like Pacquiao. He does basically anything you want him to do and they are very accommodating type of fighters. They are hardly any egos involved here.”

With his work in Florida complete Farina will now head back to his bases in Los Angeles and Las Vegas. Next on tap for the always busy photographer will be a trip to New York in early March for more coverage in relation to the March 13th event. Stay tuned for more…

Author: Chris Robinson

Source: examiner.com

If I were Manny Pacquiao. . .

If I were Manny Pacquiao, as the recognized pound for pound king today and as one of the world champions in the welterweight division, I will make a serious effort to help the former and now number two pound for pound king Floyd Mayweather Jr. in his attempt to clean up boxing of steroids and other performance enhancing drugs (PEDs) .

The first thing I will do is take a day off my training for the March 13 fight with Joshua Clottey and call a press conference to announce my support for Floyd’s new found advocacy and seeming noble crusade.

In that media forum, I will bare my plan to show the boxing world that I totally agree on a need for equality in boxing and that changes are necessary for the betterment of the sport.

I am sure Floyd will be very happy to hear me announce I will now agree to an Olympic-style drug testing up to the day of the fight to be conducted by a neutral agency like the United Kingdom Anti Doping (UKAD) which according to a February 24, 2010 report fighthype.com’s Ben Thompson, just recently tested positive for HGH a professional rugby player.

This decision is most difficult and will certainly take a heavy toll on me like what happened in my first bout with Erik Morales but what the heck, I want the fans and the whole world to know I really want to fight Floyd and I’m now ready to bend backwards for this to happen.

Besides, this is what the sport needs and as Floyd said it will cost me only a few drops of blood so I’ll definitely go for it for the sake of the boxing fans yearning for a fight between us.

At the same time, however, I will make sure my opponent will come to the fight as clean and as natural as I am and I will insist that no PEDs or any substance, banned or not, legal or illegal, should be allowed before we climb the ring for the sake of fair play. As for Xylocaine, he can use as much of it as he wants after the bout.

And as Floyd has been preaching lately and obviously wants most nowadays, there should be no undue advantage over an opponent and it should be a level playing field so even the weigh in should be done a few hours before the fight.

Floyd has also been saying it is time for change in boxing and I have come up with an idea of that kind of change which Floyd and I can start when we finally (hopefully) get to fight.

I’m talking about introducing a new kind of scoring in a boxing match where the fighters cannot win a round unless a knockdown or knockdowns are made. I believe fighting to score points is just for amateurs and professional fighters should show we are a notch higher by always striving for a decisive win (knockout). If both fighters cannot knock down or knock out each other then the bout should end in a draw.

I also think this is good for the sport as boring fights are eliminated and biased scoring by some judges done away with.

Floyd’s desire and vision to see the dawning of a new era in professional boxing is admirable and as such, in order to make the fight between us easy to negotiate by our respective promoters, I will never use as leverage my being the recognized number one pound for pound boxer and holder of world championship titles in seven divisions aside from being the current welterweight titlist to ask for more than fifty percent share of the fight purse.

And while I recall that I made more PPVs than him when we had our separate bouts last year, I hope he makes more PPVs in our respective fights scheduled this year so that he can put himself on equal footing with me.

If I were Manny Pacquiao, these are the things I am willing to do to make sure the dream of Floyd becomes a reality, including a mega payday fight with me he’s so obsessed of but appears too scared to take.

Unfortunately, I am not Manny Pacquiao and I can understand the guy if he will not and never give in to Floyd’s demand that appears more intended to put Manny in a weak and vulnerable position come fight night. It is a sad thing but I guess Manny may just opt to retire without giving us the fans perhaps the most exciting fight this decade.

And so for this journalist, those things I said may remain just wishful thinking and a Pacquiao vs. Mayweather fight that most people want to see may never happen at all because even as Manny seems to want the fight badly so he can let his fists do the talking, Floyd appears bent on finding ways to prevent it and only wants his mouth to do the fighting.

Author: PATRICK ROXAS

Source: theboxinghistorian.com

CLOTTEY CONFIDENT OF VICTORY OVER PACQUIAO, BUT DOES HE HAVE A SHOT?

Welterweight Joshua Clotteyexudes a confidence that few fighters have in this sport. Anyone that receives an opportunity to get in the ring with the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world might question themselves. Not Clottey. This is his fight to win, not only for himself, but for his native Ghana. If he’s victorious over the highly favored Manny Pacquaio, it would be one of the biggest upsets in recent years.

What does the former welterweight champion really think about Manny Pacquaio? “He is small, but very fast,” stated Clottey, who recently gave me a brief description of his opponent for March 13. He believes he can beat Pacquaio and is determined to prove it. Clottey conducts himself quite differently than Floyd Mayweather Jr. He prefers to refrain from trash talk, but remains optimistic regarding his chances. With an enormous amount of respect for Manny Pacquiao, Clottey is thankful for the opportunity and doesn’t take it lightly.

“I’ll fight anyone. I don’t care who it is,” says Clottey, who has never been afraid of facing top-caliber fighters. The match-up with Pacquiao will be the most challenging of his boxing career. In his opinion, size matters. Before Pacquaio’s fight with Miguel Cotto, Clottey went on record with me that he was leaning towards Pacquaio to win. However, he said, “Cotto is too big and strong for Pacquiao.” Now if Clottey couldn’t get a decision over Cotto, yet Pacquaio defeated Cotto without breaking a sweat, what makes Clottey so confident he can win against Pacquaio?

When Clottey is on point, he can become a serious threat with his tremendous amount of strength and power, while using his big body to his advantage. However, size really doesn’t matter when facing Manny Pacquaio. How many times have we heard people say that Pacquiao is too small for an opponent? Too many to count. And what happens to that opponent? Pacquaio defeats them with ease.

Clottey will hope that his tight guard will block Pacquiao’s punches from coming in. He will simply try to absorb the ones that do get through. Call me a pessimist, but how can you defend against Pacquaio’s blinding combinations? He throws from the strangest angles and it’s impossible to see his punches coming. Pacquiao will not hesitate to capitalize on some of Clottey’s weaknesses. A problem that may occur in this match-up is that Clottey has a tendency to become complacent in fights and doesn’t finish strong in later rounds.

Regardless, Clottey has been training hard in Florida and has a significant chance at winning, but the way Pacquiao has fought as of late, he seems unstoppable.

Author: Sabrina Montez

Source: vegas.fighthype.com

Hurting power of Pacquiao puts Mayweather in fear of KO

Joshua Clottey trainer Lenny "The Locksmith" DeJesus does not buy the notion that Floyd Mayweather put the kibosh on fighting Manny Pacquiao because of a disagreement over random blood testing.

DeJesus, 64, a veteran of 75 world championship bouts dating back to the 15 rounds or less era, told me Wednesday he is convinced Mayweather dodged fighting Pacman out of simple fear.

"It's two things with Mayweather," DeJesus said from the Clottey training camp in Fort Lauderdale. "One thing is his precious undefeated record. Floyd doesn't want to lose that. Let me be blunt, I think he rejected a Manny fight because he wants to make sure he stays undefeated and because he's worried that he could get knocked out.

"If not for those worries then, why wouldn't Floyd take the fight and, whatever happens in the fight, he goes to the bank laughing with $40 million?"

DeJesus thinks Mayweather should not worry so much about protecting his unbeaten status.

"Fans don't care about all that. Sugar Ray Robinson, Muhammad Ali and Wilfredo Gomez, who I worked with, they all lost but they came back to win. I just think Mayweather had an eerie feeling that Manny Pacquiao could take him out. Like Joe Louis said, you can run but you can't hide and he could run against Manny all night.

"Floyd could be jumping around like a jackal but somewhere in the fight he would feel Manny's power and that's what boxing is all about, hurting power. That's the game of boxing."

DeJesus injected a little humor into the situation.

"I thank three people for Joshua getting this (March 13) bout against Manny," DeJesus said.

"First, I thank Freddie Roach for taking the fight. Second, I thank Manny for taking the fight. Third, I've got to thank Mayweather for not taking the fight."

Veteran trainer, former six bout Pacquiao cutman Lenny DeJesus preps Clottey for March 13 (Top Rank/Chris Farina Photo)

DeJesus worked six different bouts in Megamanny's corner as a cutman when promoter Murad Muhammad was handling the fighter but then got cut adrift when Shelly Finkel and Gary Shaw moved in on Manny and Murad walked the promotional plank.

"I feel good, I feel confident about this fight," DeJesus said. "I like Freddie Roach, we go back to when he was the bucket boy for Eddie Futch. Freddie hit the jackpot with Manny in a way I never did with one fighter.

"But we'll see in Dallas, at the end of the day, who's done the better job of preparing his fighter, me or Freddie. Joshua didn't have that extra oomph he needed to beat (Miguel) Cotto but I was in a different role then.

"The (training camp) environment wasn't right for that fight but that was then and now is now."

Author: Chris Robinson

Source: examiner.com

CLOTTEY RIPPED AND READY IN FLORIDA

2/24/10, Fort Lauderdale, Florida -- Challenger and #1 contender Joshua Clottey, Ghana is in top condition, ripped and ready to challenge Manny "Pacman" Pacquiao, General Santos City, Philippines on Saturday,May 13 at Cowboys Stadium in Dallas, Texas on HBO Pay-Per-View. Photo Credit: Chris Farina - Top Rank.

2/24/10, Fort Lauderdale, Florida -- Challenger and #1 contender Joshua Clottey, Ghana shadow boxes and ready to challenge Manny "Pacman" Pacquiao, General Santos City, Philippines on Saturday,May 13 at Cowboys Stadium in Dallas, Texas on HBO Pay-Per-View. Photo Credit: Chris Farina - Top Rank.

Challenger and #1 contender Joshua Clottey, Ghana stretches in his training camp as he prepares to challenge Manny "Pacman" Pacquiao, General Santos City, Philippines on Saturday,May 13 at Cowboys Stadium in Dallas, Texas on HBO Pay-Per-View. Photo Credit: Chris Farina - Top Rank.

Source: philboxing.com