Seven-time world champion and “Fighter of the Decade” Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao takes a morning run with his dog ‘Pacman’ Tuesday morning for his upcoming World Welterweight championship against challenger Joshua Clottey on Saturday,March 13 at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington,Texas on HBO Pay-Per-View.

Photos by Chris Farina / Top Rank

Seven-time world champion and “Fighter of the Decade” Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao arrives in Dallas with his wife Jinkee on Monday night for his upcoming World Welterweight championship against challenger Joshua Clottey on Saturday,March 13 at Cowboys Stadium in Dallas,Texas on HBO Pay-Per-View.

Photos by Chris Farina / Top Rank

On the cusp of boxing’s super-season the world’s focus remains on Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather. While we await their hopeful showdown both men have tall tasks in front of them this spring. Mayweather will face Shane Mosley on May 1, a bout that will be touched off on in the coming weeks, while Pacquiao dukes it out with the upset minded Joshua Clottey. I have compiled the thoughts of a number of boxers, and am lucky enough to be able to put together an amazing list of predictions. I consulted fighters from lightweight to heavyweight, male and female, amateur prospect to world champion, from America to Australia to see how they see this event playing out. Some were elaborative, while some kept it short and sweet. See how their predictions match up with mine and your own, and tune in March 13 to see who’s vision plays out.

I think Pac will overwhelm Clottey with a lot of activity, I look for a late stoppage or unanimous decision. I also see very game and tough Clottey throughout. – Steve Forbes, former super featherweight world champion

Manny is too fast and elusive for Clottey. Clottey is Strong, stronger than Cotto but he doesn’t throw enough punches. Pacquiao’s speed will be too much. –Bobby Gunn, cruiserweight world title challenger

Pac is too fast and too strong for Clottey, too awkward to be honest. I love Josh but he had Cotto and let him get away, if he doesn’t have the killer instinct with Pac he is done. It will be a great fight but I give Pac the edge. –Ishe Smith, junior middleweight contender

I pick Manny by decision because Clottey fights safe enough not to be ko’ed but too safe to win the fight.- Jeff Mayweather, world class trainer, former lightweight contender

This is a much more difficult fight for manny than people think. It will be a hard fought bout with pac winning on points. –Billy Dib, featherweight contender

I like Clottey by a twelve round decision. He’d have to be able to take the punishment then work. –A.K. Laleye Contender Season 4 participant

It will go the distance and it will go to Pac-Man. – Jason Litzau, NABF super featherweight champion

I like Clottey’s relentless pressure. I think Pac-Man’s fire is going to ignite Clottey, it will be a close fight but Clottey comes out with the decision. –Hasim Rahman Jr. world class amateur fighter.

I’m Going with Pacquiao by U.D. 🙂 – Mia St. John former female lightweight world champion

A dangerous fight for Pac-Man because of Clottey’s size and strength but I think the speed will be too much for Clottey to overcome. I’m going with Pac Man and I will be VERY impressed if he wins by stoppage. – Caleb Truax, WBF International super middleweight champion.

Mmmm, I don’t know, this is a pick ‘em – Nate Campbell, former undisputed lightweight champion

My only thoughts are do I get to fight the winner? – Emanuel Augustus, former IBA champion

This is a tough one. Clottey is such a physical terror for any welterweight to handle and he boasts an iron jaw. Still, I think Pacquaio will get by him. Not because of speed, power, or combination punching, but because he’s got too much riding on a potential showdown with Mayweather/Mosley. Great fighters find a way to win and I think Pacquaio will do just that. –Ryan Coyne, cruiserweight prospect, Contender Season 4 participant.

I said it prior to the Cotto fight, and it proved obsolete but I’ll say it before this one too, Clottey has to knock Pacquiao out. If you think Mayweather-Pacquiao isn’t still in HBO’s fold this fall you’d have to be punch drunk. For Clottey to derail this event he’s going to have to stop Pacquiao which I don’t see happening. I thought Oscar, and Cotto would both be too big for Pac-Man but I’m not making that mistake again, Pacquiao at his best is not too small for anyone. It will come down to aggression and Pacquiao will win that war every time, I’ll take Manny via wide UD. – Brett Mauren, 15rounds, Phantom Punch Productions

Final Tally

Pacquiao : Mauren, Forbes, Gunn, Smith, Mayweather, Dib, Litzau, St. John, Truax, Coyne

Clottey: Laleye, Rahman Jr.

Neutral: Campbell, Augustus

With as many different viewpoints as we have just seen, someone’s call is bound to play out, and we will find out which one on March 13. Please support these exciting fighters as their careers unfold and stay tuned for the Mayweather-Mosley prediction piece in the coming weeks.

It’s hard to know when Manny Pacquiao got interested in politics. Maybe, it happened at about the time he added a right to his left. It’s also hard to understand why. But Pacquiao is serious, even after he lost by a reported 37,000-to-38,000 votes in his last and only run in 2007 for an anonymous seat in the Filipino Congress.

Maybe, Pacquiao just hates to lose. Ask Eric Morales, who discovered just how much he detests defeat after Morales’ initial victory was followed by two devastating losses to the motivated Filipino. Three years ago, Pacquiao’s political ambitions looked like a lark. Between fights, politics was like shooting hoops and singing. It was something to do. But by now, we know he’ll never be in the NBA or play Carnegie Hall.

But Congress is beginning to look about as good as a victory over Joshua Clottey on March 13 at Cowboys Stadium in the Dallas metroplex.

Thirteen days after Pacquiao is expected to sack Clottey like a linebacker in a blitz of a poorly-defended quarterback, he will be back on the campaign trail. He is running in a different district, Sarangani instead of General Santos City. There is different opponent. By all accounts, there also will a different result.

This time, Pacquiao is expected to prevail against Roy Chiongbian. I’m tempted to send Chiongbian a campaign contribution, although he apparently doesn’t need one. Chiongbian is reported to be a billionaire, which makes him even richer than Pacquiao, who has become a multi-millionaire in a string of rich fights, including a 2008 upset of Oscar De La Hoya.

Let’s just say that I’m a member of the Filipino party that reportedly cheered when Pacquiao lost in 2007 to incumbent Darlene Antonino-Custodio.

Memo to would-be Congressman Pacquiao: The Philippines need another politician about as much as Imelda Marcos needed another pair of shoes. A Congressional seat will always be there. A chance at enduring stardom as a fighter will not.

Yet, the quixotic seriousness of Pacquiao’s political pursuit is unmistakable, both in a conference call and in subsequent media reports. If a congressional seat forces him out of the ring and eliminates any renewed possibility of a showdown with Floyd Mayweather, Jr, Pacquiao seemed to say:

So be it.

“I don’t need to fight him,’’ Pacquiao said in a conference call when asked about negotiations that failed when Mayweather demanded Olympic-style blood testing. “What I believe is Floyd Mayweather is not ready at this time to fight with me. That’s why he makes the reasons to cancel the fight. I feel bad and disappointment because he is accusing me of using drugs or whatever and trying to ruin my name in boxing. People know I have been successful through God and hard work.

““I don’t really need Floyd Mayweather because what I have achieved in boxing is good enough for me and people know that by comparing my achievements in boxing to his achievements.’’

Pacquiao promoter Bob Arum and trainer Freddie Roach are skeptical that the Filipino whirlwind will leave one ring and enter another. But neither rules it out either.

In the gym, Roach said he has witnessed some ferocious flashes of anger at Mayweather. The frustration is rare for Pacquiao, who walks into the ring with a shy, somewhat enigmatic smile on a face that always seems to say he doesn’t dislike anybody. But Mayweather altered that with demands that imply Pacquiao abuses performance-enhancers.

“Sometimes, when Manny is shadowboxing, he will show me how Mayweather fights and how he will take care of the problem,’’ Roach said. “ I’ve never seen Manny do that before. He was trying to ruin our reputation with those allegations, so we do want to fight him and we do want to knock him out.’’

But, yeah, Roach says, the Clottey fight could be his last if Mayweather continues to make the drug-testing demands without an approved process from a state Commission, or if Shane Mosley upsets Mayweather on May 1, or if a victory at the ballot box takes Pacquiao out of the gym and into office for good.

If, if and if.

The biggest one could be what Pacquiao might have been. Arum, Roach and much of the media have been saying that Pacquiao is poised to become something special, meaning he is about to occupy the same orbit as Henry Armstrong, Sugar Ray Robinson and Muhammad Ali. But as an active Congressman and a retired fighter, anything special would be speculative. Pacquiao is good. Make that great. He will be in the Hall of Fame. But he is still a fight with Mayweather, or maybe a Mosley, from being special

Then, there is the potential for cynicism. If Pacquiao leaves boxing for politics, I can already hear the Mayweathers — Floyd Jr., Floyd Sr. and Roger. All together now:

“See, I told you so.”

Pacquiao has undergone and passed every required drug test. If a Commission tells him there are new rules, I believe he will agree to a more rigorous process. Fair or not, it is the only way he can definitively answer a question that the Mayweather chorus raised. There are a variety of interpretations as to the motivation for the Mayweather demand. Maybe, he was trying to bully Pacquiao by trying to dictate terms. Maybe, Mayweather was trying to get out of the fight. Maybe, it was gamesmanship.

But there’s only way to answer and it’s not from a seat in the Filipino Congress.

WHAT PROBLEM?
Vic Darchinyan (33-2-1, 27 KOs) is sick of hearing about a rematch of his loss to Nonito Donaire. Still, he was asked about it repeatedly this week before the defense of super-flyweight titles on Showtime Saturday against Mexican Rodrigo Guerrero (13-1-1, 9 KOs) at Agua Caliente Casino in Rancho Mirage, Calif.

Darchinyan, knocked out by a Donaire three years ago, has dismissed the rematch possibility by saying he is moving up in weight.

Funny, but that’s the same thing Donaire said last month before his third-round stoppage of Manuel Vargas in Las Vegas. Then, Donaire said it was “now or never,” because he was moving up to bantam and featherweight.

On the scale, Darchinyan and Donaire are heading in the same direction, which should also include a rematch.

NOTES, QUOTES FROM THE SUPER SIX
· Arthur Abraham almost made it sound as if Jamaican sprinter Usian Bolt was a sparring partner in training for Andre Dirrell at Detroit in a Super Six Classic bout on March 27, which was rescheduled from March 6 because of a back injury suffered by Dirrell. “I have sparring partners who run,’’ Abraham said from Germany during a conference call Thursday.

· Dirrell is out of the tournament if he loses because of a controversial loss by split decision to Carl Froch in his last bout. “I call it a do-or-die situation,’’ said Dirrell, who believes he was robbed on the scorecards against Froch. He also said Froch engaged in “dirty tactics” that took him out of his fight plan.

· Promoter Gary Shaw predicts that Dirrell will be the first to beat Abraham, an Armenian who speaks German and hopes to become an American star. Shaw said that Abraham, the tournament’s leader in points with three, is more comfortable at middleweight, 160 pounds. That, Shaw said, is one reason he beat Jermain Taylor, also more comfortable at 160. At 168 pounds, Dirrell has an advantage, he said. “The bigger and faster man always wins,’’ Shaw said. “In this fight — although I have a world of respect for Arthur Abraham for his record, his style, his abilities and his demeanor — I believe Andre Dirrell will win and possibly stop Abraham.’’

Photo by Chris Cozzone/ Top Rank

Seven-time world champion and “Fighter of the Decade” Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao,General Santos,Philippines works out during media day at the Wildcard Boxing Club Wednesday as he winds down his training camp for his upcoming World Welterweight championship against challenger Joshua Clottey of Ghana. Top Rank’s “The Event”, will be held on Saturday,March 13 at Cowboys Stadium in Dallas,Texas and televised live on HBO Pay-Per-View

Photos by Chris Cozzone/ Top Rank

Fighter of the Year: Manny Pacquiao

Pacquiao’s 2009 was one for the ages. With dominant victories over Ring Magazine Junior Welterweight champion Ricky Hatton (who was previously unbeaten at 140 lbs) and WBO Welterweight kingpin Miguel Cotto (considered by many an undefeated fighter due to the Antonio Margarito hand wraps controversy), Pacquiao was a unanimous pick for Fighter of the Year.

Fight of the year: Juan Manuel Marquez TKO9 Juan Diaz

Marquez-Diaz was a sensational action bout from start to finish. The two mixed it up from the opening bell, with the naturally bigger Diaz getting the better of the exchanges early on. Marquez, who refused to back down, continued to slug it out with Diaz before turning the tides in fashion. The technically proficient Marquez badly cut Diaz in round 8 and dropped him hard with a two punch combo in round nine. Marquez then tagged the badly hurt Diaz with a vicious uppercut, leaving him flat on his back, forcing Referee Rafael Ramos to halt the most exciting fight of 2009.

Hottest Division: Welterweight

With the inclusion of Pacquiao, the hottest division got hotter. The sport’s biggest fight in recent memory will occur at 147-pounds when Pacquiao eventually meets Floyd Mayweather Jr. Though they are one and two on the pound-for-pound list, neither will be able to claim they are the clear welterweight king until they beat Shane Mosley. The ranks 4-7 at 1-4-7 are as good as in any other division, with Miguel Cotto, Joshua Clottey, Andre Berto and Luis Collazo competing in a ridiculously stacked weight class.

Weakest division: Heavyweight

Just about enough has been said about the dearth of talent at heavyweight. No one can argue that the brothers Klitschko, Wladimir and Vitali, are not a highly talented duo. But the drop-off after them is unlike anything we have seen in decades. Not only is the top ten a limited lot, but there are scarcely any prospects to get excited about. Once upon a time, not that long ago, the World Heavyweight champion was the most recognizable man in the United States, if not the world, and the most prestigious position in all of sports.

Prospect of the Year: Fernando Guerrero

Guerrero (17-0, 14 KOs) has the look of a future champion and made great strides in 2009. There are several criteria for choosing a Prospect of the Year, and Guerrero seemed to get check marks for each one. Guerrero kept a busy schedule, as a prospect should, fighting five times, scoring three knockouts and winning two decisions. Guerrero took a step-up in competition, winning a majority decision over fringe contender Ossie Duran and stopping tough journeyman Brian Norman, who had gone ten full with Jean Pascal.

Guerrero has the benefit of fighting at the high-profile middleweight class, which is ripe with opportunities for rapid advancement. The former amateur star is still young at 23-years-old, and has a fight of some significance scheduled in 2010 against former prospect Jesus Gonzales. Lastly, what gives Guerrero a huge edge over every other U.S. based prospect, is his massive drawing power in his hometown of Salisbury, Maryland, where he has fought in front of 8,000 people.

Worst Decision of the Year: Ali Funeka D12 Joan Guzman

For the better part of twelve rounds, Funeka hammered the unbeaten Guzman. Guzman, a quick and slick Dominican, was bloodied and rocked on a number of occasions by his taller opponent. Funeka had everything going his way. From a strong jab and big power punches, the South African clearly had the fight in control, winning at the absolute worst 8 of the 12 rounds (the score Joseph Pasquale had of 116-112).

The vacant IBF Lightweight title appeared to be his. This was until Alan Davis and Benoit Roussel unexplainably scored the contest 114-114, disgustingly robbing Funeka of the title. This created a major out roar in the boxing community and further solidified why judges should be required to do post fight interviews.

Promoter of the year: Top Rank

The promoter of the year’s biggest fight, Pacquiao-Cotto, and the co-promoter perhaps the second biggest fight, Pacquiao-Hatton, Top Rank earns the nod as best promotional firm of 2009. In addition to those two mega events, Top Rank continues to develop their prospects into champions and stars better than any one in the business. The latest example of which is Juan Manuel Lopez, who has achieved superstardom in Puerto Rico and may be en route to his second world title January 23.

Fight you’d most like to see in 2010: Manny Pacquiao vs Floyd Mayweather

This appeared to be a given until issues over pre fight drug testing at least temporarily derailed the fight. Pacquiao and Mayweather are unquestionably the top two fighters in the sport. Each brings a style that the other hasn’t faced. With both topping 1,000,000 pay per view buys for a fight in 2009, they are obviously box office kings as well.

Pacquiao and Mayweather appear ready to take on different opponents in their next bout, but an overwhelming public demand makes the fight all the more likely for later in 2010.

Knockout of the Year: Manny Pacquiao KO2 Ricky Hatton

There were not that many people outside of England picking Hatton to beat Pacquiao this past May, but could anyone have expected the brutal one-sidedness in which Pac man would end the fight? The left hand Pacquiao landed to put Hatton down in a heap at the end of round two was picture perfect.

Fighter of the Decade: Manny Pacquiao

Pacquiao nabbed titles in a record six divisions over the last ten years (super bantamweight, featherweight, junior lightweight, lightweight, junior welterweight and welterweight). Pacquiao’s sensational decade included knockout victories over Marco Antonio Barrera (who he would later defeat by decision), Erik Morales (twice), Miguel Cotto, Oscar De La Hoya and Ricky Hatton; all multi division world champions that were ranked on the pound for pound list during their careers. Pacquiao also owns a points victory over the great Juan Manuel Marquez, and stopped once-beaten David Diaz among other notable victories. A simply sensational run by one of the best fighters in the last quarter century.

Authors note: Pacquiao’s victories over Barrera in their first fight and Ricky Hatton were for the Ring Magazine title, which is globally recognized as the legitimate championship belt in each weight division.

Fight of the Decade: Diego Corrales TKO10 Jose Luis Castillo

On May, 7 2005, Diego Corrales and Jose Luis Castillo battered each other over the duration of an unforgettable fight. Both neglected any kind of defense in this phone booth battle, willingly using their faces as a line of defense. In the opening thirty seconds of round ten, Castillo dropped Corrales hard with a left hook. The dazed Corrales was down just seconds later and his night appeared to be all but over. This was until, the unthinkable happened.

After a brief break and a point deduction for spitting out his mouth piece, trainer Joe Goosen famously quipped Corrales “you have to f****ng get inside on him now. And did he ever. Castillo swarmed Corrales in an attempt to finish the fight, but was rocked by a two punch combo, springing the latter back to life. Corrales then stunned Castillo via a hard left hook and stopped him with a vicious combination (which had Castillo out on his feet) him thirty seconds later. Corrales tragically passed away exactly two years after the fight, but will forever be linked to the most miraculous comeback in one of the greatest slugfests of all time.

Division of the Decade: Welterweight

The 147 lb division, our best of 2009, had a number of terrific pugilists make a mark in it. The list of fighters making major waves at 147 include Floyd Mayweather, Shane Mosley, Miguel Cotto, Manny Pacquiao (since the Cotto bout lifted him to an even higher level), Vernon Forrest, Paul Williams, Zab Judah, Joshua Clottey, and current rising star Andre Berto among others. Though featherweight was a very close second, welterweight division had too many top tier fighters to ignore.

Worst Decision of the Decade: Courtney Burton SD10 Emmanuel Augustus

Discounting significance, but just based on sheer disgustingness, Courtney Burton’s 2004 decision over Emanuel Augustus in Michigan was the Worst Decision of the Decade. Their fight, televised on ESPN2 from Burton’s home state, was utterly one-sided. Despite an unnecessary point deduction by the referee, Augustus should have had the verdict running away. Somehow, one judge scored the bout 99-90, while another had it 97-92 for Burton.

The third judge scored the fight 98-94 for Augustus, and even that was a little too close. Making matters worse, when commentator Teddy Atlas approached the Michigan Boxing Commission representative on air, they apparently did not know the difference between a majority decision and a split decision. Augustus gained a small measure of justice, stopping a by-then faded Burton in 2006.

Promoter of the decade: Top Rank

With the reign of Don King Productions winding down, and Golden Boy Promotions rising up as the decade began the clear choice for Promoter of the Decade is Top Rank. Again, Top Rank helped create or elevate three of the decade’s the biggest stars in Oscar De La Hoya, Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao. In addition, Top Rank was largely behind the renaissance of the featherweight division.

Knockout of the decade: Manny Pacquiao KO2 Ricky Hatton (see above)

Write ups compiled by Matt Yanofsky and Mario Ortega Jr. Awards voted on by staff.

Photo by Chris Farina of Top rank