ARLINGTON, Texas --
Manny Pacquiao was facing the largest man he had ever fought in Ghanian-born challenger
Joshua Clottey.
In Clottey, the Filipino superstar and seven-division titlist was going against a man whose defense had been thought nearly impervious, and who never had been stopped.
Pacquiao didn't stop Clottey as much as overwhelm him, winning virtually every round on the way to a unanimous decision in defense of his WBO welterweight title before 50,944 at Cowboys Stadium on Saturday night.
"It was not an easy fight. It was hard. He's a great fighter. I threw lots of jabs in the beginning to counter his hook and uppercut," said Pacquiao, who threw a career-high 55 jabs in the first round. "I felt his power. He's strong. He was looking to land the big shot throughout the fight."
Judge Duane Ford had it 120-108, Levi Martinez had it 119-109, and Nelson Vazquez, 119-109, all for Pacquiao. FanHouse scored it 120-108 for Pacquiao.
Share "I felt that I was in control after the first round," said Pacquiao. "But I was cautious of his power throughout the entire fight. He took a lot of punishment. He's incredibly tough."
Pacquiao now awaits the winner between a May 1 clash between Floyd Mayweather and WBA welterweight king Shane Mosley.
"I want that fight. But it's up to him. I'm ready to fight any time. If Mosley wins, maybe I'll fight him. Floyd's style isn't difficult," said Pacquiao. "I want that fight, and right now, I know that I have the support of the fans, and I love them for it."
The 31-year-old Pacquiao (51-3-2, 38 knockouts) rose to 12-0 with eight stoppages since his last loss in March 2005 to Erik Morales, who he has since stopped in 10 and three rounds, respectively.
Pacquiao is 19-1-2 with 15 KOs under Freddie Roach, the four-time Trainer of the Year.
"I thought that we won every round. He's got good defense, but we pressured him, and good defense is not enough to win a fight," said Roach. "Manny was getting hit a little too much with the right, so we made an adjustment. Manny started throwing the right hook and got out afterwards."
Pacquiao was looking for his fifth straight knockout, having stopped David Diaz, Ricky Hatton, Oscar De La Hoya and Miguel Cotto in succession over his previous four bouts.
The 33-year-old Clottey (35-4, 20 KOs) had never been stopped, having lost to former world champs Carlos Baldomir, Antonio Margarito and Miguel Cotto, respectively.
"This is the first fight that I feel that I've lost," said
Clottey. "He has great movement. He has great movement and speed. It was very difficult for me to handle that. I didn't feel much of his power, but I couldn't handle his speed."
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