What Happens If Joshua Clottey Beats Manny Pacquiao?

The Manny Pacquiao vs. Joshua Clottey fight is finally coming up, and everybody has predicted Pacquiao to coast by his opponent. But what if he doesn't? What if the Pacquiao vs. Clottey results come in and Clottey has shocked the world, and knocked out or stopped the reigning pound for pound best boxer on the planet?

Could Clottey Beat Pacquiao?

Is it even in the realm of possibility that Joshua Clottey beats Manny Pacquiao? It certainly is, although of course it would be a large upset. The fact of the matter is that Joshua Clottey is simply a much larger man than Manny Pacquiao. He makes the welterweight limit, but he comes into the ring as a full fledged middleweight, in the range of 160 lbs.

He's not a journeyman either, he's unanimously in amongst the top 10 welterweight boxers. Clottey might not be in the same class as a Manny Pacquiao or Floyd Mayweather, but stepping into the ring at 160 lbs or more, he could give Pacquiao problems.

A reasonable analogy could be made to middleweight champion and pound for pound great Sugar Ray Robinson facing light heavyweight champion Joey Maxim in 1952. Robinson ended up losing the bout after he failed to come out to the ring prior to the 14th stanza.

Of course, 100 degree heat had much to do with that and Robinson was handily winning the bout. But the point is that Maxim was a serviceable enough fighter, just not on the class of Sugar Ray. Dealing with all of that extra size helped to wear Robinson down in the fight, and Maxim ended up winning. If the two men had been equal in size, Maxim would not have had a prayer.

So What Happens if Clottey Does Beat Pacquiao?

We all wake up the next morning with a harsh dose of reality and the Mayweather vs. Pacquiao fight would be permanently deflated - although it would probably happen anyway. It would not make Clottey one of the pound for pound best fighters in the world.

He will be given credit, but it will be more a case of Pacquiao finally meeting a man too large and strong for him to overcome. Mayweather would regain the number 1 pound for pound crown, Pacquiao perhaps would more hastily leave the sport for his political future in the Philippines and Clottey would never enjoy the fame he felt he deserved. Despite a big win, the Frankie Randalls and Trevor Berbicks of the world never get launched into super stardom.

Do I think that Joshua Clottey will beat Manny Pacquiao? Certainly not, but far stranger things have happened in the squared circle and it's entirely in the realm of feasibility that a 165 lbs. Joshua Clottey eats up Pacquiao's onslaught and marches forward to victory.