Though he fought his best, the highlight of Eddie Chambers' day might have been lifting Wladimir Klitschko. (AP Photo)

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Though he mostly cruised for 12 rounds before landing a vicious left hand that knocked Eddie Chambers through the ropes and out in the waning seconds of the bout, Wladimir Klitschko got the best test he's had in years today in Germany.

Klitschko (54-3, 48 KO) was leading 109-100 on the Bad Left Hook card, and probably was up by that score or 110-99 on most cards. Before the 11th and 12th rounds, he was berated by trainer Emanuel Steward for not being aggressive enough. Steward referred to it as "another Ibragimov," meaning that because Wladimir wasn't aggressive, he would have to "settle" for a dominant decision, rather than something for the highlight reels.

Steward was being a bit dramatic, as this was nowhere near the stinker of Klitschko-Ibragimov or Klitschko-Chagaev, but before the 12th, Klitschko snapped back that he would do it. And do it he did. The official time of the stoppage was 2:55 of the 12th round.

Chambers (35-2, 18 KO) had a great gameplan early, but he just wasn't good enough to beat Klitschko. Not big enough, not good enough, not powerful enough, and really, not quite fast enough, despite that being his chief strength. He couldn't outbox Wladimir.

Early in the bout, Chambers attempted to get into Klitschko's head first by picking him up off of his feet, and then in the next round by actually picking him up and slamming him to the mat. But Klitschko rattled only a bit, and quickly got past it. After that, he put on his usual clinic.

Overall, it was a more aggressive performance than usual for the world heavyweight champion. He dealt with Chambers very well, disposing of yet another challenger. Who's next? Who knows? But whoever it is, Wladimir Klitschko reigns clearly as the king of the heavyweights at this point, at least for my money.

On the dreadful undercard:

• Johnathon Banks KO-6 Travis Walker. Walker went down pretty much as soon as he was hit on the chin. It was quite a finish. Banks actually fell down throwing the punch that landed on Walker, who fell just after Banks did. Awful fight, with neither guy looking too interested in fighting. Banks is now 24-1 (17 KO), while Walker dips to 34-4-1 (28 KO).
• Alexander Ustinov TKO-4 Ed Mahone. Mahone hasn't done anything in a decade, and at his peak was demolished in three by Vitali Klitschko. Before today he hadn't even fought in about two years. Lumbering Ustinov was his usual self, and Mahone wasn't really keen on being punched. Mahone's corner threw in the towel early in the fourth. It should have been thrown in the second after the bell rang. Ustinov is now 20-0 (16 KO).
• Michael Sprott TKO-1 Werner Kreiskott. Swing fight, and completely useless. Sprott (32-14, 17 KO) now moves on to a fight with Audley Harrison for the vacant European heavyweight title.
• Nenad Borovcanin TKO-2 Jonathan Pasi. Commentator tried to sell Borovcanin, 30, as a prospect, but no. He's never fought so much as a remotely warm body. He's now 25-0 (18 KO).
• In the only non-heavyweight fight of the show, Domonique Dolton beat Omar Siala via TKO-3. Dolton is a Detroit product and a Sugar Hill fighter. Siala (11-11-2) has never beaten someone who had won a fight coming in. This was another odd stoppage, as suddenly Siala winced, seemed to acknowledge body pain, and was given a standing count. Then, the referee told him to box on, which Siala didn't want to do, so it was called off.

Martin Lindsay won a convincing decision over Jamie Arthur. (Photo via FrankMaloney.com)

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In Lancashire, Martin Lindsay scored a decision over Jamie Arthur in a fight for the British featherweight title.  The final scores were 118-108, 117-110, 119-108, all in favor of Lindsay.

Overall, the fight was entertaining.  While Lindsay was the more accurate puncher and landed the more telling shots, Arthur never stopped coming forward and kept throwing punches.  Lindsay used his superior defensive ability to block or avoid most of the shots, and land a number of hard counter shots. 

In the second round, Lindsay knocked down Arthur twice.  Undeterred, he came forward and quite possibly won a few of the next few rounds by putting constant pressure on the sturdy Belfast fighter.  However, as the fight wore on, Lindsay's conditioning, together with harder and more accurate punching, prevailed.

This was the first defense of Lindsay's title and he would need two more wins to keep his Lonsdale belt; however, I'd be very interested in seeing him on a wider stage.  With his accurate punching and tricky defensive style, I could see him giving problems to a number of fighters on the fringes of the featherweight top 10, even if he probably doesn't have the sheer talent to take on someone like Yuriorkis Gamboa or Chris John.  In the post-fight interview, new promoter Frank Maloney stated that they would eye the European title, but that first and foremost they want to keep Lindsay busy.  This was only Lindsay's 16th fight as a professional in six years, and at 27 years old, he's no kid.

• On the undercard, Gary Davies knocked down Andy Bell twice en route to a first round knockout over Bell, in a bantamweight bout between two former British titlists.  Also on the undercard, 6'8" U.K. Olympian David Price scored a first round TKO over Martyn Grainger in a farce of a fight where Grainger didn't even try.  Price landed three punches.  The first body shot knocked Grainger down.  After the second one, he took a knee, and the referee stopped the fight.  It was an absolutely pathetic display, and Price gets an official win to move to 6-0.
• In Belgium, Randall Bailey knocked Jackson Bonsu out in the first round, winning the #2 position in the IBF welterweight rankings.  After the fight, promoter Lou DiBella stated that Bailey would be looking for the biggest money fight possible.
• On Friday Night Fights, Sechew Powell won a majority decision over Deandre Latimore in a revenge match.  Powell is now the IBF mandatory in the light middleweight division. 
• Thursday morning, Shane Cameron bounced back from his destruction at the hands of David Tua by defeating John Hopoate.  Hopoate, a former rugby player mostly known for his dirty tactics, let those tactics carry over, and lost by disqualification after he made it apparent that he'd rather fight in a wrestling match than a boxing match. 

In this potentially doctored photo, Joshua Clottey is actually throwing a punch on Saturday night. (Photo by Jed Jacobsohn / Getty Images)

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Manny Pacquiao's Saturday night win over Joshua Clottey has generated a lot of discussion, and not all of it has been very positive. Some of the criticisms have been downright harsh, and a lot of them are deserved.

So before we move on in the boxing world, let's take a final, sober look at the Pacquiao-Clottey card.

Main Event

Manny Pacquiao comes out of the fight just fine. Despite the complaints that the fight was boring, Pacquiao's 1200-plus punches thrown are a testament to the fact that it wasn't boring because of him.

Joshua Clottey, on the other hand, could have damaged his reputation very badly. His arms-up, hyper-defensive performance was the first time that a lot of the people watching have ever seen him fight. Clottey has never been particularly exciting, and never a major star. He got himself on the biggest stage he could against Pacquiao, and he pretty much laid an egg out there.

It's not just that Clottey was "boring." His cover-up game was so drastic that it has led people to believe he was indifferent about whether or not he won, that he "didn't come to win," which is, when you break it down, essentially saying he all but threw the fight. If he wasn't trying to win, what kind of contest is that?

Please note I'm not accusing Clottey of actually throwing the fight. But that is pretty much how a lot of people see it. He wasn't there being a competitor. He was existing, doing all he could to not get knocked out, and cashing a paycheck.

Joshua Clottey is a very good fighter, but he'll need some serious career rehab to starting smelling rosy again for a big portion of the audience that paid to watch him on Saturday. He might well be able to land another big fight by the end of the year, but it'll be more coincidence than anything. He doesn't draw, doesn't have much of a fanbase, is a difficult fight for just about anyone, and now he's got some bad press.

There is talk of Clottey moving up to 154 pounds. Bob Arum mentioned a possible fight between Clottey and Yuri Foreman, should Foreman retain his title against Miguel Cotto in June. God help us all if that matchup becomes a reality, because I don't see a network that can afford it (HBO) paying for it.

If he stays at 147, though, he could easily get a title shot this year. If Andre Berto and promoter Lou DiBella wanted it, Clottey could be an opponent for the WBC titlist, should Berto get past Carlos Quintana on April 10. Of course, Berto and DiBella might see Clottey as too big a risk for too little gain.

And as badly as Clottey has suffered from "big risk, little gain" in the past, that might be worse than ever now.

In short: Manny's fine and trucks on. Clottey's reputation is badly bruised, but the limited options for a lot of people could keep him a player anyway.

Undercard

The HBO crew spent a lot of time complaining about the undercard. Is it too much to ask that they just call the fights, especially when two of them (Duddy-Medina and Soto-Diaz) were perfectly watchable? Jim Lampley and Max Kellerman especially acted like they were being stabbed during the undercard. I understand their desire to point out the fact that the fights didn't have a ton of meaning, and that's not a bad thing that the voices behind the biggest boxing broadcaster in America are willing to speak up for something the fans say, too. But say it and then move on. The fighters deserve that much, at least.

Anyway, I'll take my own advice and shut up with the complaining and give some quick thoughts on these fights.

Humberto Soto definitely won, and his two knockdowns helped that, but he had some difficulty with David Diaz that makes his future at lightweight a bit more questionable. He's tall and lanky, and his power came with him. He can still punch, and he's a good fighter. He's definitely a top 10 guy in the division already. However, Diaz was able to effectively pressure Soto and push him around some simply because he's a more natural lightweight. That could be a real problem against a better fighter than David Diaz.

For instance, I can't see Humberto Soto beating Michael Katsidis right now. Not because Soto isn't, pound-for-pound, better than Katsidis, but because Katsidis is a burly guy who never backs off. I think he'd eventually wear Soto out. That's just a "styles make fights" thing. Of all the guys in the top ten, I think Soto would have the best shot against No. 1 and legit world champion Juan Manuel Marquez, actually. Marquez isn't really a lightweight either, he's aging, and he's always willing to stand in the pocket and take shots to give back. Marquez was able to beat Juan Diaz in a firefight, but Diaz can't punch. That same fight with Soto instead of Juan Diaz, and I think Marquez goes out on his shield. And it would be a marvelous battle, too.

Right now, it looks like Soto will face Anthony Peterson on the Foreman-Cotto undercard. That's an interesting enough matchup.

There's not much more to be said about Jose Luis Castillo than we already have. He's retired now. Alfonso Gomez may have earned himself another PPV undercard fight in the future with this win. He's been on the last two Pacquiao shows. He's affordable, nobody is going to be afraid to fight him, and he does come to fight. He's made a nice career for himself.

John Duddy was John Duddy. He's extremely limited, but he's also competent. I think he'll smash Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. if those two fight this summer, as has been the rumor, and that seems unwise to me from a business standpoint. If I'm Top Rank, I don't put Chavez in with Duddy. Chavez has never beaten anyone as good as Duddy, and we know Duddy can take a shot. Chavez couldn't dent freaking Troy Rowland. From a business standpoint, there's way more money in Chavez than in Duddy, too.

As for Michael Medina, who lost to Duddy on Saturday, he seems like a guy who could have a nice career as a professional opponent, and if he refines himself some (which can happen to young guys who get cast in the "opponent" role, simply because they're fighting good fighters all the time), he could be a late bloomer. I'm going to write a note on a Post-It to check back in on the "Murder Man" in five years.

Manny Pacquiao's win went according to script last night in Texas. (Photo by Jed Jacobsohn / Getty Images)

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Back again with another feature is Ted "The Bull" Sares, who looks back at his prediction for last night's Pacquiao-Clottey fight, and examines how it turned out in the end.

* * * * * * * *

Prediction (03/07/2010)

I see "Pac Man" beating the "Grand Master" in a medium-paced fight in which Manny will exploit Clottey's weakness beginning in the mid rounds (but I don't see it happening the other way around). This exploitation will be enhanced by Pacquio's incredibly fast in-and-out movement accompanied by just about every punch in the manual-- and each thrown with malice aforethought-as he befuddles the Ghanaian and slows down his already slow stalk.

However, despite his superb performances against Cotto, Hatton and De La Hoya, I don't see him winning within the distance. Clottey is just too strong in my view. After a competitive start - maybe the first five rounds -- I see Manny reaching cruising speed and begin to dominate, In the end, Clottey's trademark pressure and counter-punching will not be able to overcome Pacquiao's foot speed and quick-handed, sharp-punching attacks. Speed will be the decisive factor here and speed is what Manny Pacquiao is all about

I envision Pacquiao outworking Clottey and building an early lead, although possibly without landing a whole lot of hard, clean punches through Clottey's excellent guard. I'm going with Pacquiao by solid UD.

Outcome

Except for the absence of counterpunching by Clottey, the fight turned out pretty close to the prediction. Clottey's inability to pull the trigger once again cost him dearly, except this time, when he did pull it, he paid a price. Manny also exploited Clottey's weaknesses earlier than I anticipated -- by the third round to be exact.

Clottey's corner also proved less than compelling and instead of giving him some tactical advice, it simply repeated the obvious. Namely, that he was behind and had better start throwing some punches.

In sum, Clottey clearly lacked the Eye of the Tiger; Manny did not, and won this one with his blinding speed and and quick-handed, sharp-punching, punishing attacks.

We are fortunate to witness this marvelous fighting machine. Indeed, those of you who are young enough will be discussing him with your grandchildren in years to come.

Joshua Clottey was no match for Manny Pacquiao last night. Surprised? Don't be. (Photo by Jed Jacobsohn / Getty Images)

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When I woke up this morning, last night's pay-per-view was still, of course, on my mind. The undercard, as usual, was pretty dreadful (more on that sometime later this week, maybe later today). The main event, as usual, was lackluster (same "more on that").

And Joshua Clottey is who we thought he was. And I let this fight off the hook.

In my preview for the bout, my respect for Clottey as a fighter kind of guilt-tripped me into mealy-mouthing a little bit. Yes, Clottey's a good fighter, I was trying to say. But he's also no match for Manny Pacquiao. This fight, I wanted to say without being harsh, would be damned easy for Pacquiao.

Because Joshua Clottey wasn't good enough for Manny Pacquiao. He was never going to win this fight, save for Pacquiao uncharacteristically taking him lightly.

The laughable 30-second TV promo for the pay-per-view called Clottey a "devastating brawler." That was rich. Clottey doesn't have half the power a lot of people seem to think he does. He's about as devastating as any wall can be. For 12 rounds last night, he stood motionless, allowing Pacquiao to unleash over 1,200 punches, landing 20% of them.

It wasn't Pacquiao's most scintillating performance. It wasn't even his most dominant, though it was a virtual shutout for a fact. Pacquiao was more dominant against Cotto, Hatton, de la Hoya, Morales in their third fight, David Diaz, and twice against Marco Antonio Barrera. He was also more entertaining. He also had opponents who seemed to at least consider fighting back.

Clottey, it was noted, gave tough fights to Miguel Cotto and Antonio Margarito, and he beat Zab Judah. Beating Judah is nothing too amazing anymore. He gave the Cotto fight away by doing in too many short bursts what he did all of last night.

Who among those three men (Clottey's best opponents coming in) could really hold a candle to what Pacquiao brings to the table? By the time Clottey fought him, Judah had gained the reputation of a six-round fighter. Margarito, devastating as he was at his best, is a slow, plodding guy. Cotto was damaged goods in the minds of many.

I'm not trying to say that Joshua Clottey is not a good fighter. He is. He remains one of the six best fighters in the welterweight division, a completely credible boxer and a tough out for most. But against Manny Pacquiao, he was in a fight he really couldn't win. He fought like it, too.

Joshua Clottey didn't lose credibility last night, necessarily, but made it clear that he's not a great fighter. And he's never going to be a better fighter than he is now. Clottey is rugged, durable, good defensively, and limited. We usually save "limited" for guys like John Duddy, but it applies to Clottey, too. Good as he is, he's only so good. And Manny Pacquiao made him look bad.

Tonight was easy for Manny Pacquiao, who dominated Joshua Clottey in Texas. (Photo by Ronald Martinez / Getty Images)

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Joshua Clottey said he'd be aggressive.

Joshua Clottey lied.

Manny Pacquiao (51-3-2, 38 KO) easily won a unanimous decision against a tentative, scared Clottey (35-4, 20 KO) on scores of 120-108, 119-109, 119-109. Bad Left Hook scored it 119-109 for Pacquiao.

Clottey just did not come to win this fight. In the second (the only round we gave Clottey), it looked like maybe it would be a fight. But it was not. Pacquiao landed 246/1231 (20%), to Clottey's 108/399 (27%). The fight was not even remotely close. Not even close. Miguel Cotto put up far more of a fight than did Clottey, who gave the fight away. Period. He gave the fight away.

Pacquiao now moves on to hopefully face the winner of the May 1 fight between Shane Mosley and Floyd Mayweather Jr., because there's little else left without another crazy move up in weight. Clottey was no challenge whatsoever for Pacquiao, who smiled, tapped gloves, and hugged his way through a genuinely easy contest. Clottey was begged by his corner to go for the KO, but never did. Not even once.

We'll have more in the next couple of days, but for now, all we have is Manny Pacquiao again dominating a fight. Clottey offered no resistance for Pacquiao, and all they did was smile at each other. Hooray!

Humberto Soto knocked David Diaz down twice en route to a unanimous decision win. (Photo by Jed Jacobsohn / Getty Images)

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Humberto Soto knocked down David Diaz in the first and twelfth rounds of a fairly close bout in the main co-feature of the night, winning a unanimous decision to win the WBC lightweight title.

Soto won on scores of 115-111, 117-109 and 117-109. Bad Left Hook scored it 115-111 for Soto.

Soto (51-7-2, 32 KO) managed to get past the physical strength and pressure of the limited Diaz (35-3-1, 17 KO). Diaz did his best to neutralize Soto's offense and was fairly successful, but Soto was just a more dynamic fighter.

It wasn't much of a performance from Soto, but he did win legitimately. Diaz remains as he was before the night, a gatekeeper more than a real contender, and a bit of a weird story in recent boxing history. It's still odd that he was a major titlist.

Our live coverage continues three posts down for the main event.

Join us for the main event in the comments of this post!

Alfonso Gomez forced Jose Luis Castillo to quit after five rounds. (Photo by Jed Jacobsohn / Getty Images)

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Alfonso Gomez dominated five rounds of rather dull action in the second fight of the televised Pacquiao-Clottey undercard, and then the 36-year-old Castillo quit between rounds, giving Gomez an easy win.

Gomez (22-4-2, 11 KO) pretty much doubled up the output of Castillo (60-10-1, 52 KO) over the fight. Castillo had nothing on his punches and no speed in there. He was out of options, and this looks like it could lead to his retirement. If he has to fight at welterweight and does this poorly against the likes of Gomez, he needs to. Quitting after five against Gomez is in no way any good. Period.

This doesn't really lift Gomez to a higher level he was on, but it's a decent W, and it may mean he's retired two action legends, which is more a footnote than anything.

Here's hoping Castillo is in a position to hang up the gloves, because this was really not a good performance in any way, shape or form. He looked even worse here than he did against Sebastian Lujan, and that's saying a lot.

Our live coverage for the undercard continues threeposts down, and after Soto-Diaz, we go to the main event.