Rafael Ramos to referee Pacquiao-Clottey

Michael Marley of the Examiner reports that veteran referee Rafael Ramos will be the third man in the ring when Manny Pacquiao defends his piece of the welterweight crown against Joshua Clottey on March 13 in Dallas.

Many of you might recall that Ramos was the referee for the 2009 Fight of the Year between Juan Manuel Marquez and Juan Diaz. He has never refereed any fight featuring Pacquiao or Clottey in the past.

For Pacquiao this will be the first fight of his since July 2006 that won't be refereed by Kenny Bayless, Tony Weeks or Vic Drakulich, an eight-fight streak rotating one of three referees. Pacquiao last fought in Texas in 2007, when he beat Jorge Solis in San Antonio at the Alamodome.

The best news, of course, is this means that oft-derided Texas referee Laurence Cole won't be the third man, which was feared by most the minute this fight was announced. Cole generally gets most of Texas' biggest fights, and his father, Dick Cole, is the head boxing administrator in Texas.

Ramos is a respected referee and allows for action if there's going to be action. It's a very good choice to say the least.