Joshua Clottey is heading back to the boxing ring on September 22, 2019 in Akropong, Ghana, he takes on Tanzanian fighter Azizi Mponda.
Clottey, 41, is a former IBF welterweight champion and his biggest fight came in 2010 when he was given a once in a lifetime opportunity to take on the number one pound for pound fighter Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao at the Dallas Cowboys football stadium in Arlington, Texas.
The fight was on HBO Pay-Per-View and it was the first time the Ghanaian boxer every headlined a PPV event and it was the first boxing event at the Jerry Jones owned stadium. The event drew a crowd of over 50,000 and it did over 700,000 PPV Buys.
Unfortunately for Clottey he lost a wide unanimous decision to the smaller Filipino southpaw. Clottey barely threw punches during the 12-round WBO welterweight championship bout and mostly covered up with a double guard as Pacquiao threw combo after combo for the duration of the fight.
The fight was considered boring and non-competitive. Many viewers questioned if Clottey came to fight or just collect a paycheck.
After the bout, Clottey told reporters in Ghana that he had diarrhea from bad Okra in Banku Stew he ate the night before. He said he had to constantly use the restroom due to an upset stomach and it affected his performance on fight night.
During the press conference for his upcoming September 22 bout with Azizi Mponda, Clottey told media he would like to get a second chance at Manny Pacquiao and said he would only charge one Ghana Cedi which is Ghanaian currency to take the rematch.
“I will charge one Ghana Cedi to fight [Manny] Pacquiao, no money,” declared Clottey.
“If I go to the ring and the performance is no good, then I get no pay, but if the performance is okay, I get pay.”
Clottey who has been haunted by the loss to Pacquiao and was ridiculed by his own countryman for his poor showing, wants the rematch to show he wasn’t himself that night and can do much better against the current WBA welterweight champion.
“I wanted that [Pacquiao] fight so badly. I wanted to build back that image. If the rematch comes I will be very happy.”
Manny Pacquiao, 40, is currently in the Philippines working as a full-time Senator. He is coming off a huge split decision victory over a prime 30-year-old Keith Thurman, and his next fight could be the winner of the Errol Spence Jr. vs. Shawn Porter IBF/WBC welterweight unification bout in September.
