By David Berry: Isn’t this what we expected? Manny Pacquiao (51-3-2, 38 KO), as planned, blitzed through Joshua Clottey (35-4-20 KO) on Saturday night; another opponent left in the dust. Despite Bob Arum’s best efforts to sell this fight on its own merits, the end result was never in question. The only real question going into Saturday night, and the only one that remained afterward, was whether or not a mega fight with Floyd Mayweather Jr. (40-0, 25 KO) could finally be inked when it was over, provided Mayweather can get through Shane Mosley (46-5, 39 KO) on May 1.

And while Pacquiao did his part on Saturday, Clottey did his as well. He stood up to his reputation as a skilled defensive fighter who’s incapable of pulling the trigger in his biggest fights, rendering himself a well guarded punching bag for each of the painstaking 12 rounds. Throwing just 399 punches to Pacquiao’s 1,231, it can be easily argued that Clottey did a better job of losing this fight than Pacquiao did of actually winning it. To be fair, Pacquiao looked brilliant in his offensive attack, varying and improving his tactics even as the fight moved in to the later rounds. But Clottey did a fine job of welcoming the fire by refusing to return it, absorbing a ratio of three punches for every one that he returned.

However, even with such a low punching output, Clottey exposed perhaps the one remaining flaw in Pacquiao’s game – defense, particularly against the jab and uppercut. When thrown, Clottey landed those two punches with alarming ease. And while Pacquiao’s chin has proven increasingly durable as he’s gone up in weight, his bruised cheekbones told the story of a fighter who still gets hit too often. To his credit, though, no fighter has been able to counter his offensive output enough for it to matter.

So while the world awaits the outcome of Mayweather vs. Mosley, we’re left with 6 weeks to do what fight fans and scribes always do – speculate about what’s next. Despite his reputation as an avoided fighter, Clottey has had his fair shake at each of the top welterweights in the division, and has fallen short against each of them. So what’s next for “The Grand Master”? Despite proving that he’s a step below the elite fighters in the division, Clottey remains a dangerous opponent for a vast majority of the fighters in his division. While a trip up to junior middleweight can’t be ruled out, Clottey still has plenty of options at welterweight. He represents a great measuring stick for fighters looking to improve their standing in the division. Names like Kermit Cintron and Luis Collazo come to mind. Andre Berto, the current WBC Welterweight Champion, represents a tough opponent, and could provide another shot at a title strap, as well. At the moment, though, Collazo may be his best option, with Cintron and Berto locked in for fights against Paul Williams and Carlos Quintana, respectively.

As for Pacquiao, It’s obvious that he has a wide variety of options, as he’s technically still a champion in two weight classes (junior welterweight and welterweight). The names Valero, Bradley and Marquez have been thrown around, but none will come close to satisfying the world’s appetite for a clash with Mayweather. Pacquiao has solidified his legacy to the point that only a Mayweather fight can enhance it. If a fight can’t be made with Mayweather, then there is no greater time than now for Pacquiao to ride off into the sunset, his mind and body intact.

Of course, reality is rarely shaped the way that we expect it to be. On May 1, though, the picture will begin to come into focus.

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