GRAPEVINE, Texas ?He has treaded dangerous grounds against Miguel Cotto and Joshua Clottey and easily survived.
Will Manny Pacquiao again test the waters against Antonio Margarito on November 13?
The answer will pop out right on fight night at the Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
?I don?t know if I?ll do it (test Margarito?s power), but it?s part of the game,? said Pacquiao, who worried fight fans and sent shrivers down Freddie Roach?s spine when he allowed the bigger Cotto to take clear shots during their earlier battles.
Cotto banged Pacquiao hard, to the body and the head, while Clottey pounded away at his midsection.
Pacquiao absorbed the full impact of the punches, but to the surprise of boxing pundits, he didn?t flinch nor wobble.
It was part of Pacquiao?s ploy. He got hurt, of course, but Pacquiao pretended the punches didn?t have any lasting effect.
The demonstration of Pacquio?s ability to absorb strong punches so frustrated both Cotto and Clottey that they eventually went into retreat mode.
Cotto was eventually stopped early in the 12th round while Clottey wound up standing, saved by his shell-like defensive armor.
Like Pacquiao, Margarito has beaten both Cotto, by 11th round stoppage, and Clottey, by unanimous decision, so he also packs a mean whallop.
Fact is, Margarito has knocked out 27 of his 38 victims, although many of them were through flurries of punches.
But Pacquiao has a penchant for courting disaster.
Even during sparring sessions, he sometimes lets his partner bang away to gauge his toughness. Sometimes, he does it to lure his attacker to open up.
With Pacquiao, an opponent will never know. Until, it?s too late to react or counter.
