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FOR
famed American trainer Freddie Roach, training Manny
Pacquiao in the Philippines is not a problem for as long
as there is one decent gym available.
BusinessMirror had an exclusive interview with Roach
recently in Cebu where the Hall-of-Fame guru related his
new-fangled experiences in training Pacquiao and in
dealing with people from all walks of life in the Queen
City of the South.
The
28-year-old Pacquiao has been criticized recently for
abandoning for the first time his efficient training
program based in Hollywood and choosing Cebu as his
training camp in preparing for a major bout early next
month.
“It’s a
choice of Manny to be here. Just give me a gym and a
good student which Manny is and I’ll be happy,” said
Roach. “A lot of people are saying that
training here in the
Philippines
is a mistake. We have everything we need so there should
be no excuses.”
Since he
started his campaign in the United States back in June
2001, the southpaw Pacquiao has exclusively trained at
the Wild Card Gym in Hollywood owned by Roach in
preparing for his bouts against Marco Antonio Barerra,
Juan Manuel Marquez, Erik Morales and other top Mexican
fighters.
Pacquiao
is slated to face Barrera in a rematch on October 6 at
the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, Nevada.
The
October slugfest is a rematch of their November 2003
encounter at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas, where
a then-heavy underdog Pacquiao pulled the rug from under
Barrera.
Pacquiao
battered Barrera from pillar to post until the Mexican’s
corner came to the rescue and entered the ring in the
11th round, signaling the start of the Filipino’s rise
to stardom.
“If it
makes him more comfortable and makes him happy I’m ok
with that. I believe in making a fighter happy,” said
Roach. “A happy fighter is a fighter that will work hard
for you. And one thing about Pacquiao, I have seen no
signs whatsoever of him slackening off a little bit.”
Entering
his third week of preparing for the Barrera return
encounter, Roach has been all praises for his ward even
though a viral infection stopped Pacquiao’s vigorous
regimen for two days last weekend.
“Well I
think obviously it’s bad timing of course. It’s not that
we can’t handle it but people get sick,” said Roach “But
right now he is in great training mode and he is working
really hard right now. I’ve never seen a fighter respond
so quickly like Manny. From first day of training and
two weeks later he is almost ready to fight.”
In fact,
Roach is already thinking about staging future training
camps in the Philippines should Pacquiao dish out a
remarkable performance against Barrera.
“Training in the
Philippines
will definitely be considered especially if we have a
good outing. Some fighters are very superstitious about
their fights and this is no exception,” revealed Roach.
Roach,
who currently has 14 fighters under his care back at the
Wild Card Gym, disclosed that training Pacquiao
exclusively will bring out the best in both of them and
concentrating in one fight will give them time to break
down their forthcoming match effectively.
Great
Shape
ALTHOUGH
Barrera is confident of a win, it is still imperative
for Pacquiao to be in great shape to eventually conquer
Barrera a second time.
“One
thing about Barrera, to beat him you have to be in great
shape because if you fight three minutes of every round
which Manny can do and does do, Barrera can’t keep that
pace up,” disclosed Roach.
Roach is
preparing Pacquiao for a real war inside the ring as the
well-liked American trainer expects Barrera to be rude
once the fight starts.
“I don’t
really believe in a dirty fighter. Maybe he might use
his head a little bit, he can be a physical guy also.
We’re getting ready for whatever may come,” said Roach.
For
their rematch, Roach said their preparation is very
similar and if ever, the only differences this time are
their roles because the first time they met, Pacquiao
was installed a heavy underdog against Barrera who at
that time was the star of the featherweight division.
“The
preparation is very similar because the first fight we
were getting ready for him he was the superstar at that
time. And I think the roles have switched now,” he
said.
“If you
let Barrera fight at a slow pace, and let him dictate
the pace of the fight, he will pick you apart with
counterpunches. We didn’t let that happen in the first
fight and we definitely won’t let that happen in the
rematch either.”
Roach
said the initial game plan will be the same though they
are now working on the finer tools and the little things
that Barrera is not going to expect.
No Part
III
ROACH
guaranteed Pacquiao will give his best in winning
against Barrera and that a mouthwatering third fight
should the Mexican win will not stand in Pacquiao’s way
of scoring a repeat.
“Pacquiao has some pride and he knows that his country
is behind him. There is no way he will ever think of
losing this fight and do a trilogy with Barrera.
Fighters are too proud for that,” assured Roach.
“I
wouldn’t let that happen and Manny’s not that type of
person. Losing sucks and I hate losing that is why I
push my fighters as hard as they can. When I push
Pacquiao he really works very hard.”
Roach
said Pacquiao has one of the greatest work ethics in
boxing and that the Filipino superstar is by far the
hardest working world champion he’s ever had.
If ever,
Roach is wary about how judges will score the bout
should it get close.
“I think
the only way these things may happen is when judges mess
things up because you know I’ll tell you in Vegas lately
we have one of the best commissions in the world today.
But I’ve seen some bad decisions in Vegas. And I’m
really surprised,” said Roach.
The
American guru said that it is probably normal that
whenever there is gambling involved, which Vegas is all
about, people will have to wonder about dubious
results.
Belts
nice but cash better
AS for
aiming for a world title belt with one of few credible
organizations, Roach said he still prefers to have one
or even all three major belts for Pacquiao.
The only
hindrance, Roach said, is that these organizations
impose ridiculous sanctioning fees that is unfair to
fighters like Pacquiao.
“Pacquiao is considered the best 130-lb fighter in the
world today and he’s the people’s champion. I think
Manny’s one of the few fighters out there who is bigger
than any belt,” said Roach. “Just like Oscar de la
Hoya, he doesn’t fight for the belt. Pacquiao’s the same
way. Everybody knows that if Pacquiao’s in the show,
it’s all action.”
But
Roach still maintains that becoming a unified champion
and be part of history is still in their minds though it
all depends on how their promoters negotiate in getting
a title fight.
The
thing is that may come, that may not. It will all depend
in the negotiations. You’ve got to consider that it’s
business also,” said Roach
Second
home
ROACH
admitted he enjoys staying in the Philippines and is
actually surprised at how Filipinos adore him as a star.
“It’s
really, really hard to go home. Being famous is not the
worst thing in the world and I experience that very much
here in the Philippines,” said Roach. “I’ve been telling
people in
America
if you haven’t been to the Philippines you should go
there once. I’m not saying anything good or bad but it’s
just different. The way of life here is just amazing.
One
thing that astonished Roach is the way Filipino drivers
have their way on the road.
“It’s
like there are no rules. It’s a give and take system but
there’s no accident and it’s amazing! It’s really a
great time for me and I have no problems being here in
the
Philippines,”
added Roach.
As for
taking care of business in the Philippines, Roach said
it was a choice arrived at for both him and Pacquiao.
“We made
the choice to train here and stay. It’s a joint effort
between both of us. You give me this and I give you
that,” said Roach “At first it didn’t work out because
of the crowd coming in and so forth. But since I put my
foot down, everything’s now in order.” |
