MANILA, Philippines - Not known for backing down on his word, trainer Freddie Roach reasserted his prediction of a late knockout victory by Manny Pacquaio.
"We fight the right fight, I think we can break down [Oscar de la Hoya's] body down. I think we can get him. Yes I do," Roach said minutes after Team Pacquiao finally set foot on Las Vegas late Monday evening (Tuesday afternoon, Manila time) following a four-hour drive from Los Angeles.
Roach has been on a verbal offensive against de la Hoya even way before The Dream Match was announced, beginning by saying that Pacquiao would win because de la Hoya could "no longer pull the trigger".
He later rubbed the insult further by predicting that Pacquiao will stop de la Hoya in the ninth round.
That belief hasn't wavered.
"Oscar has a great chin, but the thing is, he's weak in the body. That's where he's always hurt. [Felix] Trinidad hurt him. [Bernard] Hopkins knocked him out," Roach said minutes before he would call it a day.
Pacquiao's work begins on Tuesday (Wednesday, Manila time) by running in the early morning - a regimen he will undergo until Thursday. Afternoons will later be devoted to training at the IBA Gym from 1 to 3 p.m.
Pacquiao will stop the workouts depending on how much he weighs in two days, Roach said. The 12-round bout at the MGM Grand Hotel is set at the 147lb limit.
"Ideally, I want Manny on the scale about 144lbs, 145lbs and going into the ring 150lbs at the maximum," he said.
The last time he tipped the scales, Pacquiao came in at 148 pounds, just enough for him to enjoy a good meal consisting of nilagang baka, tinola, chopsuey, pansit, escabeche, kaldereta, mechado and a sprinkling of fruits shortly after arriving in Las Vegas on board his Lincoln Navigator.
Garbed in a striped long-sleeved polo and blue jeans, Pacquiao was in a jolly mood when he entered his posh suite located at the 62nd floor of the Mandalay Bay Hotel, where the entire Team Pacquiao is billeted.
After spending time talking with close friends and relatives, Pacquiao finally went off to his classy bedroom with pregnant wife Jinkee just before midnight, well beyond the 9 p.m. curfew imposed in his suite.
"We're finally here. A couple of days away, it's getting close. We're ready," Roach said. - GMANews.TV
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