On Thursday night at the Tachi Palace Hotel & Casino in Lemoore, California, Freddie Roach leads his only female fighter, Ana Julaton, into an eight-round bout against Dominga Olivo for the vacant WBC International Super Bantamweight title.
Roach, one of the most recognizable faces in the sport of boxing, took time out to speak to 15rounds.com from the West-Wind School in Berkeley, California, where he is finishing up preparations with Julaton for her upcoming bout.
Q: How is Ana looking in camp thus far?
Freddie Roach: Very good. She is in good shape. I just got in and we worked yesterday. We did eight rounds on the mitts. We know we have a real tough girl in front of us, but I think we can out box her. She is doing real well.
Q: Her opponent changed recently from Donna Biggers to Dominga Olivo. Does the late opponent change effect your preparation much?
FR: Just a little bit in the strategy of the fight. I like this opponent a little bit better than the last one. The last one was a little bit of a mover, and this one more comes to us. I think that is suited a little bit better for what Ana likes to do.
Q: The last fight, against Johana Mendez, was a draw. How did you assess her performance last time out?
FR: She fought a very good boxer, a good counter puncher. She was a crafty girl. Ana looked good in the fight and the cut didn?t help us. They banged heads and [Ana] had a pretty bad cut. Because of that alone I think is why we did not win the fight. Sometimes it looks worse than it is. I thought Ana pulled it out at the end, but it was a very close fight, so no complaints there. It was a great experience for her I feel, and that is what she needs.
Q: Ten days prior to the Mendez fight, Julaton scored a first-round knockout. Do you feel having two fights so close together had any negative effect on her, even though the first one was over quickly?
FR: Being busy is always good for a fighter I feel. Her style gave us some problems, but we learned from the fight and we will do better with that style next time.
Q: Talk before her last fight was that she was being aimed for a world title bout before the end of the year. Do you see that has a possibility with the way she has been progressing?
FR: A lot depends on what happens Thursday night. If she wins Thursday night she will be headed in that direction. It will be an International title for her and I believe she would be fighting for a world title shortly after that.
Q: The big story in boxing right now is obviously talk of an Oscar De La Hoya-Manny Pacquiao fight and whether or not it is going to come to fruition. You are a big part of the storyline, having trained De La Hoya two fights back and having Manny for the last several years. Do you see that fight taking place?
FR: It is hard to say right now. The 70-30 split is in my mind a fair split because of Oscar?s popularity. Manny has popularity also, but I just feel that at 70-30 the fight is so big. It is not just what the win will do for Manny Pacquiao, it is what the win will do for his career. There will be nothing but mega fights from that point on. I know what Oscar has, I know what he can bring to the table and I know Pacquiao can beat him. So I hope the fight does happen. We?ll see soon.
Q: Does your confidence in Manny stem from what you saw of De La Hoya while you trained him?
FR: Yes of course. He is not what he once was. He has trouble pulling the trigger. He does have trouble with southpaws, which has nothing really to do with when I was training him. Pacquiao?s style and the in-and-out motion and his speed is, I think, too much for Oscar at this time.
Q: Would Oscar?s size concern you at all?
FR: On fight night, Oscar would outweigh Manny by about ten pounds. That doesn?t bother me whatsoever. Oscar has one advantage, his size, but Manny has speed, power, endurance and youth. He has a lot more things in his favor. I think is not an easy fight of course, but a very winnable fight for Pacquiao.
Q: You train a lot of Golden Boy fighters and during your camp, De La Hoya was quoted as saying it was the best one he ever had, but ended up going back with Floyd Mayweather Sr. for his next fight. Is everything ok between you and Oscar?
FR: Yeah we are ok. I have told the truth and he is a little upset with my comments and so forth. The thing is I just have the better fighter I think right now. It is not personal, it is just business. I am going to do whatever I can do to make sure my fighter wins the fight. I am going to take advantage of my experiences with Oscar. If it comes down to the gameplan, I think we are going to come up with a much better gameplan, because I know I am a lot smarter than Floyd Mayweather.
Mario Ortega Jr. can be reached at [email protected]
