The presence of legendary trainer Angelo Dundee in Oscar dela Hoya?s corner is no assurance of a Golden Boy victory over the younger, stronger and faster Manny Pacquiao on Dec. 6 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
Pacquiao?s chief trainer, Freddie Roach, issued a reaction yesterday to Golden Boy?s announcement that Dundee, the 87-year-old ex-trainer of Muhammad Ali and other great champions, has been tapped to help Dela Hoya.
Like the rest of the world, Roach looks up to Dundee, saying he has a lot of respect on theHall of Famer, and that he ?admires him (Dundee) as a man and a professional boxing trainer even to this day.?
But Roach said Dundee siding with Dela Hoya just won?t matter.
Roach, so confident that Pacquiao can beat Dela Hoya, was barely four years old when Dundee was training Ali for a shot at Sonny Liston and the world heavyweight crown in 1964.
Ali won that fight, named Fight of the Year by Ring Magazine, when Liston failed to answer the bell for the seventh round, and he became world champion at age 22, with Dundee, then 43, at his corner.
An article that came out of doghouseboxing.com yesterday also quoted the 48-year-old Roach as saying, ?No one is going to be able to help Oscar pull the trigger when he faces Manny on Dec. 6.?
Dundee was in the news last week when he said Pacquiao, at 29 almost six years younger but at 5-foot-6 almost four inches shorter than Dela Hoya, doesn?t stand a chance to win.
Then a few days later, it was announced that Dundee has become part of Team Dela Hoya, as consutant. He is tasked to help Dela Hoya and trainer Nacho Beristain with their strategy.
But it?s not only Roach who doubts that Dundee?s presence will matter.
Johnny Benz wrote in his doghouseboxing.com article that, ?bringing Dundee into camp will do nothing for Dela Hoya. In fact, I think it?s kind of silly. Dela Hoya has an excellent trainer in Nacho Beristain? why the need for Dundee as well.
?Does anyone really think Angelo Dundee in De La Hoya?s camp will make a lick of a difference? I certainly don?t. And no offense to the great Angelo Dundee… but this announcement from De La Hoya is hardly awe-inspiring,? Benz wrote.
Dundee, who turned 87 last August, sounded excited.
?I can?t tell you how pleased I am to be involved with this fight because this is THE fight. The names are recognizable? it?s scary,? Dundee, like the old trainer Mickey in the iconic movie ?Rocky,? was quoted as saying.
?Both of these guys are pros (but) the greater fighter is Dela Hoya? he will beat Pacquiao. Dela Hoya?s the guy who?s gonna beat Pacquiao,? he added in accepting his newest role.
Meanwhile, Ring Magazine, the Bible of Boxing, will feature an article in its December 2008 issue titled, ?The Golden Boy vs Pac-Man: 20 Experts Pick The Winner.?
In the article, 18 of the 20 experts (boxers, trainers and boxing writers) picked Dela Hoya as the winner whether by decision or by knockout. Only two of them went for Pacquiao.
Dela Hoya owns Ring Magazine.
