They say that if it isn’t broke, don’t fix it. While those words may ring true on many occasions it hasn’t stopped Manny Pacquiao and his team from changing up their routine in preparation towards their highly anticipated clash with WBO champion Miguel Cotto this coming November 14th.
Despite Pacquiao having been a staple at the Wild Card Gym in Los Angeles in recent years, the Filipino fighter has been tucked away in his home base of the Philippines as of late. With trainer Freddie Roach having now joined him recently, Team Pacquiao is again reunited, but in a completely different local. Whether or not the move will prove to be beneficial is yet to be seen but so far there has been much to say about Manny posting up at his homeland.
Some random news and notes about Team Pacquiao can be found below…
– Roach was said to have arrived in the Philippines this past Tuesday along with conditioning coach Alex Ariza. As reported by Harley F. Palangchao of the Manila Times, both men arrived in Baguio and immediately proceeded to the Sub Heads-Up Gym at the Cooyesan Plaza Hotel to watch over Pacquiao’s training.
Roach was impressed by the accuracy and sharpness that his fighter displayed during the second day of training. Pacquiao is said to do his morning runs at the nearby Burnham Park while his gym practice usually kicks off around 1 PM.
Roach also dismissed the notion of any worries regarding the contracted weight of 145 pounds for the Pacquiao-Cotto showdown. Roach insisted it wasn’t a problem and that it wouldn’t even be a concern if Cotto came in slightly heavier than Pacquiao, who Roach stated was the ‘best boxer alive today’.
– Dennis Principe of www.FightNews.com was also in camp with Cotto during Roach’s initial arrival.
“He was very sharp,” Roach said of Pacquiao. “If I didn’t know any better I would think he was in the gym for a month. His combinations are fast and his power is already there. We’re on the same page that we know how to fight Cotto.”
Despite initial reports weeks back that the famed trainer and Pacquiao weren’t seeing eye to eye on the seriousness that needed to come in regards to preparing for Cotto, Roach was surprised at how well Manny is beginning camp this go round.
“Without a doubt this is our best start,” Roach continued. “He’s now in great shape and I’m fine with that.”
While training, Roach and Pacquiao were said to focus heavily on counterpunching and footwork. Roach also claimed that coming to the Philippines to train was never a huge concern of his but that they still needed to be sure to head back to the States in proper time.
“That’s the minimum and we might go straight to Las Vegas and skip Wild Card because going from one gym to another gym and another gym gets a little bit crazy,” said Roach.
– I touched base with Mississippi Boxing Examiner Brad Cooney (www.examiner.com/x-23590-Mississippi-Boxing-Examiner) earlier tonight to gather his thoughts on the great connection that exists between Pacquiao and Roach in camp. Cooney, who runs www.8CountNews.com, is very close with Team Pacquiao and enlightened me with his thoughts on the camradarie that exists during a Manny training camp.
“It’s amazing to see him train in person,” Cooney says of Pacquiao. “I have been with Manny for 3 training camps now, and every time I see him I am more impressed. The one thing that really sticks out in my mind when I see him train in person is his speed and the power that he has. If you didn’t know him, and saw him in public, you would never comprehend just how fast and powerful he is.”
I asked Cooney further about his previous camps with Pacquiao at the Wild Card Gym and what the atmosphere was like in that camp. I also further questioned Cooney on his thoughts towards Team Pacquiao moving shop to the Philippines and what effect he feels it may have on their training.
“The atmosphere at Wild Card gym is like no other gym,” Cooney says without doubt. “You never know who’s going to walk into the place, but whoever it is, everyone is treated the same in there. A guy who works down the street at the convenience store gets the same treatment as a movie star does in there. Manny is so used to training in front of a crowd that I do not think it will me much of an impact training in the Philippines. The altitude in Baguio is very high, so it’s cooler unlike the hot weather in Manila. Freddie told me that they will come back to Los Angeles 4 weeks prior to the fight so that they can adjust to the time difference.”
In closing I asked the accomplished writer why exactly he feels Roach and Pacquiao have been so successful over the years. Opening up further, Cooney feels that the connection Pacquiao and Roach have is something that is much deeper than most trainers and fighters experience.
“The chemistry between Freddie and Manny is more like a father/son relationship than it is a trainer/fighter relationship,” Cooney says. “The obvious success that they have enjoyed and ultimately the secret to their success comes from a genuine care they have for one another that nobody can take away.”
– On a side note, Roach hasn’t been shy about his opinions of the recent Floyd Mayweather-Juan Manuel Marquez bout that took place this past weekend in Las Vegas. Mayweather dominated the contest throughout, but not nearly enough to impress Roach.
The trainer went on to say that Mayweather isn’t the ‘bravest’ of fighters but conceded that young Floyd does have a style that is hard to figure out. Roach believes that Pacquiao would have a great chance at defeating Mayweather due to his ‘power and pressure’.
– Pacquiao is to begin heavy sparring next week, with undefeated Jr. Middleweight Shawn Porter serving as the chief combatant. Porter is from Akron, Ohio and at 21 years of age he sports a 10-0 record with 8 knockouts as well as being a 2007 Golden Gloves champion. The most notable name on his ledger is well traveled journeyman Sammy Sparkman, whom he beat via disqualification in his eighth fight this past April. Roach believes Sparkman will be able to mimic Cotto’s style accordingingly in preparation of the bout. Porter’s bout with Eloy Suarez can be seen on the video below.
