World-renowned trainer Freddie Roach is slated to fly in Sunday morning from Los Angeles to oversee the crucial phase of Ring Magazine featherweight champion Manny Pacquiao’s training for his December 11 showdown against IBF no. 4 super bantamweight Fahsan 3K Battery.
Roach, however, was not at all too happy when he learned of the news that Pacquiao was shooting a TV reality show in the midst of training for the fight against the Thai champ.
In an interview, Roach warned that unless Pacquiao gets down to work right away especially for his February 26 rematch with WBA/IBF champion Juan Manuel Marquez, he would most likely lose. Marquez has already started light training since he beat Mexican Oscar Salido in a tune-up fight.
Pacquiao said he had sparred six rounds with RP lightweight champion Fernando Montilla and three rounds with Christopher Saluday last Friday. He disclosed he would “pick him (Roach) up at the airport and we will fly back to Davao” to resume training at the Almendras Gym.
Roach, however, indicated he would convince Pacquiao to train in Manila after learning of security concerns as well as the dilapidated gym and the lack of decent training facilities in Davao City compared to the facilities of the world class Wild Card Gym in BF Homes, Paranaque which was also a short distance from Pacquiao’s home.
Pacquiao claimed he was “just training and not sparring today” and would resume sparring on Monday. Although Pacquiao said he would arrive in Manila from Davao on Sunday night and fetch Roach at the airport on Monday morning, it was learned that Pacquiao sneaked out of Davao City with his trainer/sidekick Buboy Fernandez and arrived in Manila on Friday after which he motored to Subic Bay to shoot the ABS-CBN reality boxing show alongside action star Robin Padilla.
When contacted, Pacquiao admitted that he was in Subic with Fernandez and claimed since there was no sparring scheduled over the weekend at the Almendras Gym he decided to train in Subic. He also deliberately avoided any mention about the taping of his reality TV boxing show.
Meanwhile, Pacquiao was said to have left WBC founding secretary general Rudy Salud crest-fallen after the latter received a call from Pacquiao past 11:00 p.m. on Friday and asked the lawyer-sportsman to lend him a couple of roosters so he could have an entry in a derby in Cavite scheduled for late November and early December. Salud refused and instead told Pacquiao to concentrate on his training for the fight against Fahsan 3K Battery and the crucial rematch with Marquez.
