BAGUIO CITY ? Manny Pacquiao is “100 percent” in the punch mitts session but is only “50 percent” in sparring, top trainer Freddie Roach said on Tuesday.
But Roach remains confident that when they head back to the Wild Card in Hollywood, the Filipino pound-for-pound king would be in his element, punishing just about anyone put in front of him in sparring as the buildup for his Nov. 13 battle with Antonio Margarito takes a major step.
“We’ll get by,” said Roach just before Pacquiao sparred with Glen Tapia and Michael Medina behind closed doors, allowing only a few, like Hall of Fame promoter Bob Arum, to watch the action.
Roach said this week and the coming week in the US would be “a big week for sparring” and the “toughtest two weeks of training camp.”
“We are getting better and better,” said the 50-year-old Roach, who still believes his fighter will have too much speed and ammunition to stave off the Mexican’s challenge.
Team Pacquiao is slated to leave for the US this Saturday nigh
