LOS ANGELES ? The only way Shane Mosley can beat Manny Pacquiao is to fight dirty, the Filipino?s trainer said before a sparse crowd at the Wild Card Boxing Club on a hot Wednesday afternoon.
?He?ll get dirty, he?ll get rough but it won?t matter. That?s the only way he can win this fight,? said Roach, his red shirt soaked in sweat as he tries to pin Pacquiao on the ropes, mimicking what Mosley might resort to on May 7 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
Roach was beaming with confidence after presiding over Pacquiao?s intense training session that was seen by a select number of media members from Manila and a Showtime crew that is documenting their every move for its Fight Camp 360 program.
Even Pacquiao himself is awed with what he had done the past six-and-a-half weeks of buildup, a testament to him not taking Mosley for granted despite the widespread belief that all he has to do is show up on fight night and he?ll win the fight.
?No way (I am taking him lightly),? uttered Pacquiao as he bounced around the ring, flashing a smile then contorting his face when he unleashed his patented lightning-quick combinations in the air.
Pacquiao pointed out that contrary to popular belief, Mosley remains a livewire foe, somebody who still has what it takes to shock the world owing to his vast experience against topnotch opposition.
?I reported for training camp one week early for this fight so that shows that I am serious and not taking him lightly,? said the 32-year-old Pacquiao, who spent three weeks in Baguio City in the Philippines before relocating here early this month for the final and most crucial phase of the preparation.
In fact, Pacquiao revealed that he did his longest roadwork in this training camp, logging in one hour and ten minutes on Tuesday morning, to the delight of his handlers.
Roach said he doesn?t have anymore concerns except for one thing: Trying to slow down his fighter as they are now tapering off.
?It?s hard to slow him down,? said Roach, who had to give in to Pacquiao?s request that they go one more round in the mitts.
