MANILA, Philippines ? Freddie Roach doesn?t morph exactly into a mad scientist whenever he is experimenting on something for a fight down the road.
But after hours of mixing bubbling potions, volatile compounds and slimy fluids in his Wild Card laboratory in Los Angeles, the ring guru has actually come up with something pretty solid.
In search of somebody who will mimic Tim Bradley, Roach brought into being three clones as the decorated cornerman gets ready to equip Manny Pacquiao with ammo for a June 9 showdown with the muscle-bound Bradley at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
?I have three new guys,? Roach told the Bulletin at the lobby of the New World Hotel in Makati. ?They?re all short guys coming with their heads.?
Roach said he is a bit wary of Bradley?s style because ?he throws elbows and uses his head and is a very physical guy.?
Roach said the new batch of sparring partners somehow fight like the rugged and undefeated Bradley, who sports a 28-0 slate with 12 knockouts.
But only one of the three sparmates—Russian Ruslan Provodnikov–will be called in to bang bodies with Pacquiao for the initial phase of the buildup in Baguio City starting April 16.
Provodnikov holds a 21-0 record with 14 knockouts and is eagerly awaiting for Roach?s call so he could fly to Manila from his hometown in Beryozovo, which is ?high up in Siberia,? according to Roach.
?The two will join us when we get back to Los Angeles in early-May,? said the 52-year-old Roach.
Roach said he doesn?t mind setting up camp in Metro Manila and bypassing the City of Pines as long as he and Pacquiao get to work on their game.
But it seems that Team Pacquiao will make the Baguio trek where Roach expects his top fighter to be focused.
