While Freddie Roach has been describing Oscar De La Hoya in interviews as somebody who can no longer pull the trigger and that Manny Pacquiao has genuine chances of scoring a knockout, the hard-nosed trainer with the Clark Kent glasses said he has a gut feeling the fight will go 12 rounds.
“If there?s a knockout, it will come,” said Roach from the Wild Card as he keenly awaits the arrival of Pacquiao in the US on Sept. 14. “Yeah, I think it?ll go 12 rounds.”
When Roach broached the idea that it is not very likely that neither of the two can score a knockout, the 48-year-old Boston native was jumping to the conclusion that Pacquiao would enter the fight in his best shape ever.
“We have to make Oscar fight for every second of every round,” said Roach, who began training the 29-year-old Pacquiao in mid-2001 when the Filipino southpaw was shopping for a new trainer.
“Manny must be ready to go 12 rounds if needed,” said Roach, who plans to see Pacquiao step on the official scales at the weighin at 142 lbs and 148 to 150 lbs when he answers the bell.
Reminded that De La Hoya will likely tip in at 147 lbs during the weighin and scale in at 158 to 160 lbs on fight night, Roach did not sound threatened.
“I am not concerned about that,” said Roach, who had the opportunity to train De La Hoya for three months last year in Puerto Rico.
While De La Hoya?s skills have eroded the last two years, his advantage in height and reach and him being a naturally bigger fighter than Pacquiao poses serious problems for somebody who hasn?t fought at the welterweight class of 147 lbs.
Pacquiao is making a jump from lightweight (135 lbs) ? where he has only fought once ? to welterweight.
Because of De La Hoya?s sheer size advantage, oddsmakers have installed the 35-year-old Mexican-American an 8-5 favorite to repulse Pacquiao?s challenge.
