As Manny Pacquiao?s World turns?
Coach Freddie Roach sits by the telephone waiting for a call from Boss Manny. Fighter and pupil have not conversed for over two months, an unusually long spell of no communication.
Pacman continues to let inmates, particularly the know nothing Michael Koncz, run the asylum.
Pacquiao seems to have chosen the leafy, cool climes of Baguio in the Philippines as his preferred place to begin a grueling, eight week training camp for the Nov. 14 mega bout against loaded for bear Miguel Angel Cotto.
Roach, meanwhile, sitting in Los Angeles, travels over to Las Vegas for a funeral service for his brother, ex-pro boxer Joey Roach. The 47 year old Joey, a highly successful operator of a call center operation in Nevada, will be buried in the Hyde Park section of Boston next to the family patriarch and former New England featherweight champion Paul Roach.
The esteemed trainer, continually ?dissed? by the ingenuous Koncz (?it?s better to handle this internally,? Koncz told one reporter), wants to explain to Megamanny why a better choice to launch real training after the New York-Puerto Rico-San Francisco-LA-San Diego press junket would be the mountainous region of Toluca, Mexico.
Roach fondly recalls how his late brother got cut in a pro fight by Mauro Diaz and decided to retire. And how he boxed Olympic gold medalist Paul Gonzalez, an Oscar de la Hoya type stylish boxer out of East LA. ?Joey was the one boxing Roach brother who could punch, really punch,? Roach told me Tuesday morning. ?He was the one of us who could really knock you out.?
The trainer is completely fed up with the interference of others in the Pacman camp in matters of boxing. Roach believes he and Manny need to have a serious sitdown or phone discussion pronto, in a hurry and right away.
Freddie remembered with obvious pride brother Joey?s financial success after moving from Massachusetts to join he and brother ?Pepper? in Vegas.
?Joey had 130 employees, he owned a Ferrari and a Bentley. He was a good, smart businessman. I was truly proud of him and so happy for his success.?
Promoter Bob Arum told me late Monday night that Pacman told him he was going to reach out to Roach immediately to express condolences to his trainer.
As of about 8:30 am Pacficic time Tuesday, Roach said he had no word from his fighter.
Roach was preparing to rush to LV to give solace and support to his mother, Barbara, and his siblings in their hour of grief.
