NEW YORK–Their already swollen pockets might get mad at them but both Manny Pacquiao and Coach Freddie Roach, prized pupil and revered boxing mentor, are kind of, sort of rooting for Vicious Victor Ortiz in his Sept. 17 challenge against undefeated superstar Floyd Mayweather, Jr.
I said quietly rooting for, not predicting an upset and certainly not betting on a shocking result in which “Money” is reduced to a mere 41-1 pro record.
“You cannot underestimate Victor,” Pacquiao told me Tuesday morning before his presser with Juan Manuel Marquez at Chelsea Piers, the sports playpen which hugs the Hudson River in midtown Manhattan. “Victor is a real puncher and there is a big chance for Victor to win this fight. Oh, yeah, there is.”
Roach is similarly optimistic about how the 24 year old who upset then unbeaten Andre Berto will fare on the big stage in Las Vegas.
“We know Victor Ortiz and he is strong,” Roach said. “I am not counting him out. He worked eight rounds in sparring against Manny, you know.”
