No one questions Hall of Fame trainer Freddie Roach?s bona fides. He?s a distinguished member of an endangered species, one of the few old-school trainers active today. He knows his business, just as he knows this game, inside out and upside down. He may have lost a step and sometimes speaks from the side of his mouth, but he is one of boxing?s good guys, a reliable, informed, savvy advocate for his fighters and our sport.
Roach met with the press the other day at the Wild Card Boxing Club to discuss the March 16 fight between his fighter Ruslan Provodnikov (22-1, 15 KOs), ranked #3 by the WBO, and the WBO welterweight champion Timothy Bradley (29-0, 12 KOs).
Since Bradley decisioned the lodestar of Roach?s stable, Manny Pacquiao, in June 2012 to win the WBO crown, it?s only natural that there might be some bad blood between Freddie and the champ.
?Ruslan has given me everything I have asked for in training,? said Roach. ?The fact that Ruslan has been Manny Pacquiao?s lead sparring partner his past two camps has given Ruslan an outstanding foundation from which to work. When Manny was preparing to defend his title against Bradley last spring I said any of Manny?s sparring partners could beat Bradley. Ruslan will to prove that on March 16.?
Freddie has made predictions in the past. Some proved accurate while others failed to pan out. But the fact that Provodnikov was lead sparring partner for Manny prior to his last two fights, both of which were disastrous, might not be seen as a positive omen.
? I?ve heard Bradley say he?s going to take the fight to Ruslan,? Roach continued. ?He said the same thing before his fight with Manny. And when he feels Ruslan?s power, like when he felt Manny?s, it?s going to be a remake of Forrest Gump. ?Run, Timmy, run!? This isn?t about Ruslan finishing what Manny started. It?s about duplicating it.?
Duplicating Pacquiao?s performance against Bradley would be a mistake. Fighting the last minute of each three-minute round is no way to win a fight. And there?s no rule that says Bradley, who is not known for his power, is required to stand there and trade. If Manny with his star power couldn?t catch a break, why would Provodnikov? Deep down inside Freddie knows that. We have to assume he?s spinning for the press. One can only hope that, when Freddie and Ruslan have their private moments, he?s not filling his fighter?s head with visions of sugar plums. Follow us on Twitter@boxing_com to continue the discussion
