Manny Pacquiao took his 10-round sparring session lightly on Saturday, prompting trainer Freddie Roach to give an unscheduled "pep talk" during the pound-for-pound king's final workout in the country leading to the November 14 battle with Miguel Cotto.
"He was just playing around too much," said Roach. "This is the reason why I don't like training in Manila because there's just too much distractions." "I was telling him not to lose focus," said Roach.
While things such as Saturday's incident had happened a few times in the past, Roach still was a tad worried that Pacquiao didn't do what he had expected him to do to his sparring partners – super-welterweight Shawn Porter and super-lightweight Urbano Antillon – before a sizable crowd at a gym in Mandaluyong owned and operated by ex-world champion Gerry Penalosa.
There were flashes of brilliance of course from Pacquiao, but it wasn't the kind of thing that Roach wanted to see from somebody who is a few weeks away from the toughest fight of his life.
To remedy the problem, Roach said he will make a major change in the roster of sparring partners.
Porter will be retained but Roach said Raymund Serrano and Ray Beltran will be tapped to work with Pacquiao beginning this Tuesday, the second day of Pacquiao's training at the Wild Card Boxing Club in Hollywood.
"Manny's become too friendly with his sparring partners," said Roach.
Expected to be cut are Antillon, Jose Luis Castillo, and Danny Escobar, who joined Porter in Pacquiao's Baguio City training camp for several weeks.
Despite the so-so showing, Roach remains upbeat they can get the job done.
"As far as his physical shape is concerned, no problem. I just like him to be mentally tough and focused," added Roach.
Pacquiao had to fulfill a bevy of commitments right after the workout but he still managed to spend some time with his four kids — Queen Elizabeth, Princess, Jimuel, and Michael — before going to work.
"I will miss them a lot," said Pacquiao, who was scheduled to take a late Saturday night flight to Los Angeles.
MANILA, Philippines - Freddie Roach will do anything for his fighter, and that includes throwing the opponent off.
Miguel Cotto, however, isn't buying any of his statements.
"I have never seen a fighter win with the talking of his trainer," Cotto, who's just 20 days away from a fight with Manny Pacquiao, told Puerto Rican paper El Nuevo Dia yesterday.
"So, I want to tell Freddie Roach, Miguel Cotto and his team do not care. The important thing here is that I'm not going to see Freddie Roach's face in the ring. I will be there with Manny Pacquiao," Cotto added.
Roach is playing mind games with Cotto the way he'd played them with Pacquiao's most recent opponents.
He did it with Juan Manuel Marquez by trading harsh words with his counterpart, Nacho Beristain, with Oscar dela Hoya through his famous "can't-pull-the-trigger" battlecry, and with Ricky Hatton when he told Pacquiao he'd be "disappointed if the fight lasts more than three rounds."
"I'd do anything to try and throw them off," said Roach, who created a stir just days before the Dela Hoya fight when he started questioning the Golden Boy's hand wraps.
This time, so close to the fight, Roach is saying Pacquiao is capable of "knocking out Cotto in the first round."
"He can say anything, try anything to draw the attention and try to be the hero of the whole promotion. But on Nov. 14, we will see who talks in the end, the ones who did all the talking or the ones who stayed silent," said Cotto.
The WBO welterweight champion from Puerto Rico is the silent one.
He opened camp a couple of weeks ahead of Pacquiao, and stayed in there the whole time, eating, breathing and thinking of nothing but Pacquiao. Chances of watching Cotto as he trains in the gym are slim and none.
In contrast, Pacquiao is always there to see, except for sparring days when Roach would rather close the doors. But otherwise, on the road, in the gym and inside his suite, he's always in the company of friends, of fans.
Roach said Pacquiao is down to 156.5 lb, which is just a little over the catchweight of 150, and is now 90 percent fit and ready to fight.
Pacquiao was to spar 10 rounds yesterday at the Gerry Peñalosa Gym in Mandaluyong City, was scheduled to host dinner with close friends and team members, and at 10 p.m. should board the PAL plane to Los Angeles.
In the long flight to LA, one that may take 12 hours and a little over 7,000 miles, Roach can always think of something new to say.
MANILA -- Welterweight champ Miguel Cotto is steering away from coach Freddie Roach's "psy-war" tactics as his November 14 fight date with Pacquiao draws near.
Cotto, who will defend his World Boxing Organization (WBO) title against Pacquiao at the MGM Grand Arena in Las Vegas, said he isn't buying any of Roach's statements that he'll get knocked out in the first round of the fight.
"I have never seen a fighter win with the talking of his trainer," Cotto said in a report by PhilStar.com.
"So, I want to tell Freddie Roach, Miguel Cotto and his team do not care. The important thing here is that I'm not going to see Freddie Roach's face in the ring. I will be there with Manny Pacquiao," he added.
Roach, who admitted "throwing off" some of Pacquiao's opponents with his statements, said his prized ward is perfectly capable of knocking out the Puerto Rican champ in just one round.
"He can say anything, try anything to draw the attention and try to be the hero of the whole promotion. But on Nov. 14, we will see who talks in the end, the ones who did all the talking or the ones who stayed silent," said Cotto.
Pacquiao holds 'despedida'
Pacquiao, meanwhile, held a farewell party on Saturday before heading to the US for the remainder of his preparations against Cotto.
The despedida party was attended by his relatives, friends and several political personalities.
Among those present were Environment Secretary Lito Atienza, Deputy National Security adviser Luis "Chavit" Singson, election lawyer Romy Macalintal and former Manila representative Miles Roces.
Pacquiao also received an oil painting depicting him and Britain's Ricky Hatton, whom he knocked out in two rounds last May.
The pound-for-pound king was expected to board a Philippine Airlines flight to Los Angeles 10 p.m. Saturday.
Manny Pacquiao, known as PacMan to his followers, is probably the best pound-for-pound boxer in the world. Trained by the esteemed Freddie Roach, Pacquiao, 30, has won world titles in four weight divisions.
But Pacquiao's interests extend far beyond the ring. In the Philippines, Pacquiao dabbles in acting and music (he has had two platinum albums) and even ran for a congressional seat in 2007. Pacquiao lost the election but said in an interview with The New York Times last month that he planned to run for office again.
In May, Pacquiao knocked off Ricky Hatton, the World Boxing Association welterweight champion, in the second round. He next fights against Miguel Cotto of Puerto Rico, the World Boxing Organization welterweight champion, on Nov. 14 in Las Vegas. GREG BISHOP
Q. What made you decide to run again for political office?
A. I want to help the people who are suffering. I came from a family who lived in poverty in the Philippines, and a lot of people there are very poor.
Q. You turned pro at 16. How much did you make in your first fight?
A. The purse was like 1,000 pesos, or about $20. I was excited. Before, I dreamed about being a good fighter. I was not looking for money when I started.
Q. Why did you begin boxing?
A. I started boxing after I ran away from home, when I was 14 years old, because we were very poor. I was helping my parents to get money, helping them to buy food every day.
Q. What were some of your jobs?
A. I sold doughnuts on the street. I would buy the bread, the flour and sell them to make money.
Q. Do you follow mixed martial arts?
A. I don't watch it. It's very different from boxing.
Q. We heard that the Philippines shuts down when you fight, that crime plummets and everybody watches. What is that like?
A. Every fight, millions of Filipinos are hoping for my victory.
Q. Bob Arum, the Top Rank boxing promoter, said you are the welfare system in the Philippines.
A. It's hard. But that's why I want to help them. I want to help the people there. And I have the ability to do that.
Q. Which boxers inspired you?
A. Sugar Ray Leonard, Roy Jones Jr. I watched Oscar De La Hoya fight in the Olympics. He won the gold medal there. And I thought, I could do that.
By Manuel Perez: I really hope that that Manny Pacquiao will do well next month against World Boxing Organization welterweight champion Miguel Cotto on November 14th, but I can't see things working out that way. Pacquiao is too small and limited to do much against the powerful Cotto and this fight is going to get out of hand early on. You can say that the hype bubble for Pacquiao will be burst on November 14th, when Cotto gives Pacquiao a beating that he and his loyal legion of adoring boxing fans won't soon forget.
They say speed equals power, and that may be true. But speed doesn't mean as much when a fighter is tiny compared to the other one and doesn't have the ingrained power. Cotto you see is just bigger, more rugged and inherently more powerful than the little Pacquiao. In my boxing days, I was always able to wipe the deck with littler fighters than me – always. It didn't matter if they were faster than me, I was able to beat them up with my superior size. And this is what the main problem will be for Pacquiao against Cotto. Pacquiao will be too little and his power shots won't have any effect on Cotto. Pacquiao's shots may be powerful to fighters in the lower weight class or ones that are washed up and nearly defenseless, but against an talented able bodied fighter like Miguel Cotto, Pacquiao will be like a small insect flying around Cotto's head.
Once it becomes clear that Pacquiao doesn't have the power to hurt Cotto, look for Pacquiao to start taking terrible punishment to the head and body. Pacquiao has shown problems with taking body shots in the past, and I expect that Cotto will cause Pacquiao problems in their fight next month.
I thought Pacquiao was a halfway decent fighter when he was fighting at the lower weight classes, but he started to experience problems when he met up with Juan Manuel Marquez in 2004. Marquez out-boxed Pacquiao for 11 rounds and had to settle for a draw in that fight. I had Marquez winning easily. Pacquiao would later lose to Erik Morales, and then have more problems against Marquez in their rematch last year.
By this time, Pacquiao was very popular with the boxing public for some reason and ended up winning a controversial 12 round split decision over Marquez. I had Marquez winning by four rounds in that fight, and many other boxing fans felt that Marquez won the fight.
So, Pacquiao finds himself against one of the best – not the best through – welterweights in the division in facing Cotto. Pacquiao will start to have problems starting in the first round when it becomes clear that he doesn't have the talent – or power – to compete with Cotto. Pacquiao's head will be ripped one way and then the other with each combination that tags him in the face.
The scar tissue over Pacquiao's eyes will tear apart early, leaking his blood down across his face, into his eyes and all over his white trunks. Pacquiao, at the sight of his own blood, will immediately become weak and pliable, just as he was in his first fight against Erik Morales after he sustained a cut. Cotto will then use Pacquiao as a punching dummy for the next seven or eight rounds, batting his face a dark red, further busting up his eyes and knocking his nose askew.
Pacquiao will soon look like a fighter who was dragged off a bloody battlefield from a terrible war, as every inch of his face will be covered with blood and swollen purple. Freddie Roach, Pacquiao's longtime trainer, will advise Manny that the jig is up, recommending that the fight be stopped.
Pacquiao will agree with Roach and allow the bout to be stopped in between rounds seven and eight with Pacquiao still on his stool with a look of anguish on his face. It will be hard to make out his facial emotions because his face will be distorted by then and look like one big red dot from all the blood and swelling.
MANILA, Philippines — Manny Pacquiao leaves for Los Angeles today (Saturday) with trainer Freddie Roach rating the pound-for-pound champion in "90 percent" shape as he hunts for Miguel Cotto's welterweight crown on Nov. 14 in Las Vegas.
"Manny is 90 percent now," Roach told reporters during the Scoop forum on Friday. "We have handled the distractions very well."
Pacquiao will head to Los Angeles weighing 146.5 pounds, just 1½ lb above the catch weight of the fight with still several training days ahead of him.
"I have to feed Manny five times a day in training camp to keep his weight on purposely," Roach said. "He has to drink three protein shakes a day. He hates the protein shakes."
Roach expects Pacquiao to be only 140 lb during the weigh-in and says the boxer could way 148 or 149 lb during the fight—which will be for Cotto's WBO welterweight belt.
Roach also warned that he'll call the fight off if Cotto comes in beyond the regular welterweight limit of 147 lb.
"Our limit for Cotto is just 147 lb [if he's overweight]," Roach said. "There's no fight if he weighs beyond that. Cotto will be assessed a $1-million penalty for every pound overweight."
Roach plans to sic Pacquiao on Cotto in the early rounds, noting that the Puerto Rican star is prone to slow starts and has fallen early in the bout several times during his career.
"The thing is I feel that if we go after him and pressure him right away we can get him out of there," Roach said. "If you see his tapes, he's been hurt in the first round at least seven times he's been down a couple of fights."
Cotto is listed as the underdog in the match, with betting lines listing Pacquiao a -250 favorite and his opponent a +190 underdog. This means that a $100 bet on Cotto can win $190, while to win $100 on Pacquiao, one would have to be $250.
But speaking from Tampa, Florida, Cotto trainer Joe Santiago said that he is confident his ward will pull off the year's biggest upset.
"When that night comes and he wins, everyone will know that Puerto Rico does have the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world," said Santiago. "Cotto is the first true welterweight that [Pacquiao] will have fought. He is young and still in his prime so that is what Pacquiao will face." Francis Ochoa, AFP.
After a month of training in the Philippines, trainer Freddie Roach is convinced that he's going to fly back to the U.S. together with a 90 percent fit Manny Pacquiao.
Roach, Pacquiao, conditioning coach Alex Ariza and the rest of the group depart for the U.S. Saturday night to resume the Filipino boxing champion's training at the Wild Card gym in Los Angeles.
"Manny is now 90 percent ready," said Roach during the SCOOP sa Kamayan forum in Manila. "Now there is two weeks to 100 (percent) and we'll hit that next week in L.A."
Pacquiao will train two more weeks at the City of Angels before toning down for a week in Las Vegas leading to his Nov. 14 World Boxing Organization (WBO) welterweight title fight against Miguel Cotto.
Roach gave Pacquiao a day-off in training Friday following what he said was a rigorous roadwork the General Santos City native did in the morning at Luneta Park.
"He's been very tired after undergoing roadwork (at the Luneta) for an hour this morning (Friday)," said Roach, who decided to give the pound-for-pound king a well-deserved rest after the Filipino failed to answer several of his trainer's call by mid-afternoon Friday.
"I thought I have to give him a day's off. He had a good 10-round sparring yesterday (Thursday), another good road work today (Friday), and I thought I owe it to give him his first day off."
Roach believes Pacquiao can knock Cotto out in the later rounds, reiterating a fast start for his ward to disarm the Puerto Rican in the early rounds.
He said Pacquiao also needs to carry the fight in the middle of the ring and press Cotto to tire out in case the fight goes the full route. - GMANews.TV
Recently on HBO's The Buzz several celebrities weighed in and voiced their predictions for the November 14th mega-fight between Manny Pacquiao vs Miguel Cotto taking place at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
It seems the majority consensus is favoring the pound for pound champion: Manny Pacquiao over his very worthy bigger, stronger welterweight champion opponent: Miguel Cotto. Let's see what the celebrities had to say.
Former baddest heavy weight champion of the world "Iron" Mike Tyson: Pac Man
Light Heavy weight Champion Chad Dawson": Pacquiao—he's the best, he's on top right now.
Hip Hop Mogul P. Diddy: If Cotto can reconnect to the way he was three years ago, he may give Pacquiao problems.
Mark Consuelos(Mr. Kelly Ripa): I'm sorry, the Filipino is going to win.
Welter weight champion Shane Mosley: It's going to be an interesting fight, and I think Pacquiao better take him seriously.
WWE Super Star Triple H: Not that Cotto's going to be an easy win, but I think Pacquiao's going to beat him.
Sam Trammel(True Blood): I'm going to have to go with Pacquiao man. I saw his last fight, and he's just out of control.
Out of all of these celebrities I would say Shane Mosley has the most credibility in giving a prediction, having fought Miguel Cotto to a close hard 12 round decision loss. I also agree with Shane that Pacquiao should be taking this fight seriously and not get too over confident as many of these celebrities are over confident in him defeating Miguel Cotto with ease.
I will still hold off on my own official celebrity prediction on this fight until I see footage of Manny's training at the Wild Card gym or better yet see it with my own eyes and consult with my fellow colleagues as well on their inside information.
I will say however that Miguel Cotto is not Ricky Hatton or a weight drained past prime Oscar De La Hoya. When Cotto is hurt he still fights on and finds a way to win. His only loss came from the hands of a highly suspected illegal plaster of paris Antonio Margarito who he was clearly winning the fight in a one sided manner.
The point is Miguel Cotto will do a whole lot better than people are already writing him off for.
Manny Pacquiao has completed his first five weeks of training in the Philippines without mishap as he continues the build-up to his fight with Miguel Cotto on November 14 - live on Sky Sports.
The Filipino legend was forced to move camps from the cool mountain resort of Baguio following violent storms that killed more than 1,000 people.
However, trainer Freddie Roach says the 30-year-old's training was not disrupted and is in great shape for the final two weeks of sparring in Los Angeles.
"He is right where I want him to be, perfect," said Roach.
"We didn't let it affect our training. We worked right through it and never missed a day," Roach said of the storms.
"So it was a great training camp in Baguio."
Pacquiao is favoured by the bookmakers ahead of the Las Vegas showdown that will take place at a catchweight of 145lbs.
Proof that indeed, he already gained international fame, Filipino ring icon Manny Pacquiao is set to appear on the popular US late night show "Jimmy Kimmel Live" two weeks from now.
Pacquiao will be guesting in the program hosted by Kimmel and broadcast over ABC on Nov. 4, marking his first-ever appearance in a major American prime time show.
Pacquiao His appearance also comes exactly 10 days before his World Boxing Organization (WBO) welterweight title fight against Puerto Rican Miguel Cotto in Las Vegas, Navada.
The world's top pound-for-pound king is set to leave for the U.S. Saturday night together with trainer Freddie Roach and Alex Ariza to resume the remaining two weeks of his training camp at the Wild Card gym in Los Angeles.
He spent more than a month getting in shape for his fight with Cotto at the Shape-Up gym in Baguio City.
Ever since he stunned Mexican legend Marco Antonio Barrera with an 11th round technical knockout in 2003, Pacquiao has become one of the biggest names in boxing this decade.
His meteoric rise to become the best fighter in the world, pound-for-pound, was validated when he beat up the great Oscar De La Hoya in their so-called "Dream Match" last year for eight full rounds and followed it up with a two-round demolition of Ricky Hatton last May.
The interview with Pacquiao comes in the heels of a recorded 1.80 million audience that watched the "Jimmy Kimmel Live" episode last September when formerundisputed heavyweight champion Mike Tyson appeared in the show - GMANews.TV Source: gmanews.tv
Saying he is ready to fight, Manny Pacquiao went through a different training session during his morning workout on Friday under the watchful eyes of conditioning coach Alex Ariza, who later advised the pound-for-pound king to take a day-off in anticipation of a tough time this afternoon when he spars for 10 rounds for the third straight time.
"Pakiramdam ko ngayon ay pwedeng- pwede na akong lumaban," Pacquiao told the Bulletin inside his suite at the Mandarin Oriental in Makati.
Ariza admitted the workout pushed Pacquiao to the limit and that his body needs to recover from the beating that it took.
"His body has to recover from all the work that we did this morning," Ariza said.
Ariza revealed that Pacquiao did sprints for 40 minutes, something that the 30-year-old Filipino lefty had never done under the touted Colombian-born strength coach.
"Todo-todo ang takbo. Grabe!" said Pacquiao as he was lying in his bed, looking as though he had been up the ring with Mike Tyson.
"Nag-sprint na rin kami dati pero iba itong pinagawa sa akin," said Pacquiao, who earlier received in his room old friends Gerry Garcia, Lito Mondejar, Cris Aquino, and Rommel Nazario, son of his late business manager Rod.
Ariza said the reason behind the full session of sprint training was to guarantee that Pacquiao will be on his toes all the time when he bangs with Miguel Cotto on November 14 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
"Speed, speed, and more speed," said Ariza. "That's what he needs against Cotto on fight night."
Pacquiao is expected to spar for five rounds each with Shawn Porter and Urbano Antillon, honor a few commitments then fly to Los Angeles via Philippine Airlines later in the evening.
Pacquiao resumes training at the Wild Card in Hollywood this Monday.
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