Freddie Roach talks training, Cotto, Mayweather, and more
by SC on Sep 24, 2009 11:46 AM EDT
in News Analysis
38 comments
As Manny Pacquiao's training camp has started to get moving in the Philippines, trainer Freddie Roach is doing his usual good job of making the media rounds and serving as the mouthpiece for everyone, as much as he can.
Roach tells Frank Cimatu of the Philippine Daily Inquirer that they're ready for Cotto to "pull a Mayweather" and come in heavy:
"I'm prepared for that possibility," Roach said about Cotto, the World Boxing Organization welterweight champion, going two pounds heavier than the required catch weight of 145 pounds when he fights Pacquiao at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on Nov. 14.
...
"But that's no problem," Roach said. "I'm not worried."
"One or two pounds heavier, we are not worried. We have the best fighter here," he said.
It's nice copy and makes for a good, strong quote. "Hey, let him. We've got the BEST FIGHTER HERE."
But it does beg the question: Why make it a catchweight at all then? If you recognize the possibility for Cotto to still just come in at 147 anyway -- and Roach says there's no big financial penalty for going over in their contract -- why bother? Why not just fight at 147 pounds? It doesn't matter, apparently. This quote essentially tells Cotto to forget getting to 145 if he's having any issue with it at all, which he may well not. I'm not even saying this catchweight is any really big deal. Of the three recent catchweights (this, Mayweather-Marquez and that ridiculous Diaz-Malignaggi weight), it's the one I most understand and least see any issue with. But apparently it didn't even need to be one, and if it gets broken, nobody cares.
Freddie told GMA News that Cotto has one glaring weakness:
"He’s not strong to the body," Roach pointed out. "I think we have to break him down in the earlier rounds and work at the body a lot."
Manny's really never been a great body puncher, but he can do some damage to the breadbasket. I actually think this is probably the wrong idea, but let's be honest, I ain't Freddie Roach. There's a reason he gets paid a lot of money to train Manny Pacquiao and I talk about boxing on the internet. Seems to me that Pacquiao's fast, slashing-style punches upstairs are probably going to cut Cotto and his vulnerable face up within just a few rounds, which would give them a big early advantage.
Freddie Roach has one piece of advice to his politics-bound ward: Beat Floyd Mayweather, Jr. first in an ultimate battle for the mythical P4P title before hanging up your gloves.
"I would like (Manny) to finish with beating Mayweather," Roach said in an interview in Baguio City, where Team Pacquiao is encamped for the Pacman’s training for his upcoming fight with Miguel Cotto.
Pacquiao is still insistent that he'll be running for office, which he's done before, and that his career is near its end. Roach also spoke candidly about Mayweather to Dennis Principe:
"Mayweather's not the bravest guy in the world so you got to take chances. He's a very difficult style for anyone but with enough punching power and pressure I think my fighter can get him because I've got the best fighter in the world," said Roach.
Roach thinks the most difficult aspect of dealing with Mayweather is not inside the ring but on the negotiating table.
"It's what the world wants to see. But the thing is, can you get him sign the contract? I don't know. It's going to be difficult because he thinks he's going to get all the money," said Roach. "If he thinks he's going to get equal money with us, he's crazy. He needs us, we don't need him."
Roach justified his assessment of Mayweather's marketability by describing the American's 12-round decision win against Marquez last weekend at the MGM Grand Garden in Las Vegas.
"Let's face it, the guy that puts asses on the seats is Manny Pacquiao. Mayweather doesn't draw. Against Marquez the venue was 80% Mexican," said Roach.
"He needs us, we don't need him" is, again, nice copy, but not really true. If Manny beats Cotto, and both Floyd and Manny want the biggest fight for the biggest money out there (by far, mind you, as Shane Mosley against either won't equal the money), they'll need each other.
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Yes I agree they both need each other equally. That fight HAS to happen or there will always be room for speculation forever. I just don’t see Cotto beating Manny at all. I don’t even see him winning rounds.I’m not highly anticipated for this fight. He looked slow and off rhythm in the Clottey fight.He’s never gonna outwork Pacquiao. Nevertheless Cotto always has that punchers chance. Anything CAN happen.
by killah27 on Sep 24, 2009 12:24 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
at the very least
its going to be his toughest fight since JMM. To say you can’t see him winning rounds is really a huge underestimation of what Cotto brings. I think the fight’s going to surprise you, dude. He has far more than a mere puncher’s chance, and he’s not exceptionally heavy handed anyway but he will hit Pac harder than he’s ever been hit before.
I hated every minute of training, but I said, ‘’Don’t quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion.'’ (Bernard Hopkins)
by BrianBrock on Sep 24, 2009 1:14 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
He looked slow and off rhythm in the Clottey fight.
He fought one-eyed for the majority of the bout, and Clottey — as Floyd Sr. puts it — ain’t nothing to fuck with. Clottey is a lot more physically imposing than Pacquiao, and frankly he’s a lot better defensively. I think Cotto-Pacquiao is a magnificent style matchup and should be a Fight of the Year contender.
Bad Left Hook
"Well Howie, I think I'm going to stay outside and outjab him." -- Tex Cobb telling Howard Cosell how he would approach Larry Holmes
by SC on Sep 24, 2009 1:17 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
same.
"I swear to God, I'll take this ******* ball and shove it down your ******* throat" - Serena Williams
by lcollins1 on Sep 24, 2009 1:19 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
+2
I hated every minute of training, but I said, ‘’Don’t quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion.'’ (Bernard Hopkins)
by BrianBrock on Sep 24, 2009 1:21 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
No Clottey is not anything to fuck with. I agree. But it would be a hard fight for Manny only if Cotto can find him in the ring .That in and out bounce he does between barrages in all lateral directions is ridiculous.It takes a while to time.Plus the weird angles he lets off with can be a serious factor against Cotto. If Cotto slows up,I think Manny will turn him around in circles picking his shots like he did against Oscar. Cotto has to cut rings and limit his laterals.Time him!!That’s the only way to somewhat nullify his ridiculous hand speed . Miguel’s an explosive body puncher, But I don’t see him catching Manny that easy.I’m sorry. Freddie Roach is making Pacquiao absolutely remarkable. He’s improving each and every fight.
by killah27 on Sep 24, 2009 2:34 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
And.. If Clottey hadn’t hurt his leg in that fight, we wouldn’t even be discussing Miguel Cotto.Clottey would’ve cruised to a victory. We’d be discussing Joshua Clottey. I think that was a shame. He really deserved to win.
by killah27 on Sep 25, 2009 11:52 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I know this opinion won't make me popular here...
I like Manny, but I think Manny-Cotto is a pretty even fight, and I think Mayweather DOMINATES Manny. Stylistically, it’s just a horrible, horrible matchup for Pacquiao. The two things Pacquiao has the most problems with are slickness and counterpunching, and Mayweather has both in spades.
I do want to see Mayweather-Pacquiao for the good of the sport, but I’d rather personally see Manny face guys like Bradley, Diaz and Mosley, and I’d rather see Mayweather face Mosley, Clottey and Williams (all three of whom I think give Mayweather some major problems; Mosley’s actually the safest fight of the three for Mayweather, IMO).
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"Baseball is played on the field, not on a calculator."
by Brickhaus on Sep 24, 2009 2:24 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I think I agree with this after seeing the JMM v. Floyd beatdown. I think Pac’s style v. Mayweather will accelerate what we saw from JMM: I think Floyd KO’s Pac.
but, because I know Pac will try to seek and destroy, it will be a helluva fight while it lasts. And before Floyd KO’s Pac, he’ll get hit a couple times.
"I swear to God, I'll take this ******* ball and shove it down your ******* throat" - Serena Williams
by lcollins1 on Sep 24, 2009 3:31 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I just cannot see
how he would KO Pac. Points, perhaps. But he had 12 rounds where he basically hit the much smaller JMM at will, and he could not put him away.
I hated every minute of training, but I said, ‘’Don’t quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion.'’ (Bernard Hopkins)
by BrianBrock on Sep 24, 2009 3:37 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Pacquiao would create much better counterpunching opportunities for Floyd given his aggressive nature. Marquez seemed almost scared to come in with anything too heavy. He only left himself open big a couple times, and on one of those Mayweather put him on his ass.
Bad Left Hook
"Well Howie, I think I'm going to stay outside and outjab him." -- Tex Cobb telling Howard Cosell how he would approach Larry Holmes
by SC on Sep 24, 2009 3:50 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
ah ok ;)
its that style match-up thing Brick mentioned also. I just took the simplistic view….
I hated every minute of training, but I said, ‘’Don’t quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion.'’ (Bernard Hopkins)
by BrianBrock on Sep 25, 2009 6:36 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Might be a moot point
if Cotto can get it done against Pac, we’ll be discussing which of Cotto/Floyd is p4p…. ;)
I hated every minute of training, but I said, ‘’Don’t quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion.'’ (Bernard Hopkins)
by BrianBrock on Sep 24, 2009 3:35 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
If that were to happen,
I think you really have to go with Floyd, pretty easily, as P4P.
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by Matt Miller on Sep 24, 2009 10:36 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I think that if Pacquiao beats Cotto, Floyd will indeed need him more. I just cannot see that on their records, particularly over the last 4/5 fights, that there would be much dispute over who is p4p number one, realistically. So Floyd would need that fight to ‘prove’ he’s number one….but Manny and Roach shouldn’t look past Cotto at all
I hated every minute of training, but I said, ‘’Don’t quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion.'’ (Bernard Hopkins)
by BrianBrock on Sep 24, 2009 1:05 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
I get what you’re saying, but it doesn’t really add up that way. If Pacquiao beats Cotto, there are two fights for Pacquiao: Mayweather and Mosley. If Pacquiao beats Cotto, there are two fights for Mayweather: Pacquiao and Mosley. They need each other for the most money. Shane won’t compare at the bank.
Bad Left Hook
"Well Howie, I think I'm going to stay outside and outjab him." -- Tex Cobb telling Howard Cosell how he would approach Larry Holmes
by SC on Sep 24, 2009 1:15 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
true
it works the same both ways, but negotiating a split will be pretty tough, because If Manny wins, then I would think he has a better case for being p4p at that moment, The he would want more, with good reason, and Mayweather would also, with far less reason.
I hated every minute of training, but I said, ‘’Don’t quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion.’’ (Bernard Hopkins)
I hated every minute of training, but I said, ‘’Don’t quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion.'’ (Bernard Hopkins)
by BrianBrock on Sep 24, 2009 1:21 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Someone's rankings should have no effect on the split
Manny having a belt at 147 (and the Diamond Belt) might entice Floyd to give up something, but there isn’t even the usual concern with a champ, since Floyd wouldn’t be the mandatory, and thus there’s no issue of what would happen if the fight goes to purse bid instead.
But generally, the purse is negotiated based on who brings what to the gate. If Mayweather-Marquez really got 1.6 million buys, there’s no way Pacquiao-Cotto breaks that. Plus Mayweather is more popular in most of the high value overseas markets (England, Germany) than is Pacquiao. On the other hand, Pacquiao appears to be a much better live gate draw.
We’ll have to see how it plays out. It will probably end up being 50/50 publicly, with some private caveats that swings it in Floyd’s direction.
Bad Left Hook - The SB Nation boxing blog
"Baseball is played on the field, not on a calculator."
by Brickhaus on Sep 24, 2009 2:32 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Ah ok
Weren’t the actual buys for JMM-Floyd coming out today? Any news? I guess they can’t tell off that last fight how popular Floyd is in England, it wasn’t on PPV here, just on normal Sky. I imagine there will be a lot of back and forth. I would love Pac to insist on a split in his favor because I think he’ll deserve it.
I hated every minute of training, but I said, ‘’Don’t quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion.'’ (Bernard Hopkins)
by BrianBrock on Sep 24, 2009 3:19 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
The basis of the UK comment
Was that Hatton-Mayweather sold 3x as many PPVs as Hatton-Pacquiao.
Bad Left Hook - The SB Nation boxing blog
"Baseball is played on the field, not on a calculator."
by Brickhaus on Sep 24, 2009 5:52 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
In the UK that is
Bad Left Hook - The SB Nation boxing blog
"Baseball is played on the field, not on a calculator."
by Brickhaus on Sep 24, 2009 5:53 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
had no idea
surprised at that difference
I hated every minute of training, but I said, ‘’Don’t quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion.'’ (Bernard Hopkins)
by BrianBrock on Sep 25, 2009 6:39 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
If Pac beats Cotto, I think Cotto is the best win on either of their resumes. It still may not require Floyd to fight Pac, but that would be, between them, the biggest scalp. Cotto’s never been beat legitimately in my book and he beat Mosley in a very close fight.
"I swear to God, I'll take this ******* ball and shove it down your ******* throat" - Serena Williams
by lcollins1 on Sep 24, 2009 1:21 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
definitely
I think that rather than fighting to see who’s p4p, it would then be more like Floyd ‘challenging’ Manny for p4p king status.
I hated every minute of training, but I said, ‘’Don’t quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion.'’ (Bernard Hopkins)
by BrianBrock on Sep 24, 2009 1:25 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Mayweather's made it obvious
That he cares a lot more about being rich than being number 1 or having a great legacy. Fortunately for him, Pacquiao is the best fight for him for all three of those goals.
That said, I don’t know if I agree that Mayweather needs him more. If Mayweather goes elsewhere, what big fight does that leave Manny with? Mosley maybe? And if Mayweather goes after Mosley, then Pacquiao’s just SOL. He’d need to face someone like Valero in a small money fight.
Bad Left Hook - The SB Nation boxing blog
"Baseball is played on the field, not on a calculator."
by Brickhaus on Sep 24, 2009 2:26 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
They clearly both need the fight
but one side’s going to have to make concessions, and that’ll be the one that needs the fight more. I really do hope it gets made, if we get to that point(ie Pac past Cotto). I thought Floyd cared quite a lot about being number one also?! He clearly doesn’t care about any legacy from the way he picks his fights….
I hated every minute of training, but I said, ‘’Don’t quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion.'’ (Bernard Hopkins)
by BrianBrock on Sep 24, 2009 3:13 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Do you have plans for fight night?
We briefly touched on the idea of meeting and watching it since you’re just down the road….
For some reason I can’t update my SBN account details, including email, etc… If you pass yours on I’ll get in touch.
Boxing is the beginning of all sports. I'm willing to bet that the first sport was a man against another man in a fight. (Omar Epps)
by Chaos100 on Sep 24, 2009 3:18 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
click on my name
and its right up there beneath it on my profile, like with SC’s….had it up ages. Things are kind of up in the air at the moment but will message and let you know whats happening.
I hated every minute of training, but I said, ‘’Don’t quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion.'’ (Bernard Hopkins)
by BrianBrock on Sep 24, 2009 3:24 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Timing and Speed
The problem is that I like PacMan. But I think that Mayweather will get him based on his elusiveness. PacMan looks for the face pounding wars in the middle of the ring sometimes and that ’s being careless with a guy like Mayweather. It will happen 2010. Mayweather will win the fight because PacMan can be hit . That fight will be based on pure timing of each of the fighters punches. Who ever has the best timing that night will win that fight … and I go with Mayweather on that .
by Haans Bishop on Sep 24, 2009 1:54 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Pac vs Cotto
Pacman wins in the 9th round. If you looked at that last fight against Clottey he was very slow. Actually the reason why he was moving that way was because Cotto is still “SHELL SHOCKED” from that Margarrita fight. The speed of PacMan will kill in this fight. Plus.. Cotto still has a stamina problem after the 5th round.
Everyone review that Cotto/ Clottey fight again.. Styles make fights. A easy win for Pacman!
by Haans Bishop on Sep 24, 2009 2:00 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Pacquiao vs Cotto
Cotto by a 6th round KO. Visit this site for more Pacquiao vs Cotto fight updates.
by HowieDruff on Sep 24, 2009 2:50 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Pac should go for 50/50*
*if Mayweather doesn’t make weight he forfeits 50% of his earning to Pac.
*Unless KP has a secret plan that makes this statement incorrect.
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by staylost on Sep 24, 2009 2:10 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Great challenge up ahead
This would be Pacquiao’s greatest challenge so far after his 2 controversial fights with Juan Manuel Marquez. He should win this decisively to erase all doubts on his boxing prowess. In case he will fight Mayweather, I think there should be a clause in their contract that would state that in case if any fighter does not make weight then it should be an automatic loss + a heavy fine to prevent Mayweather from doing the same thing he did against Juan Manuel Marquez. Visit this site for more Pacquiao vs Cotto fight updates.
by HowieDruff on Sep 24, 2009 2:30 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
For me, some of this depends on the actual numbers that Mayweather-Marquez did. Honestly if the numbers are as big as some are saying, then it’s possible that:
1) I no longer have a solid understanding of what the wider boxing public really wants to see.
2) I’ve misjudged Mayweather’s individual drawing power by a wide degree, and Mayweather could very well get paid a lot of Money to fight anyone he wants, not just Manny Paquiao or Shane Mosely. With the right split, Money could even make more money fighting other guys. Hell, we were joking about Valero moving up, but suppose it turns out that this is actually an compelling fight for 800,000 mysterious people out there? What if, in the immortal words of Kid Dynamite, Mayweather can really “sell out Madison Square Garden masturbating” and we just don’t get it?
"This fight'll be the nastiest thing you'll ever see. I been sober for six weeks, and that makes me vicious."
-- Randall 'Tex' Cobb
by jrok on Sep 24, 2009 3:28 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
It kind of depends of the shift in Mexican-American watchers IMO
With Oscar really really out of there for good there is only one real Mexican hero at the top of boxing now. JMM is that one guy for that Mex-Pride group. Mayweather may not be a personal draw, but he is a good measuring stick since he’s a great boxer. So my take is that JMM can draw that crowd as long as he has got a decent opponent.
Of course… Pacman is starting to reach the level where he transcends that kind of draw. I’m a white American from Oregon who doesn’t care about boxing. But I still enjoy watching Pac.
*Unless KP has a secret plan that makes this statement incorrect.
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by staylost on Sep 25, 2009 3:22 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Pacquiao will bring more to the table assuming he beats Cotto. If Pacquiao wins, it will be in some incredibly entertaining fashion. It won’t be a blow out. Cotto also practically guarantees an incredibly exciting fight…..Mayweather….was clearly much bigger and faster and we had to watch 12 rounds most of which looked exactly the f’ing same.
Gatti. Dekkers. Pele. Aoki. Kang. Vanderlei.
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by theworldsoldestsport on Sep 24, 2009 10:18 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Yeah, I mean, when’s the last time Cotto or Pacquiao had a boring fight? Even their dominations have been exciting because they know how to finish.
Bad Left Hook
"Well Howie, I think I'm going to stay outside and outjab him." -- Tex Cobb telling Howard Cosell how he would approach Larry Holmes
by SC on Sep 24, 2009 10:21 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
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