Roach confident Manny will regain title

LAS VEGAS – There’s no doubt in six-time Trainer of the Year awardee Freddie Roach’s mind that Manny Pacquiao will beat Timothy Bradley to recapture the WBO welterweight crown at the MGM Grand Garden Arena here this morning (Manila time).

Roach said he expects Bradley to run. “He won’t engage,” said Roach. “Bradley’s not the same fighter he was before. He took a lot of punishment from Ruslan (Provodnikov) and to this day, you’ll notice his speech is a little slurred. If Manny connects early, he might just give up. The key is Manny cutting the ring off on Bradley. That’s what we worked on in the gym. For Manny, it’s the hardest thing to do but if there’s one thing he improved on, it’s cutting the ring off. He’s ready for Bradley.”

Conditioning coach Justin Fortune’s reappearance has been a big factor since he left Pacquiao’s camp in 2007 after working with the Filipino for six years. “Manny’s in great shape,” said Roach. “I haven’t seen him in better condition in years. I don’t think Manny really respected (Alex) Ariza. It’s different with Justin. Manny respects him, listens to him and does what he has to do. Manny wasn’t like this in the camps for the first Bradley fight, the fourth (Juan Manuel) Marquez fight and even the (Brandon) Rios fight.”

Asked if Pacquiao is in the same mindset as when he knocked out Ricky Hatton, Roach replied, “I hope so.” He said if Bradley stands up to exchange, it will be the beginning of the end. Roach’s Filipino assistant Marvin Somodio said even if Bradley starts out running, he’ll trade once Pacquiao hurts him. “That’s Bradley’s instinct,” said Somodio. “We saw it in the Ruslan and Marquez fights. If he gets hurt, Bradley will fire back. Against Manny, that’s dangerous.”

Roach said Pacquiao got sharp sparring with former world champion Steve Forbes, unbeaten Lydell Rhodes and Julian Rodriguez, Roger (Speedy) Gonzalez and former US Olympian Jose Ramirez. Another former world champion Kendall Holt was booked to spar with Pacquiao but never showed up.

Pacquiao hasn’t knocked out an opponent since Miguel Cotto in 2009. But he promised to bring back his aggressiveness against Bradley in their rematch to settle unfinished business. At Friday’s weigh-in, Pacquiao scaled 145 pounds, the same as when he beat Rios and Sugar Shane Mosley in a dominant fashion. When Pacquiao lost to Bradley and Marquez, he weighed 147 pounds. Pacquiao is at his optimum at 145 because he is quicker at that weight.

Mexican TV boxing analyst and former WBC secretary-general Eduardo Lamazon said Pacquiao’s legs will play an important role if he hopes to beat Bradley. “Bradley is a much better fighter than Rios so Manny’s performance against Rios isn’t a gauge of how he’ll do against Bradley,” said Lamazon. “Mexican fans want Manny to win.  Manny has to have good legs to beat Bradley, the same legs he showed when he beat (Antonio) Margarito. That’s because we know Bradley will move around. Manny must know the geometry of the ring. Bradley will run like in the first fight, like how he beat Marquez. I expect Manny to throw a lot more punches. It will be a tactical fight but that won’t necessarily mean an advantage for Bradley. Manny can win a tactical fight, too. Manny has to be the Manny of before to beat Bradley.”

Pacquiao’s Argentinian cutman Miguel Diaz said he foresees an easy victory. “It won’t be like the first fight,” said Diaz. “It will be Manny all the way. He’ll knock out Bradley between the seventh and ninth rounds.”

In preparing for the Bradley rematch, Roach welcomed Pacquiao at the new private facility on the ground floor of the Vine Street strip mall where the Wild Card Gym is located on the second level.  They began working out in General Santos City before moving to Los Angeles. Only Pacquiao and Cotto train in the facility which is off-limits to outsiders. Actor Mickey Rourke also uses the gym when he works out with Somodio after the fighters leave. Rourke is one of several celebrities who patronize the Wild Card Gym. Another actor Aaron Eckhart, who appeared in the 2008 Batman movie “The Dark Knight,” works out at the sweatshop and showed his support for Pacquiao by attending the weigh-in last Friday. Roach said former WBC lightweight champion Antonio Demarco will be invited to train at the new gym.

Roach said Jinkee’s absence won’t affect Pacquiao one way or the other. “Manny’s really focused,” he said. “Even with Jinkee around, Pacquiao’s the same. He’s a very disciplined fighter.” In a USA Today story by Bob Velin, Roach described Pacquiao as still the hardest worker in the gym. “He gives me everything I want and his dedication is 100% there, he’s the most disciplined fighter I’ve ever had.” Roach said his hottest young prospect is 22-year-old welterweight Frankie (Pitbull) Gomez of Los Angeles. Gomez has a 16-0 record, with 12 KOs.

Somodio said he’ll fly to Moscow early next week to work former WBA cruiserweight champion Denis Lebedev’s rematch with Guillermo Jones on April 25. Roach will focus on training Cotto for his June 7 fight against Sergio Martinez at Madison Square Garden in New York City.