Roach: "WBO Will Sanction Pacquiao-Cotto Regardless"

BoxingScene.com spoke with trainer Freddie Roach about the controversy surrounding Miguel Cotto's willingness to defend the WBO welterweight title against Manny Pacquiao on November 14. Cotto has publicly refused to defend the title because the Pacquiao fight is being contested at a catch-weight of 145-pounds. If Pacquiao agrees to bump the weight by two-pounds [full welterweight limit of 147], Cotto will put the title on the line.

The WBO has been pushing for Cotto to defend the title. It’s easy for the WBO to push when Cotto has to pay them a six-figure sanctioning fee. Roach is not losing any sleep over Cotto’s refusal to defend the title. He doesn’t see any of this as a big problem. Even if the WBO puts pressure on Cotto, and the title is vacated, Roach is confident the title will be at stake on fight night.

“If [Cotto] gives it up, I think the WBO will make Manny the number one. We'll pay the sanctioning fee and the title will be on the line. That's what I think will happen. I haven't spoken to Manny [about it] but if it was me, I would ask for the title to be on the line. I think regardless of what Cotto says, the title will be on the line,” Roach told BoxingScene.

Based on Roach’s scenario, the title would only be at stake for Pacquiao. If Cotto were to win, the title would remain vacant.

The fight will be the biggest boxing event of the year. The money in the pot, for both fighters, is more money than most boxers will ever see in a lifetime. The WBO title is a minor piece of the puzzle but Roach views the title as a major piece to cement Pacquiao’s legacy.

“I want it for Manny's legacy. Manny won titles at 112, 122, 126, 130, 135, and 140. I want to see him become the first fighter to win seven world titles in seven weight divisions,” Roach said.

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The Nostradamus of Boxing? - Interview with Freddie Roach (Plus Roach's Top 10 Pound for Pound) - doghouseboxing.com

Boxing trainer Freddie Roach has already established himself as THE boxing trainer of his generation. Sandwiched between Virgil Hill and Manny Pacquiao have been over 33 world champions trained by Freddie. His latest protégé, Amir Khan, was recently crowned the WBA light welterweight champion of the world. Why Freddie Roach has not been inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in Canastota, NY, is one of the great mysteries of boxing. Freddie may be clairvoyant as he has successfully predicted the winner and outcome of every important fight in the last two years. We’ll test Freddie with his analysis of seven important fights due this year. As a bonus, Freddie provides us his list of top ten “pound for pound” fighters. Look for this list at the end of this article.

David T. – Freddie let’s take a look at the super middleweight elimination bouts sponsored by Showtime. Start with Carl Froch vs. Andre Dirrell.

Freddie Roach – You would give me the tough one first. Froch is a strong puncher with a solid chin. Dirrell is a southpaw with great boxing skills. Prediction: Froch in a very, very, close fight.

DT- Mikkel Kessler vs. Andre Ward

FR- Kessler by decision. Ward has boxing skills but not enough power to present a problem for Kessler. DT – King Arthur Abraham vs. Jermaine Taylor

FR – Middle round Kayo by Abraham.

DT – Amir Khan vs. Dmitriy Salita

FR – Khan with an easy victory by Kayo. I am constantly being asked if Amir Khan is the next pound for pound champ. My answer is maybe in six years. Amir will be sparring with Manny during training camp. He has a great future in this sport if he stays focused. I am pushing hard for this fight to be on the undercard of the Pacquiao/ Cotto fight. Fight fans deserve better undercards on the pay for view fights.

DT – Kermit Cintron vs. Shane Mosley

FR – Cintron has struggled a bit lately and Shane is full of confidence after his impressive win over Antonio Margarito. Shane should win this one by a knockout.

DT – Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Juan Manuel Marquez

FR – Great fight. I’m just worried about Marquez going up so much in weight, the fight is at 147 lbs. At 135 Marquez was behind in the 6th round of the Diaz fight. He eventually won but now he is moving up two divisions from that weight. It’s going to be difficult for him to do but if anyone is capable it is Marquez because he is a very clever, clever fighter. Marquez is basically a counter puncher but has been more aggressive in recent fights. I’m not quite sure that his style will beat Mayweather. I’m taking Mayweather by a decision.

DT – Manny Pacquiao vs. Miguel Cotto

FR – I am aware that many fight fans believe that Manny will beat Cotto the same way he handled Ricky Hatton. I am sure that Manny will win but I need to study more video of Cotto. Of course I have seen the Margarito fight and the Clottey fight but I need to see the fights where he was at his best. This is the only way that I can study his strengths as well as his weaknesses. In a couple of weeks I will be able to tell Manny how to beat Cotto and he will work on this strategy in the gym.

DT – With the many, many, weight divisions and the 100’s of sanctioning associations, many fans look to the “Pound for Pound” list for the top fighters. Fans would love to read the Freddie Roach list of top 10 fighters.

FR – Keep the tape running because I might have to make some changes as we go along: 1.Manny Pacquiao – Who else? I have been preaching this for the last three years. 2.Floyd Mayweather Jr. – He gave us the title but he should be the second best. The Marquez fight will dictate whether he stays there or not. 3.Juan Manuel Marquez – What can I say? One tough hombre and will hold his own against Mayweather. 4.Edwin Valerio – Some will question this pick but he has something like 25 victories by Kayo without a loss. 5.Shane Mosley – His big victory over Margarito moves him up the list. 6.Arthur Abraham – A really tough puncher with quick hands and a concrete chin. 7.Mikkel Kessler – Only loss to former pound for pound champ, Joe Calzaghe. He should wind up fighting Abraham for the Super Middleweight title. 8.Andre Ward – Great boxing skills and looked very impressive against Edison Miranda. 9.Israel Vasquez – You got to love his heart. Truly a champion as he proved in his fights against Marquez. 10. Amir Khan – I know that some will question Amir on the top ten list. Trust me, he is the real deal!
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Can Freddie Roach really work miracles?

Currently the biggest name in boxing that is not actually a boxer would be Freddie Roach. Roach is one of the most well known and well respected boxing trainers in the world. When you look down the list of great/legendary boxers Roach has worked with it is no surprise that he is one of the most popular trainers in boxing. Roach has been voted Trainer of the Year by the Boxing Writers Association of America in 2003, 2006 and 2008 and has many other great honors to his name. Recently, however Roach is bigger than ever and this is mainly down to the Ring Magazines #1 Pound for Pound boxer in the world – Manny Pacquiao. Roach and Pacquiao have been together for over 14 fights and Roach helped Pacquiao step up to the Featherweight division and shock the world by beating the Mexican legend Marco Antonio Barrera by TKO in the 11th round. Since then Pacquiao has lost one, drawn one and won 11. This doesn’t look all that impressive on paper until you realize that in those 13 fights, there were 5 different weight divisions and he fought against the likes of; Erik Morales, Juan Manuel Marquez, David Diaz, Oscar De La Hoya and Ricky Hatton. Obviously you cannot give Freddie Roach all the credit as Manny Pacquiao is a very special fighter with great boxing abilities but when you look at Manny Pacquiao’s record before Roach came on the scene you have to wonder how Freddie Roach has managed to make Manny the P4P King. I say this because before Manny and Roach got together Manny had been KO’d twice at Flyweight level and drawn at super bantamweight. Therefore the question has to be asked, Can Freddie Roach really work miracles? To be able to step up in weight and class and have such a good record against such great fighters is really unbelievable after he struggled to take punches at Flyweight level. Maybe I am giving Roach too much credit and Pacquiao has just stepped up his game and worked much harder in recent years and Roach has just been a good trainer helping him succeed.

Manny Pacquiao is now set to face Miguel Angel Cotto on the 14th of November this year and although this should be another great boxing match I think Manny will easily beat Cotto by KO or UD. Therefore I think the real test that will show whether Freddie Roach really works miracles will be the showdown everyone in boxing wants to see and that is the matchup between Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather, Jr. If in a years time Manny Pacquiao has managed to beat Floyd Mayweather (Former P4P king) then I think Freddie Roach undisputedly can perform miracles.

Recently Roach has taken on an upcoming superstar in Britain’s Amir Khan and has had a successful period working with him.

Before Roach started working with Khan, Khan suffered a devastating 1st round knockout to a big hitting Breidis Prescott in September 2008. Khan then looked like his career was in jeopardy as he had been hurt by lesser opponents such as Michael Gomez and Graham Earl and questions were then raised about his fragile chin and heart. After the Prescott fight Khans promoter, Frank Warren quickly sacked Khan’s trainer Jorge Rubio and replaced him with Roach. Three Months later Roach and Khan had there first fight together against an easy opponent in Oisin Fagan. Khan KO’d Fagan in the second so therefore the critics didn’t get to see any evidence of Khans fragile chin. In early 2009, it was announced that Khan would fight former seven-time and three-weight world champion Marco Antonio Barrera on 14 March 2009. Roach obviously new Barrera’s style well after Pacquiao faced him twice and this showed as Khan looked rejuvenated and stuck to a game plan that used his strengths such as speed perfectly. Khan won this fight after it was stopped in the 5th due to a severe cut on Barrera’s head. Barrera suffered the cut in the opening round due to a huge clash of heads which then made the fight much easier for Khan to dominate. Although Barrera struggled because of the cut Khan looked at ease, kept to his strategy and gave his best display yet. This then led to Frank Warren saying

“I’d like to see him get a belt round his waist by the end of this year.”

On the 18th of July Khan and Warren got there wish as Khan stepped into the ring with the WBA World Light-Welterweight champion Andreas Kotelnik. As soon as this matchup was announced critics were quick to point out that Kotelnik is viewed as the easiest Light-Welterweight champion and is not known for any punching power. Being that as it may, Khan still impressed winning the bout by a unanimous decision, 120-108, 118-111, and 118-111.

Khan still has to prove a lot of critics wrong by taking on a real champion or a heavy hitter to show that Roach has worked his magic with him just like he did with Pacquiao.

According to Fight News, a fight between the hard hitting brawler, Marcos Maidana and Khan could be happening as soon as October this year. After watching Maidana impressively beat one of the Golden boys, Victor Ortiz by KO I doubt Khan would be able to take that sort of punching power, however to take the fight would show Roach believes in his man like he does in Pacquiao. Other contenders out there that wouldn’t mind stepping in the ring with Khan would be Junior Witter and Breidis Prescott. A Witter – Khan fight would be a great British fight that I believe Khan could win and silence some critics by doing so. I think Khan will now avoid the fight with Prescott especially since Prescott has just lost his most recent fight and looked very average in doing so.

So the question is can Freddie Roach really work miracles?

This will definitely be answered through the rest of Khans career if Khan goes on to achieve greatness like Pacquiao has. Pacquiao however would already suggest Roach can work miracles with quotes calling Roach “a gift sent from heaven.”

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Roach ponders Pacquiao's plan

Now that Manny Pacquiao has agreed to fight Miguel Cotto, trainer Freddie Roach will have several months to put Pacquiao's game plan in place for the Nov. 14 bout at the MGM Grand Garden.

Roach said he has been working on a strategy to beat Cotto for a couple of months.

"I know Cotto pretty well," Roach said. "But I haven't really studied him yet. I have a pretty good idea how we want to fight him, but until I sit down, watch the tapes and talk to Manny, we're still in the planning stage."

The bout will be contested at a catch weight of 145 pounds, between welterweight (147) and junior welterweight (140).

Pacquiao is relaxing at home in the Philippines, and Roach said serious training is probably a few weeks away. A typical Pacquiao camp lasts from eight to 10 weeks, starting in the Philippines, then moving to Roach's gym in Hollywood and finishing in Las Vegas.

"I'll go (to the Philippines) sometime next month and we'll get started," Roach said. "For this fight, speed is going to be important. I think if you get Cotto in a fast-paced fight, he'll tire. So we want to come out quick and set a fast pace. Speed is our biggest asset."

Roach said Cotto figures to be stronger than Oscar De La Hoya was when Pacquiao fought him in December at 147 pounds. He said Cotto's power is a factor.

"He's a little bit bigger and a little bit stronger," Roach said. "But I think Manny's the better boxer, and Manny's defense is the best it's been. I think Pacquiao will stop him along the way."

Roach has kept busy since Pacquiao knocked out Ricky Hatton on May 2. He was in London last weekend working Amir Khan's corner when Khan beat Andriy Kotelnik for the WBA junior welterweight title. While Roach was in London, one of his newest fighters, Cuban super bantamweight Guillermo Rigondeaux, was impressive at Planet Hollywood, winning by first-round knockout over Robert Griffin.

"Amir did a nice job. He looked very good," Roach said. "Rigondeaux, I heard he did well. He's a kid with a lot of talent. He's coming back to the gym this week, and we'll keep working with him and get him in the ring soon."

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FREDDIE ROACH: "WE'RE GOING TO KNOCKOUT COTTO"

Despite the fact that contracts have yet to be signed by either fighter, world-renowned trainer Freddie Roach has already come on record to give his prediction regarding the highly-anticipated clash between Manny Pacquiao and Miguel Cotto. "We're going to knockout Cotto," he informed Carlos Gonzalez of Primera Hora. "I don't have anything bad to say about Cotto. I believe he's an excellent athlete that is always well-prepared for his fights, but I have trust in the abilities of Manny and I believe that we're going to knockout Cotto", Roach stated during a telephone interview. Indeed, Roach is no stranger to making accurate predictions when it comes to Manny Pacquiao as he correctly foretold the 9th round stoppage of David Diaz. He also confidently predicted that Pacquiao would knockout both Oscar De La Hoya and Ricky Hatton, although he was technically off by one round in both bouts. "Without doubt, there will be a war! Manny and Miguel have many similarities in their styles, but the speed of Manny will be too much for Miguel", Roach continued. I've said it before and I'll say it again, Freddie Roach knows boxing and given his recent track record when it comes to Pacquiao's fights, you would be wise to listen to his analysis. If you've ignored his predictions in the past, this time, maybe you shouldn't! Don't be afraid to lay some money down on Manny Pacquiao by stoppage!

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