A lot of debate has been made about if the super-fight between Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao is too late, and how the fight would differ if it took place in 2010.
Freddie Roach, Pacquiao’s hall of fame trainer has his thoughts on the subject and he says the latest version of Pac-Man can give Mayweather a run for his money.
“That is an interesting question because there are obviously tradeoffs between the two versions of Manny,” said Roach, of which version of Pacquiao has a better shot at besting Mayweather. But I am convinced that the 2015 ‘model’ is the more formidable fighter for a few reasons.
“Back in 2010, Manny was still growing into a welterweight. His first two welterweight fights were against Oscar De La Hoya in 2008 and Miguel Cotto in 2009 where he only weighed 142 and 144 pounds, respectively, and in between, he dropped down to 138 to fight Ricky Hatton. Floyd had been campaigning as a welterweight since 2005 and weighed 150 in his fight against De La Hoya so that might have given Floyd an advantage.”
Despite those facts, Roach siad he’d still likes his fighter’s chances either way, but the fight taking place years later benefits Pacquiao, more than Mayweather.
“I still like Manny’s chances in that fight but I think the Manny of today has a lot more in his favor,” Roach said. “In 2010 the two-year age difference between the fighters was not significant to either, but that’s not true today. Floyd at 38 is doing things he didn’t do in the past.”
Roach said the Mayweather’s infamous defensive ability in the ring has started to slide over the year’s, which will create opportunities for Pacquiao that would not be here five years ago.
“Floyd is a defensive genius but he has always depended on his legs to perform and you can see now that his legs do not have the same spring or fluidness of his earlier years,” Roach explained. “He cannot run the ring for three minutes per round as he did in the past and he covers that up by saying he is now fighting a more fan-friendly style by engaging more with his opponents.
“Baloney! He’s engaging more because he can no longer move like he used to do.”
Despite Pacquiao’s devastating December 2012 knockout loss to longtime foe Juan Manuel Marquez, Roach said Pacquiao is less prone to take chances that could result in him getting hurt in a fight.
“The 2015 version of Manny is more mature, smarter and less reckless than the 2010
version,” he said. “He will be treating the ring like a chess board anticipating Floyd’s moves – ready to cut him off and attack every time he creates an opening. Manny’s footwork and hand speed are still the best in the game and though I still consider him a small welterweight, Manny now has five more years experience fighting at the welterweight level. The 2015 Manny is going to fight the perfect fight.”
Roach had confidence in Pacquiao the last time he fought an elite-level champion, and that resulted in one of Pac-Man’s biggest wins of his career.
“I look at this the same as I did I when Manny fought Oscar De La Hoya,” Roach said. “I have all the confidence in the world that Manny is going to knock Floyd out on May 2.”
Be sure to check out Mayweather-Pacquiao: At Last, a special film presented by HBO Sports detailing the road to the most anticipated fight of this era,when it debuts Saturday, April 18 at 12:00 a.m. ET/PT on HBO.
All this leads up to Floyd Mayweather vs. Manny Pacquiao taking place Saturday, May 2 from the MGM Grand in Las Vegas live on pay-per-view beginning at 9:00 p.m. ET/6:00 p.m. PT.
