EXCITED PACQUIAO LEAVES FOR WILD CARD AFTER ONE LAST PBA GAME
By Ronnie Nathanielsz
PhilBoxing.com
Sun, 01 Mar 2015
An excited eight division world champion Manny Pacquiao left for Los Angeles last night to begin serious training under celebrated Hall of Fame trainer Freddie Roach who just won his 7th ?Trainer of the Year? award from the Boxing Writers Association of America.
But before his departure Pacquiao, the playing coach of PBA giant-killers Kia Carnival, insisted in being with his team for one last game with the fans who were there wishing him all the best although his team suffered a disappointing loss to Blackwater and the crowd at the San Juan Arena was small.
Even as he was preparing to step up his training for the multi million dollar fight against undefeated pound for pound king Floyd Mayweather Jr, Roach had already lined up two 21 year old sparring partners who are tall and capable of approximating the style of Mayweather.
Welterweight Rashid ?Speedy? Lewis who has a record of 10 knockouts in 13 wins with no losses and stand 5?9?, won his last fight by a 5th round TKO over veteran Joseph de los Santos of the Dominican Republic on November 14, 2014.
Kenneth ?Bossman? Sims Jr has a record of 5-0 with 2 knockouts and in his last fight on January 9 this year scored a sixth round unanimous decision over Christian Steele.
Both fighters caught the eye of Roach when they were sparring earlier this year at the Wild Card Gym because, as Roach pointed out, ?they have the Mayweather look a bit.?
Sims reportedly used the shoulder roll defense for which Mayweaher is well known for when he sparred against two southpaws in January. Roach also has four other possible sparring partners on standby.
Former fighter and veteran trainer John Scully has predicted that Pacquiao will be ?meaner than he?s ever been? when he battles Mayweather ther Jr at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on May 2.
In a story on boxingscene.com, Scully said he believes Pacquiao will be ?at his most dangerous and the killer instinct will come out once he gets picked off with punches? by Mayweather.
Scully said Pacquiao?s corner will tell him he needs a knockout to win and then I think ?the killer instinct will be very prevalent. It would be very much there.?
He said that if Pacquiao wins by a knockout, ?it would be unbelievable for his career and it would basically be one of the greatest victories of all time.?
Scully feels that ?whatever each guy has left I?m sure they are going to bring every bit of it to the date.?
Well-known ring announcer and former Ring Magazine correspondent Ted Lerner told the Manila Standard/Viva Sports that desperation may be the key to his success.
Lerner said that when you strip him of all the trimmings in his life Pacquiao ?is very much similar to how he was when he was a nobody and I think that?s his biggest asset and he will bring that desperation into the ring and that is one intangible that Mayweather may not be ready for.?
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Ronnie Nathanielsz.
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