BASKETBALL STILL PART OF PACQUIAO'S TRAINING REGIMEN
By Eddie Alinea
PhilBoxing.com
Mon, 03 Mar 2014
GENERAL SANTOS CITY - Manny Pacquiao killing himself in training? See him prepare for his coming second date with American Tim Bradley and think again.
Last Saturday, a week after chief trainer Freddie Roach took over the Filipino ring hero's training camp here, the 35-year-old former no. 1 pound-for-pound king in the world took to the road early in the morning did short but several energy- sapping sprinting chores for 30 minutes.
He proceeded to his own version of the Wild Card Gym at the heart of this city where he spent four hours of indoor activities, including six round of sparring with upcoming unbeaten lightweight Lydell Rhodes, 10 rounds of punishing the mitts with Roach, more rounds of shadow boxing and on the ropes before what some 200 watchers admitted inside the sweat shop was the end of the day's regimen.
They, including a handful of media men covering the workout, were mistaken. After two hours of rest - partaking a light snack, talking to his flock and to several local government unit officials, Pacquaio was back to his training chores, not anymore in the boxing gym but in the basketball court built inside his Mansion 2 compound in Block 8, Barangay City Heights.
He played no less than four games, powering his teams (he owns no less than five teams made up mostly of local players and employees of group of companies he owns) to victories over visiting squads from adjacent towns and even from as far as Zamboanga City.
After playing four games that lasted till 11:30 p.m., Pacquiao went back to his flock in his new-found religion and stayed there until he called it a day at past 1 o'clock the nest morning.
The basketball games, (he plays almost nightly right after a day's since he pitched camp here a little more than three weeks ago), is part of his stamina-building program, according to boyhood friend and assistant trainer Buboy Fernandez.
"He needs to be at his best in terms of physical condition because as he himself announced, he wants to win this time, not only impressively, but, by knockout," Fernandez told this writer after Pacquiao's Wild Card Gym activities.
"Did you see how he moved in sparring? " Fernandez asked his eyes rolling in elation. "It's like when we were preparing for (Oscar) Dela Hoya. "Ang bilis at parang hindi napapagod. Ganyan siya lagi sa araw-araw naming training session."
"Ang lakas ng kamay, ang bilis ng paa at kamay, ang linaw ng mata," Para ko siyang nakikita noong nagsi-simula pa lamang kami," he recalled.
Rhodes, who owns an perfect 19-0 fight record with nine KOs, agreed, saying he has never faced a fighter as fast and as intense Pacquiao.
"Counting all the boxers I meet in the ring, whether in sparing or actual fights and all I've seen, Manny's the fastest, the quickest to respond to any given situation," Rhodes attested in a separate interview.
"He's too fast that if you blink, he'll be connecting three, four or simply a barrage of punches you wouldn't know where they're coming," Rhodes said. "He's so intense that you have to remain focus otherwise you'll get hit. I know (Zab) Judah is quick, but Manny is quicker."
"I've also seen several hard-hitting boxers and I can safely say that Manny is one of them," he said. "The one only one boxer I've seen that hits faster than many is (Frank) Bruno, but he's a heavyweight and that explains."
Rhodes, who accepted his sparring job to prepare for a coming fight on March 29 against a still unnamed opponent, apparently contaminated by Pacquiao's working ethics, has joined his mate in playing basketball.
"I play a little basketball back home in Oklahoma, but I didn't know it adds to one's stamina, he said after the games. "I think I'll adopt it as part of my training, too."
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Eddie Alinea.
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