|
“MY boy will beat your boy.”
This is the battle cry for
trainers Freddie Roach and Jim Strickland as they prepare their
respective boxers, Manny Pacquiao and David Diaz, for their June 29
title showdown at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas.
Roach is easily the most
respected trainer in the sport today. He boxed professionally for
eight years (1978-86) and compiled a record of 41-13 with 18
knockouts. After retiring from boxing, Roach worked as an assistant
to the great Eddie Futch, the guy who made heavyweight champions out
of Ken Norton, Joe Frazier and Riddick Bowe. Roach eventually went
solo and has since trained several world champions. Roach’s
masterpiece is Pacquiao, who has become one of the best fighters in
the game since coming under his wing in 2001.
Strickland’s resume pales in
comparison to Roach. He once worked as a cutman for former
heavyweight champ Evander Holyfield. In 2002, Strickland started
serving as trainer and manager for Diaz, who he guided to the WBC
lightweight throne four years later.
For Roach, the challenge is to
prepare PacMan for a successful move to the heavier 135-pound class.
For Strickland, the task is tougher—to help Diaz register a
humongous upset.
“There’s not much of a
difference in camp, in particular to Diaz we have all southpaw
sparring partners to make that adjustment,” Roach told the website
fightfan.com. “Manny has been working very hard and it’s just
business as usual.”
While claiming that Pacquiao’s
power remains bone-crunching, Roach did say that he is still working
on harnessing PacMan’s speed, which is expected to take a dip as
he puts on extra pounds.
“His speed is slightly off at
the moment,” admitted Roach. “But as we get down to fight weight
(135 pound), I expect he’ll be right on point. When he gets right
down to fighting weight his speed always picks up.”
Strickland has tapped the
services of former boxer Mike Garcia to assist him in preparing Diaz
for Pacquiao. Garcia, 40, is also the trainer of former Ultimate
Fighting Championship (UFC) heavyweight champ Andrei Arlovski.
“Discipline and
self-motivation,” said Strickland, when asked to identify two key
factors Diaz needs to beat Pacquiao.
“David is a self-motivator; he
doesn’t compromise the amount of time he’s in the gym. David
feels he can beat anybody he gets in the ring with.”
Strickland also noted how PacMan
tends to come to a standstill seconds after he launches an assault.
Strickland believes Diaz can capitalize by immediately retaliating
the moment the Filipino loosens his guard.
Strickland wants Diaz to employ
more movement in the ring. Then again, Strickland does not see his
ward backing out when the action in the ring escalates into a
toe-to-toe slugfest.
“David will be ready to punch
or move every second of every minute,” said
--Strickland. Ed C. Tolentino
|
