"One on one, he's always given me that kind of credit and that kind of confidence and the appreciation, but to hear him say it in such a huge forum like that, it's surreal...I have to give thanks and credit to my team, especially Teri Tom, who started that whole battle of moving Manny through those weight divisions...Now we're looking to do the same with Floyd," stated world-class Strength & Conditioning coach Alex Ariza, who responded to recent praise given to him by undefeated pound-for-pound king Floyd Mayweather. Check it out!
BT: Alex, prior to the press conference, Floyd spoke to the media and informed them that, in his opinion, you were the key to Pacquiao's success. What were your initial thoughts when you heard him say that?
AA: You know, I think it's one of those things that you don't expect to get credit or get the accolades in public for something like that, especially from somebody like Floyd, but behind closed doors, Floyd has always told me, "You know, the reason why you're here is because I've always watched and I notice things in other fighters." So one on one, he's always given me that kind of credit and that kind of confidence and the appreciation, but to hear him say it in such a huge forum like that, it's surreal dude. I mean, it's one of those things that you wish you could hear over and over again. But again, I have to give thanks and credit to my team, especially Teri Tom, who started that whole battle of moving Manny through those weight divisions. She's my dietician. We've been together for seven years now and we're still working together strong. She was such an important factor in helping me to get Manny to where he was back in those days. Now we're looking to do the same with Floyd.
BT: Manny was a world champion at the lower weights before he got together with you and Freddie, but then he really started making a name for himself as he marched through the weight divisions. Do you agree with Floyd's assessment that you were the key to his success as he moved up in weight?
AA: As a professional, you think you're the best at what you do. You have to have the confidence in what you do. It's not arrogance; it's confidence. You have to believe in the science and apply it effectively. You have to believe in your training and, more importantly, you have to win the confidence of the athlete. You're going to always have two conflicting sides. You're going to have the A side, where everybody believes that it was the science and the application of exercise and nutrition and the work that Teri and I did that helped him move through those weight classes, maintaining the speed, explosiveness, and creating power that most people were profoundly shocked by. I mean, he was so dominant that Top Rank once thought about putting him against Chavez Jr. That's the kind of juggernaut and punching machine that Manny Pacquiao became. And then you're going to have the B side, who believes that it was done by doing a few rounds of mitts and hitting the punching bag. So, you know, you're going to have those two conflicting sides. As much as I'd love to sit there and argue and try to convince people, you're just not going to. It's always going to be like that, you know.
BT: In order for Manny, or any fighter for that matter, to move up the weight divisions as dominantly as he did, would you say that the strength & conditioning element might be more important than the boxing technique element?
AA: Well, of course. I mean, again, you're going to have your two sides. One is going to say yes and one is going to say no. Of course on our side, if you talk to people who are into the exercising and the nutritional science aspect of sports, they're going to know what an invaluable role that it plays. It sometimes plays more of a role than any other element in training in order to move somebody up, to gradually move them and meticulously do their diet and programming so that we don't jeopardize speed, we don't jeopardize power, and that everything that we do is functional and complimentary to everything that the fighter already possesses. I think Manny was already a great fighter; we just made him an exceptional fighter.
[ Follow Ben Thompson on Twitter @fighthype ]