"Manny wants to start training camp early, so we are going to the Philippines this week to start camp with Amir and we will train four to six weeks before we come back to America," stated Hall-of-Fame trainer Freddie Roach, who recently revealed that both he and former jr. welterweight champion Amir Khan will soon be traveling to the Philippines to begin training camp alongside 8-division world champion Manny Pacquiao. Starting tomorrow, Khan will embark on a three-city press tour, with stops in London, Washington DC, and Los Angeles, to promote his upcoming May 19th rematch with Amir Khan. The final press conference takes place next Monday, March 19th, so we assume both he and Roach will be heading to the Philippines some time shortly after that.
"I just called Manny and told him that Amir wants to come to your training camp and work with you and Manny said no problem. People don't realize how close they are and how much Amir idolizes and looks up to Manny," Roach commented in an interview with Boxinqtalk's John McCormick. Of course, this won't be the first time that Khan has trained alongside Pacquiao in the Philippines. In fact, since at least late 2010, both fighters have trained side by side for their last few bouts, with each of their fights generally taking place about a month apart. While the timing of their fights is convenient for Freddie Roach, one has to wonder if sharing the attention of their trainer is fair to the fighters.
Pacquiao and Khan have had a number of sparring sessions with each other over the years as they've prepared for their opponents. Surely by now, each man has picked up on the other's tendencies inside the ring, which isn't exactly a good thing when you're preparing for a totally different opponent. Furthermore, exactly who plays the part of the opponent when they actually do spar? Will Amir Khan mimic the movements of Timothy Bradley? Will Manny Pacquiao imitate the style of Lamont Peterson? Although the idea of both fighters training together sounds good on the surface, given their last performance, perhaps the experiment has run its course.