FightHype.com caught up with world-class trainer Freddie Roach to talk about the recent announcement of Manny Pacquiao's next fight, a rematch with Juan Manuel Marquez. "Marquez is the fight I feel like we have unfinished business to straighten out and that's the fight that I like," stated Roach as he talked about the matchup. Check out what else he had to say about the fight and what the fans can expect when the two meet. Plus, don't miss what he had to say about the upcoming Mayweather-Hatton clash.
PC: How are you doing my man?
FR: Everything is good!
PC: It's been announced that Manny Pacquiao will be fighting Juan Manuel Marquez in March. Is that the fight you wanted and how do you feel now that it's done?
FR: Either fight was going to be a tough fight. I knew with David Diaz, we would've had to go up a weight class and fight a tough southpaw, but Marquez is the fight I feel like we have unfinished business to straighten out and that's the fight that I like.
PC: In the first fight, Manny jumped all over Marquez and Marquez eventually boxed his way back into it. Did you think Manny won the first fight, which was scored a draw?
FR: Well, we had a really good first round, you know, and one judge made a mistake and instead of scoring the round 10-6, he scored it 10-7. I protested that because that used to be a rule to where the worst you could score it was 10-7, but that rule has changed. He made a mistake and the commissioner just said to me that it's like baseball when a guy gets called out. It's a mistake and we kind of have to live with it. I thought we had an edge in the fight, but Marquez made a great comeback. You have to give him a lot of credit for coming back after 3 knockdowns. He showed a lot of heart and now we get a chance to do it all over again.
PC: What do you think will be the biggest difference between the two fights?
FR: I think Marquez, since the Pacquiao fight, hasn't looked all that great. He went to Thailand and got beat. He says he won, but everyone says that and then he refused to fight Pacquiao. Pacquiao sent him a contract to fight him for $750,000 and they both were getting the same amount of money, but he didn't want to fight Pacquiao. He looked pretty good against Barrera, but he hasn't really impressed me like he did in the Pacquiao fight, of course, and that's because Pacquiao kind of forced the fight. I think Pacquiao is a better fighter than he was the first time. Nacho says I made Pacquiao a better fighter, but he's more predictable now and that they'll beat him easier this time and I'm waiting to see that.
PC: Man, you've added so many dimensions to Manny.
FR: He's a much more complete fighter. He has 2 hands now instead of 1. I was very disappointed in the first fight actually because he had so much success with the left hand early in the fight that he only used that all night long. Marquez is a smart fighter so you're not going to beat him with the same thing over and over. The rematch is finally here and we're going to train 2 weeks in the Philippines and then we'll train 8 weeks here at Wildcard and Manny knows we're going to have to have a long camp for this one because it is a tough, tough fight. Style-wise, I think it is a hard fight for Manny, but I think we will be ready for it though.
PC: There is always a ton of distractions surrounding Manny before all of his fights lately. Do you think you could do anything to minimize all of the distractions at all?
FR: You know, we minimize them as much as we can, but a lot of the distractions, he creates himself. It doesn't bother him. When he's training, he let's all of that stuff go and he's able to let them go. One thing about Pacquiao is he's a machine in the gym. He works really hard and his work ethic is great.
PC: I don't know how much you're into pound-for-pound lists, but if he defeats Marquez, he will have beat him, Barrera twice and Morales twice. Do you think that should place him at #1 or do you already have him there?
FR: I think I have him at #1 already. Floyd is a very good boxer and a great boxer, I know that, but he's not a complete fighter. He's not a finisher and he's a little bit boring at times. I like Floyd Mayweather. He's always been a gentleman to me and I could only judge him by the way he treats me. He's a great boxer and so forth, but Pacquiao is the most exciting fighter in the world today. He's more fun to watch so I think people will choose him; if not now, then after he beats the three MexicansÂ…"The Trio." That would be a great thing for Pacquiao, but you know, pound-for-pound #1, it would be nice to be there, but it don't make you any extra money so I don't think Manny really cares.
PC: In his last fight with Barrera, did that fight go as you figured it would?
FR: I asked Manny why didn't he try and knock him out and he says, "Well, it was his last fight and I didn't want to embarrass him." I think he held back a little bit because he knew he was ahead in the fight, but I told him, "Manny, you can't be doing that." He feels that he could've knocked him out and he could say that, but it's hard to do.
PC: There was talk of Manny moving up in weight. Is he ok at 130 still?
FR: He'll make 130. In his last fight, he had a little troubleÂ…well, actually, we didn't have trouble. He was so low in the Philippines that when we got to America, we didn't really pay attention to it that much, but in the Philippines, it's so hot that he stayed very low. This time, we'll monitor his weight a lot better and he'll make 130 with no problem at all.
PC: You have a lot of fighters Freddie. Do you feel like you're spreading yourself thin or are you ok with this pace?
FR: Ah, I think I'm going to have to start saying no because it's getting hard for me to do that. I think I do spread myself a little bit too thin, but when my priority is there, I'm with them, but my young guys suffer a little bit. I got a good staff though and that helps out a lot. Eric Brown, my brother and Pat Burns, he trains here and helps me out too so when I get busy, they help pick up the slack, but it is difficult and I need to start saying no to some people. I'd like to help everybody that I could, but it's just impossible.
PC: Bernard Hopkins may be fighting Joe Calzaghe some time next year. Would you be in his corner and how do you see that fight playing out?
FR: He asked me and we were talking about it a little bit, but his trainer, Naazim Richardson, is back healthy again so I'm sure he'll be back. Bernard and Calzaghe is a really hard fight to pick. I don't want to say he's that much younger than Hopkins because I know he's been around for a long time, but he's very active and he throws a lot of punches. But the thing is, Bernard has that style and he's smart enough to slow the guy down and get the guy to fight at his pace. He's just an unbelievable fighter and I tip my hat off to him for being a great athlete and doing what he's doing at his age. It's a real good fight and I'd like to see that fight. Calzaghe would be fighting in America for the first time and he'd have his whole country behind him. Obviously I like Bernard in that fight because he's my friend and I might be helping him get ready for that one. The thing with Calzaghe, because I was training Collins for the fight and he pulled out and Calzaghe ended up beating Eubank, so when he beat Eubank, he beat a good fighter that night and a couple of other guys, but he hasn't had a lot of tough fights. He's had like 3 or 4, but he's always done well. It's obviously a tough fight, but if anyone can pull it off, I know Bernard can.
PC: How do you feel about the Miguel Cotto and Shane Mosley fight?
FR: It was a very close fight and some people feel it could've went either way and I wouldn't argue with that. I gave it to him by a point. I thought Shane maybe had him in the 9th, but let it go for a second. Cotto gets wobbled sometimes and gets hurt a bit, but he doesn't hold, he doesn't run; he fights. He just comes back hard and fights. He's fun to watch and he's a good fighter. I would love to see the winner of the Hatton/ Mayweather fight face Cotto next. I think Ricky Hatton and Cotto would be a good fight too. Either way it goes. Of course, Shane's always exciting too. He didn't embarrass himself in that fight. He lost to a good fighter and Shane could contend with any of these guys. Then we got Oscar wanting to fight a couple of more fights before he retires also. It's a good division to be in right now; 147.
PC: Who do you like in the Hatton/ Mayweather fight?
FR: I wouldn't be sticking my neck out if I pick Floyd because he's a good boxer and he's hard to beat, but I think he just may have too much speed for Hatton and I pick Floyd by 12 round decision.
PC: I appreciate your time Freddie. It's always a pleasure to speak with you. Is there anything you want to say in closing?
FR: Thank you for everything and call me anytime, ok!
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