On July 19th, world-class boxing trainer Freddie Roach will officially enter the world of mixed martial arts when he works the corner of former UFC heavyweight champion Andrei Arlovski during the inaugural Affliction: Banned event. Over the past few months, Arlovski, who will be facing Ben Rothwell, has been a regular at Wild Card Gym where he's been working closely with Roach to improve his stand-up skills.
Freddie Roach, a former professional boxer himself, was taught by the legendary Eddie Futch. After a career of tough and exciting fights that earned him a record of 39-13 (15 KOs), Roach hung up his gloves and began his career as a trainer, molding and working with champions like Manny Pacquiao, James Toney, Mike Tyson, Oscar De La Hoya, Virgil Hill, Israel Vazquez and Wayne McCullough to name a few. Now Roach embarks into the world of mixed martial arts with another former champion, Arlovski, and he looks forward to bringing his success from the boxing world.