"Manny takes every shot pretty well. Manny's a tough guy. Manny's very tough. People don't understand that. For Manny to come from flyweight and to come up to welterweight and be able to take the kind of punches he takes and deliver the kind of power that he delivers, that's phenomenal...I believe if he catches Cotto in the first couple rounds, Cotto's going to sleep because Manny, I'ma tell you something, Manny can punch. That straight left hand and his right hook has gotten so much stronger," stated rising welterweight Rashad Holloway as he gave a behind-the-scenes look into Camp Pacquiao just one week before the highly-anticipated showdown with Miguel Cotto. Holloway was a guest on the OnTheGrind Boxing podcast yesterday and shared his thoughts on a number of subjects, including what it was like sparring with Pacquiao, his own recent fight with Frankie Figueroa and much more.
On the $1000 bounty that was offered to knock Pacquiao down...
"Manny is a tough guy. Manny is a lot tougher than a lot of guys think. I mean, we've all in camps, we've all in sparring hit somebody and got a good buzz out of it, whether we felt like we hurt him or could have knocked him down. I remember one time, they put an article, right before the De La Hoya fight, they put it on Fightnews and it said, 'Sparmate Staggers Pacquiao.' And, you know, it was a stagger or whatever; I can't say he was hurt-hurt, getting ready to be out or anything like that, but nah, Manny takes every shot pretty well. Manny's a tough guy. Manny's very tough. People don't understand that. For Manny to come from flyweight and to come up to welterweight and be able to take the kind of punches he takes and deliver the kind of power that he delivers, that's phenomenal. Manny's a tough guy. I mean, he's not an easy guy to knock out."
On whether or not Cotto will be able to knockout Pacquiao...
"8 ounce gloves and/or 10 ounces in Vegas and 16 ounces without headgear are a big difference. Cotto packs a big punch. Cotto has a very good left hook; a very good left hand period. He's not a big right-handed guy. His right hand doesn't have much on it, but he's tough and he can punch. And he's smart. He's smarter than a lot of people think. I think anybody can be knocked out at any given time. I think if Manny uses the right gameplan, Cotto doesn't have a shot. If Manny sticks to it, he doesn't have a shot."
On his sparring sessions with Pacquiao...
"I would just use speed. Cotto's a big left hooker and that's my punch. It's wierd, like, against a southpaw, it's different. I hate southpaws because my left hook isn't as effective as I would like it to be because I'm big left hand guy. I don't like my right hand too much. I love my left hand; everything off my left. But, I mean, I just brought speed and just pressure; a lot of counterpunching because they really think Cotto is going to come out to be a counterpuncher in this fight. I brought a lot of counterpunching to it and that's really about it."
On how he thinks the fight will play out....
"Pacquiao is not the greatest boxer in the world, we all know that. He's gotten a lot better and he is a good boxer; he's a lot smarter than people thinkg, but he has the fastest feet you ever want to see in your life. When I tell you that, I don't think you guys understand that. Like, with Manny, you could be two feet out of range, he jumps on you so quick. His hands are pretty quick, but not the fastest. His feet are what's so quick. He jumps on you and closes the distances so quick, you don't even understand. You think you're out of range and he pops you. Honestly, I believe if he catches Cotto in the first couple rounds, Cotto's going to sleep because Manny, I'ma tell you something, Manny can punch. That straight left hand and his right hook has gotten so much stronger. Manny can punch."
On the value of Freddie Roach in the corner...
"Freddie Roach is a very smart guy. I've said this on a YouTube clip before. I think what makes Freddie so good is Freddie wasn't a great fighter. Freddie was a good fighter and a lot of great ex-fighters, as a trainer, they have a bad habit of trying to make everyone like them...Freddie really breaks down fights. Me and Freddie sit and we talk every day in the gym. We talk about all kinds of stuff and he's smart. He really understands the game, but at the same time, you have to go in as a fighter and do what you're corner tells you to do."
On his prediction for the fight...
"I'm going with Manny, second round knockout!"
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