GENERAL SANTOS CITY Sa edad 37, mahigit dalawang dekadang sabak sa lona sa halos 60 laban, masasabing nalagpasan na ni Manny Pacquiao ang ‘golden years’ ng kanyang boxing career.
Ngunit, para kay boxing trainer Hall-of-Famer Freddie Roach, walang nabago sa lakas ni Pacman. Walang kalawang sa kanyang kilos at galaw mula sa siyam na buwang pamamahinga.
At ang nakagugulat, ayon kay Roach, taglay pa rin ng eight division world champion ang bilis at lakas ng kamao na nagdistansiya sa kanya sa ibang boksingero.
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“Manny showed me a very explosive pair of hands and quick footwork, assets that have been the highlights of his career. I’m glad he didn’t lose that,” pahayag ni Roach matapos masaksihan ang ensayo ni Pacman dito.
Dumating nitong Lunes si Roach para personal na pangasiwaan ang paghahanda ni Pacquiao para sa kanyang napipintong laban – hindi man huling akyat sa lona – kontra sa Amerikanong si Timothy Bradley sa Abril 9 sa MGM Grand Arena sa Las Vegas.
“I’m impressed with what I saw. Never mind if it seemed he was only trying to impress me, but, I must admit, I’m happy seeing what I did not expect to see,” pahayag ni Roach. “I was expecting him to be rusty owing to his non-boxing activity the past several months. He was far from that.”
“Obviously, they did their homework before my arrival,” pahayag ni Roach patungkol sa programang isinagawa ni Pacquiao sa pangangasiwa ng mga Pinoy trainer na sina Buboy Fernandez, Nonoy Neri at Roger “Haplas” Fernandez.
Kabilang sa cross-training ni Pacman ang paglalaro ng basketball, itinuturing na “first love” ng People’s champ.
Ang relasyon ni Pacquiao sa basketball ay umabot na sa pro league kung saan minimintina niya ang koponan ng Mahindra sa PBA, bukod sa pag-organisa ng mga local tournament sa iba’t ibang lalawigan at pagiging team manager sa ilang collegiate team.
“Today is only the first day of our preparations and I wasn’t really expecting to see much of the inroads he reportedly had gained following the pre-training activities he’d undergone,” sambit ng 56-anyos na si Roach.
Ngunit, higit sa kahandaan ng pangangatawan, ang pagkagutom ng Pinoy champ sa panalo ang nagpapataas ng kumpiyansa ni Roach para sa isang dominanteng panalo ni Pacman.
At hindi ito maitago ng Saranggani Congressman.
“Excited na ako gaya nang dati. I have been missing boxing and the ring. It’s been a long rest,” aniya.
Gayunman nais ni Roach na makasiguro, higit at nakapagbitiw na siya ng salita para sa isang TKO win ng People’s champion.
“I need to know the extent of his recovery although I know he was examined by his doctors after the press conferences held to promote the fight and was given the green light to train,” sambit ni Roach.
“Manny himself promised to win by knockout, a vow he never made before, so we have to prepare him for that, especially because he intends this fight to be his last,” aniya.
Para masustinahan ang kahandaan ng Pinoy champion, sinabi ni Roach na isasabak niya si Pacman sa sparring laban sa mas bata at sumisikat na si Lydell Rhodes.
Hindi rin isinantabi ni Roach na ilipat ang traning session ni Pacman sa Las Vegas mula sa pagmamay-ari niyang Wild Card Gym sa Los Angeles. (PHILBOXING.COM)
