Manny Pacquiao challenge against Floyd Mayweather Jr

MANILA – A highly respected boxing analyst said he thinks Manny Pacquiao will pose a tougher challenge against Floyd Mayweather, Jr. should a “mega-fight” be arranged between the two boxers.
Teddy Atlas, a well-known boxing trainer and ESPN sports analyst, believes Pacquiao can match Mayweather with speed, at least better than Juan Manuel Marquez did during the “Number One vs Numero Uno” match.
“Pacquiao is able to bring things in a better way than Marquez was able to bring. Pacquiao is a lot faster than Marquez and will probably match Mayweather with speed,” Atlas told David Tyler of DogHouse boxing.com.
Mayweather defeated Marquez by a lopsided decision. The former pound-for-pound king used his quickness to outbox the "smaller" Mexican, who was hampered by the climb in weight.
Atlas also cited that Pacquiao is different compared to Marquez in terms of boxing styles.
“Pacquiao is busier than Marquez and does a lot more than just put his hands together. I just think that Pacquiao does more things than Marquez does as a smaller guy going up in weight,” said Atlas.
A Pacquiao-Mayweather showdown is considered by many boxing fans as a “fight for the ages” because it would mean pitting the best pound-for-pound boxers in recent years.
Pacquiao is currently the top pound-for-pound and one of the most exciting fighters boxer today. Mayweather, on the other hand, is now ranked No. 2 in the P4P list owing to his "destruction" of Marquez.
Atlas, however, said that the possibility of a Pacquiao-Mayweather match up will depend on the outcome of the Filipino’s “Firepower” showdown with Miguel Cotto.
The Filipino champ will try to win Cotto’s World Boxing Organization welterweight title when they face off at the MGM Grand Arena in Las Vegas on November 14.
“I think a lot will have to do with how he gets through the Cotto fight, if he gets through the Cotto well, then I think all systems will be going perfect and I think all systems must be working perfect for him to go into the biggest fight of his life against Mayweather,” said Atlas.
Pacquiao is currently training in the highlands of Baguio to prepare himself against Cotto.

as of 09/25/2009 5:46 PM

share on: facebook

Manny Pacquiao resort to hit-and-run tactics

BAGUIO CITY — Manny Pacquiao will have to resort to hit-and-run tactics to negate whatever advantages Miguel Cotto enjoys in heft, height and strength, according to the Filipino superstar’s American trainer, Freddie Roach.
Roach said Pacquiao’s speed will also ruin Cotto’s fighting style when the two collide for the Puerto Rican’s World Boxing Organization welterweight crown on Nov. 14 in Las Vegas.
“We have to make sure that he wouldn’t be able to put both his feet on the ground and land his punches,” said Roach, adding they are wary of Cotto’s left hook, said to be the most dangerous punch in his arsenal.
Pacquiao is also firming up his torso so that Cotto’s body shots will not sting as much, Roach said.
The General Santos City lefty has added “abs crunches” as part of his training regimen at the Shape Up boxing gym here, where Team Pacquiao is expected to stay for about six weeks.
Roach said they are also devising ways to outthink Cotto.
“Cotto’s got his great left hook and he’s smart,” he said.
Pacquiao said his training will focus more on strategy in thwarting the bigger Cotto.
“I am a boxer,” Pacquiao said. “I already know the power of my punches. I need more strategy.”
Roach said he wants his prized ward to dictate the pace of the fight and “not let Cotto do it.”
Pacquiao jogged at Camp John Hay yesterday, disappointing joggers and tourists who were expecting to see their idol again at Burnham Park.
Employees at the City Hall earlier mobbed Pacquiao when he and his team visited Mayor Reinaldo Bautista Jr. at past 10 a.m. yesterday.
At a news conference held after Pacquiao and his entourage left, Bautista said the boxer also inquired about good schools in Baguio.
“He may be considering transferring his children here to study,” said Bautista.
With a report from Vincent Cabreza, PDI
share on: facebook

Manny Pacquiao refraining from lighting verbal fireworks

WITH MANNY PACQUIAO AGAIN REfraining from lighting up verbal fireworks, it was Miguel Cotto who generated a buzz in his hometown Puerto Rico by making a little promise in front of his compatriots.

“I will return as champion,” he was quoted by Internet reports as saying after a press conference in Caguas to promote his match against Pacquiao.

Cotto will defend his World Boxing Organization welterweight belt against the Filipino pound-for-pound king on Nov. 14 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

“Puerto Rico has been having great moments in sports the past weeks,” Cotto said. “I assure you the party will continue because after Nov. 14, I will return as champion.”

Puerto Rico’s latest triumph on the international stage was a silver-medal finish in the recent Fiba Americas, where it qualified for basketball’s World Championships in Turkey next year.

Pacquiao was greeted by an appreciative applause when he was introduced by Top Rank chief Bob Arum.

“I understand you support Cotto, but no matter who wins, we’re going to have a good fight,” said the Filipino icon.

This will be the fourth time Pacquiao will fight beyond his turf in the featherweight and super featherweight ranks.

In 2008, he took the WBC lightweight belt of David Diaz before stopping Oscar De La Hoya in eight rounds of a welterweight match. Early this year, he knocked Ricky Hatton out in two rounds of a light welterweight championship duel.

Francis T.J. Ochoa
share on: facebook

Freddie Roach sees Miguel Cotto as the biggest challenge

Freddie Roach sees Miguel Cotto as the biggest challenge in Manny Pacquiao’s illustrious career that he couldn’t help himself compare the reigning WBO welterweight champion to a famous fictional movie monster.

“We are about to fight King Kong," Roach exclaimed during the press conference for the Pacquiao-Cotto November 14 showdown in Cotto’s hometown of Caguas, Puerto Rico Saturday (Sunday in Manila).

“That’s how big he is. But we have a game plan, although it is going to be a hard fight," he added.


Miguel Cotto, left, and Filipino pound for pound king Manny Pacquiao, during their recent promotional tour in New York. APPacquiao himself admitted during the event held at the Centro de Bellas Artes that the 28-year-old Cotto, a natural welterweight, will be his hardest fight to date. Perhaps even tougher than Oscar De La Hoya, Juan Manuel Marquez and Erik Morales, three of boxing’s most revered fighters who suffered defeats at the hands of the Filipino ring icon.

“There is going to be a lot of action in the ring," Pacquiao told the crowd. “Cotto is big and strong. He has the size, he’s very smart and he’s big."

One thing going for Pacquiao is the 145-pound catchweight, a weight class where the Puerto Rican last fought in 2006 yet.

Other than that, everything appears to favor Cotto, who, unlike Pacquiao, has already begun to train for the 12-round fight as early as last month.

“Cotto is strong and bigger, he is at his prime right now," Roach admitted. “He is a game guy and he likes to exchange, so we have to be very careful."

He said Cotto is a great puncher with a great left hook to the body that his ward should neutralize.

“He is solid and does everything consistently."

The Puerto Rico stopover is the second in the week-long, five city tour by the two boxing superstars to hype up their “Firepower" title fight two months from now at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

The press tour began last Friday at the Yankee Stadium in New York.

Next on their agenda is a personal appearance in San Francisco on Sunday, a 10-hour flight from Caguas, where a similar gig will be held at the AT& T Park.

The following day it’s off to Los Angeles for the Pacquiao and Cotto entourage, where another press conference is set at the Beverly Hills Hotel.

The final destination is slated in San Diego at the Petco Park on Tuesday.

After all these, Pacquiao is penciled for his eight-week training camp beginning Sept. 21 in Baguio City. - GMANews.TV
share on: facebook