Freddie Roach, the famous American trainer who pushed Manny Paquiao all the way to full superstardom, says he wants the legendary Filipino warrior to do a rematch with WBO welterweight champion Jeff Horn—then hang up his gloves.
Nothing new there. It was not the first time Roach had voiced that wish for Pacquiao, the only eight-division world title winner in boxing.
There was more urgency in what Roach told ESPN Deportes over the weekend: “I hope he (Pacquiao) goes forward with that fight, and after that, he retires.”
First things first: Does Pacquiao honestly want to fight on?
Next: Would Pacquiao, who claimed he had been set up in that losing stand against Horn, still care to return to Australia?
It would help if they could get Pacquiao’s side on the Roach proposal.
So far, there has been no reported conversation or dialogue between Roach and Pacquiao after the fighting Filipino senator lost his WBO crown to Horn in Brisbane last July.
Based on a postchampionship dugout report, Pacquiao and Roach failed to talk to each other. The beaten Filipino superhero stood before the mirror attending to his hairdo, while Roach stayed at a distance and cooled his heels inside the dressing room.
Anyway, it was reported later that Pacquiao had agreed to do a rematch (last Sept. 12) in Brisbane.
However, Top Rank big boss Bob Arum would next report that Pacquiao had suddenly pulled out.
There are two sides to the proposed rematch.
One side says Horn urgently needs the fight in order to culminate his championship victory, which continued to be questioned by various sectors.
Pardon this, but there are also experts who felt Roach needed the rematch in order to clear the landscape. These experts felt that the Pacquiao-Horn fight could’ve gone either way; unfortunately Roach, who insisted on a KO finish, was clearly outplotted and outclassed by Glenn Rushton, the millionaire trainer who molded obscure Horn, a former schoolteacher, into a world-class boxer.
(AMAZED: US President Donald Trump stood and applauded the splendid presentation by select Filipino artists during the Asean Summit gala dinner at MOA in Pasay City on Sunday. Among the performers was the multiawarded Mandaluyong Children’s Choir of City Mayor Menchie Abalos. Mabuhay!)