Roach: Loss to Mayweather affected Pacquiao the most
Manny Pacquiao’s knockout loss against Juan Manuel Marquez in 2012 did not bother him as much as the setback he suffered against Floyd Mayweather Jr. in 2015.
According to Hall of Fame coach Freddie Roach, Pacquiao was never the same fighter in the aftermath of being stopped as a pro. But he explained that Pacquiao, who suffered stoppage defeats in the early days of his career, saw the knockout loss as just another part of the sport.
“Manny Pacquiao knows that being knocked out is part of the sport and accepts it more than anyone else,” Roach told boxingscene.com. “It’s part of the sport, unfortunately, things happen and that night things did not go our way.”
Pacquiao (60-7-2, 39 KOs) is training under Roach, best friend Buboy Fernandez and strength and conditioning coach Justin Fortune for his defense of the World Boxing Association (WBA) “regular” welterweight title against Adrien Broner (33-3-1, 24 KOs).
The contest scheduled Jan. 19 at MGM Grand in Las Vegas, with Showtime Pay-Per-View carrying the bout.
In the same Las Vegas venue in 2012, Pacquiao faced Marquez for the fourth time in their rivalry.
In the sixth round, Pacquiao appeared to be on the verge of securing a stoppage win when Marquez, in the final seconds, clipped him with a perfect counter and the Filipino star was knocked unconscious.
While there was always some talk of a fifth encounter, Marquez made a career decision to reject that option and eventually retired.
“We were a a punch away from getting the same result on the other side. If Manny had not lost his balance, he would not have been beaten that way,” Roach recalled.
“When they knocked me out the first time I was never the same, but Manny Pacquiao sees it as part of the sport and that’s why I think he’s so efficient.”
In 2015 also in Las Vegas, undefeated five-division world champion Mayweather beat Pacquiao by unanimous decision in the bout billed as “The Fight of the Century.” —BOXINGSCENE.COM
