Manny Pacquiao in 4 or 5, says Linares

Manny Pacquiao’s rapid rise to form is catching his training team off-guard.

Barely three days into his Baguio training camp, the pound-for-pound king surprised chief trainer Freddie Roach when he asked for a sparring session with Jorge Linares, the former WBC featherweight and WBA super featherweight champion yesterday afternoon at the Cooyeesan Hotel’s Shape Up Gym.

And, as usual, Pacquiao did not disappoint.

The eight-division champion, honing up for his third showdown against Juan Manuel Marquez on Nov. 12 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, showed enough speed, skill and power to convince Linares, who’ll be battling Antonio Demraco for the vacant WBC lightweight title on Oct. 15, that he’s going to finish off the Mexican great this time.

“Maybe in four or up to five rounds,” the 26-year-old pride of Venezuela, who totes an impressive 31-win, 1-loss record spiked by 20 knockouts, told TV5.

That’s a huge compliment considering that Pacquiao is only about 80 percent into tip-top shape, according to Filipino trainer Buboy Fernandez.

“He (Pacquiao) is on fire,” said Fernandez in Filipino. “Never in our previous camps has he improved so fast.

“And the results are good, so we’re giving in to what he wants.”

The four-round sparring session was not calendared, with Pacquiao supposed to do gym work and mitts only.

Early in the morning, Pacquiao jogged and ran in the flatlands with noted marathoner Brian Livingstone, from Los Angeles, near the Teacher’s Camp.

Originally set for 3.8 kilometers, the road work extended to 6.8 km with Pacquiao yearning for more.

Though he admitted having difficulty on his high-altitude uphill run on Wednesday, Pacquiao said it will only take two more days for him to be back in his element.

Fernandez, who did the mitts with his boyhood buddy when Roach was still in the United States, agreed.

“He’s gaining ground fast and I can already feel his power. My hands ached whenever he unleashes those shots.”