By James Slater: Well-known strength and conditioning expert Alex Ariza, who has worked with and is working with among others, Manny Pacquiao and Amir Khan, has been moved to write on his official blog what it is that makes superstar Pac-Man as strong as he is. No doubt extremely annoyed at the allegations Floyd Mayweather Junior and others have made with regards to the P-4-P king cheating by taking illegal, strength-building stimulants, Ariza has revealed the simple, legal secret of Pac-Man’s success: a sufficient intake of protein.
“What really builds muscle the safe and healthy way – the smart way – the way all my fighters do is this legal substance called protein,” Ariza stated. “By making sure Pacquiao gets adequate protein and amino acids this will reduce the chance of any negative effects we do no want to happen. For someone to think it is a waste of protein because they have also consumed some beef or chicken is dead wrong. So the claim of Mayweather that Pacquiao is using some drug stuff to make him bigger and stronger is ridiculous.”
Of course, Pacquiao himself was so offended at Mayweather’s allegations that he took the matter to the legal authorities (with “Money” refusing to attend court a few days ago, as reported everywhere). And now Ariza has given his simple explanation for the boxing superstar’s strength and power. Protein? That’s all it is? If only all other boxers knew!
Seriously, though, will those suspicious of Pac-Man’s achievements be willing to buy Ariza’s explanation for his ability to have come up through a staggering eight weight classes? From a waif-like 106-pounder all the way up to a 154-pound world champion Pacquiao has climbed, and a number of people cannot accept that this was done by wholly legal means. There is absolutely no evidence that proves Manny has ever resorted to cheating, and as such we must applaud his greatness the same way we attribute it to nothing more than uncommon skill, sheer hard work and of course, Ariza’s protein shakes.
It seems unlikely the critics will ever be silent, but Ariza has spelled it out: protein is the only substance he insists his fighters consume.