By Vitali Shaposhnikov: According to an interview with Freddie Roach (http://www.philstar.com/thedeanscorner/articlescontent.aspx?articleid=740939&publicationsubcategoryid=69), while Manny Pacquiao (53-3-2) is running out of opposition, there is still some formidable and exciting competition remaining. So not to worry folks, Pacquiao will not end up unemployed!
Some believe that Timothy Bradley (27-0-0) was an option, but it turns out that this may not be the case. “I think he’s involved in a lawsuit with two promoters. Besides, he’s got to earn the fight with Manny. Bradley’s not well known. It’s premature to even consider him fighting Manny,” said Roach.
According to Roach, Floyd Mayweather Jr’s. (42-0-0) recent victim Victor Ortiz (29-3-2) may actually work out as an opponent some time in the near future: “I remember Victor sparring with Manny and they went at each other for two days until we stopped it because Ortiz was like 20 or 30 pounds heavier.” This is certainly a fight that would fetch a good amount of money, but the result would mimic that of Ortiz’s fight against Mayweather Jr. as far as the result goes. Too much speed, power and experience would be playing in Pacquiao’s favor.
Another very possible scenario for Manny would be an unbeaten WBA Welterweight champion and Freddie Roach trained Viacheslav Senchenko (32-0-0) of Ukraine. “The Ukraine people haven’t seen Manny, and Senchenko’s promoters are very wealthy. His promoters control the coal and metal mines in the country. Manny could fight Senchenko in Ukraine for a lot of money. In the event they meet, Manny will win easy,” Roach explained. Well if this is what Freddie thinks, then why even make the fight? Let’s give Pacquiao some real competition (not to discredit Senchenko) instead of hand picked ready to lose boxers.
Apparently, Manny plans to retire at the end of 2013, leaving us with only 4 more fights remaining. Surprisingly, Roach mentioned that his last 3 fights might end up being a Mayweather Jr. vs. Pacquiao trilogy: “You know, obviously, everyone wants Mayweather. Of course, we’re all getting a little tired of hearing his name because he doesn’t want to fight Manny. But hopefully, that fight will happen. That fight is so interesting; it could end up being a trilogy. Actually, it could be the last three fights for Manny, if the fight goes as we see it because they’re both very, very good fighters so it’s a fight we want. There’s nobody out there for Manny anymore,” explained Roach.
While all this is only Roach’s opinion, I feel that it has more ground that most people will attribute to it. After all, him and Manny are much closer that most fighter/trainer duos. I have frequently heard that Manny listens and takes Roach’s opinions into great consideration, and often does as advised by Freddie. So, who knows, maybe we are in for a big blockbuster against Mayweather Jr. sooner than we think!