Bradley hoping to get Cotto or Mayweather in the ring if Pacquiao doesn’t step up to the plate

WBO welterweight champion Tim Bradley’s #1 pick for his next fight is a rematch against former WBO welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao who Bradley just finished beating last June despite having two hurt feet. However, with Bob Arum talking about Miguel Cotto or Juan Manuel Marquez for Pacquiao’s next fight on November 10th, Bradley says he’d be interested in facing Floyd Mayweather Jr. or Cotto next.

Bradley said to RingTV “If Manny Pacquiao doesn’t want to fight me, then I’m looking for a Floyd Mayweather fight. Or I’m looking for a Miguel Cotto fight.”

Well, it’s kind of not up to Bradley who he fights. He signed with Bob Arum of Top Rank, and he kind of will have to agree to fight with the guys that Arum can put fights together with, and I don’t see a fight being put together between Mayweather and Bradley, so he might as well forget about that one happening.

There’s a good chance that Pacquiao will take on Marquez next. In that case, Bradley-Cotto would be a good fight. However, Cotto doesn’t want to fight at 147 lbs anymore, and it’s unclear whether Bradley would be able to move up in weight to take a fight against Cotto unless it was a catch-weight variety fight. But Cotto might not be interested in facing Bradley, because Bradley’s last fight against Pacquiao failed to bring in huge pay per view numbers.

If Cotto fights Bradley, he would find himself in a PPV bout that brings in disappointing figures. Since the PPV buys are extremely important for fighters, Cotto might not be all that interested in facing Arum’s fighter Bradley. There’s no upside there for Cotto, and he might be hurting himself if he agrees to take on Bradley now if it doesn’t promise to bring in huge numbers. Cotto’s best bet is to try and get Pacquiao or Mayweather back in the ring. If not one of them, then he needs to go after a fight against WBC junior middleweight champion Saul Alvarez instead.

By: Chris Williams

http://www.boxingnews24.com/2012/08/bradley-hoping-to-get-cotto-or-mayweather-in-the-ring-if-pacquiao-doesnt-step-up-to-the-plate/

Now that a World Boxing Organization panel of so-called independent judges chosen by the organization’s Championship Committee has declared Pacquiao as a convincing winner after a review of  the tape of the title fight at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas last June 9, what now?

Two of the three judges appointed by the Nevada State Athletic Commission — Cynthia Ross and Duane Ford turned in scorecards of 115-113 that helped Bradley win a split decision after the third judge CJ Roth had Pacquiao the winner 115-113.

Top Rank promoter Bob Arum, who handles both fighters, condemned the decision and branded the three judges, including CJ Roth who had Pacquiao the winner, “three blind mice” and requested the Nevada State Attorney General to investigate the circumstances surrounding the decision and the fight itself amidst unsubstantiated speculation that it was a “fix.”

Two prominent US senators joined the fray and called for the creation of a single national boxing commission that would oversee the various aspects of the sport.

Democratic Majority Floor Leader Harry Reid, a friend of Arum and someone who obviously is grateful for Pacquiao’s last minute endorsement at a campaign rally in Las Vegas in which he urged Filipino-Americans to support Reid, and Sen. John McCain, who like Reid boxed in his younger days, used the bizarre decision in the Pacquiao-Bradley fight to win support for new legislation.

The WBO review panel’s scorecards should clearly bolster their efforts while at the same time raising serious questions about how NSAC executive director Keith Kizer could initially, nonchalantly dismiss calls for an investigation into the incompetence of the judges if there is no evidence to prove something more sinister.  Kizer’s position is understandable although seriously flawed because he recommended the judges who were eventually chosen from a pool of six nominees to do the fight.

Kizer informed us “the judges want to come in (individually) and review the bout and I want to watch it with them” and adds that “a judge re-watching a fight is always helpful (whether there is controversy or not).” The question is, what next?

WBO president Francisco “Paco” Valcarcel had, a few days before the fight, proudly handed Pacquiao a  Diamond Ring as the “Fighter of the Decade” in what might be considered an effort to  try and match the rival World Boxing Council’s Don Jose Sulaiman putting the first Diamond Belt on the line which Pacquiao won with a rousing 12^th round TKO of Miguel Cotto.

Valcarcel sent the review panel’s scorecards to Kizer and broke it down systematically, which demonstrated their wide differences with the official fight judges scorecards. He pointedly noted “the results speak for themselves.”

Apparently they don’t speak loud enough since Valcarcel, in the same breath stated,   “There is no question of our respect and high regard for the official judges. Their integrity is not in question. However, it was decided that a review of the bout should take place with a panel of five confidential judges mainly to maintain impartiality.”

We subscribe to the appreciation of integrity as the quality of wholeness which was totally missing in this case.

Even a cursory reading of the scorecards of the five review judges and those of Ford, Ross and Roth show that the fight, to use Arum’s own words in dismissing any thought of a rematch, ” was not even close.”

Review judge No. 4 (since their identities have been kept secret at least for the time being) had Pacquiao winning by the widest margin, 118-110, while Judges 3 and 5 scored it for Pacquiao 117-111. Judge No. 2 had Pacquiao winning 116-112 which was our unofficial scorecard when we covered the fight with respected boxing commentator/journalist Atty. Ed Tolentino for The Filipino Channel of the giant broadcast network  ABS-CBN.

Judge No.1 scored it the closest at 115-113 but still had Pacquiao the winner which matched the scorecard of Jerry Roth.

A closer reading of the scorecards shows that all five review judges agreed unanimously that Pacquiao won rounds 1, 3, 5, 6 and 10 while all five agreed unanimously that Bradley won only the 10^th round.

According to Arum, the investigation of the Nevada State Attorney General’s Office is being pursued as the Chief Investigator and the Deputy Chief Investigator visited him in his Las Vegas office on Wednesday. He said they  “questioned me about a lot of background things for over an hour.”

Arum revealed that they asked him whether he had any proof of criminality and he answered “None, absolutely none.”

This, taken together with the announced views of Valcarcel and Kizer point to a dead-end as far as unearthing any evidence of corruption or wrongdoing, which means there is no way the WBO or the NSAC will reverse the decision or even declare the fight a no decision which would enable Pacquiao to retain his belt.

Like all other efforts to right the wrongs in boxing, nothing is expected to come out of the posturing of the parties to a decision which we ourselves initially referred to as a high crime in Las Vegas where Sin City added one more sin to its list of wrongdoings.

The only glimmer of hope is that Senators Reid and McCain can muster enough support in the U.S. congress to get the much-needed reforms they seek and boxing badly needs, if it is to survive.

The only other alternative would be for Pacquiao to accept the realities of the sport in Las Vegas, return to the scene of the crime and exact vengeance not on Bradley because he had nothing to do with what happened, but to at least win by a knockout or TKO and deprive the judges of a chance to do more harm and send the three blind mice a telling message.

By: Ronny Nathanielsz

http://ph.sports.yahoo.com/blogs/fortherecord/wbo-findings-now-234311415.html

Pacquiao-Bradley Scorecard Analysis

CLICK ON THE LINK ABOVE TO VIEW OUR FINAL REVIEW OF THE MANNY PACQUIAO vs. TIMOTHY BRADLEY CHAMPIONSHIP BOUT!!!

A promised, we have now released our final review of the Pacquiao-Bradley fight. Inside the document posted above, you will find the 5 scorecards of the 5 WBO judges, along with the official scorecards of the fight. Later on, you will find a round by round analysis comparing: 1.) where were the WBO judges in total agreement and where were they divided, 2.) where were all 8 judges (5 WBO judges and the three official judges) in total agreement, majority agreement, or divided.  Comments are more than welcomed

The World Boxing Organization on Wednesday announced it has assigned five judges to re-score Manny Pacquiao‘s controversial loss by decision to Palm Springs’ Timothy Bradley in an effort to convince state commissions to widen the pool of judges for major fights.

Although many at ringside for Saturday’s fight gave Pacquiao between nine and 11 rounds, judges Duane Ford and C.J. Ross scored the bout 115-113 (seven rounds to five) in Bradley’s favor, and a third Nevada judge, Jerry Roth, had it 115-113 for Pacquiao in the WBO welterweight title contest.

WBO President Francisco “Paco” Valcarcel said five judges, from New Jersey, Connecticut, Florida, Pennsylvania and Puerto Rico, will re-score the bout and submit their work confidentially to the WBO, with the scores to be gathered by Monday.

Valcarcel said that armed with that information, he will submit to the Assn. of Boxing Commissions by its July meeting a request that state commissions such as Nevada’s work more diligently to bring in judges from outside their states for fights of the magnitude of a world title contest.

Before the Pacquiao-Bradley judges were assigned by the Nevada State Athletic Commission, Valcarcel said he submitted a list of 20 judges from elsewhere who could be assigned to the bout. None were chosen.

“We’re asking the ABC to make recommendations how a sanctioning body like ours can work better with a state commission, to use this experience to have better scoring in the future,” Valcarcel said.

Valcarcel said he is not considering stripping the WBO belt from Bradley, and will not order a mandatory rematch, because Pacquiao’s contract stipulates he would get a rematch if he lost the bout. In promoting the fight, Bradley had printed up a poster and ticket hyping Bradley-Pacquiao II on Nov. 10.

“This wasn’t Bradley’s fault, and we’re not saying there was any evidence of fraud or corruption here,” Valcarcel said. “That’s outside the scope of what we’re doing.”

He said he’s also not questioning the integrity of Ford or Ross.

“There are excellent judges available internationally, and they should be considered,” Valcarcel said. “We’ve done it here in Puerto Rico, bringing in judges from Nevada.”

By Lance Pugmire

http://www.latimes.com/sports/sportsnow/la-sp-sn-boxing-wbo-pacquiao-20120613,0,7574716.story?track=rss

El presidente de la Organización Mundial de Boxeo (OMB), Francisco “Paco” Valcárcel, anunció que esta entidad, por medio de su Comité de Campeonatos, evaluará la pelea entre Manny Pacquiao y Timothy Bradley, que terminó en un controvertible resultado el pasado sábado, 9 de junio, para tomar medidas acorde con el reglamento.

Valcárcel informó que el Comité de Campeonatos se reunirá próximamente y examinará “con cinco reconocidos jueces internacionales para evaluar el video de la pelea (entre Pacquiao y Bradley) y de acuerdo a lo que surja, el Comité de Campeonatos hará su recomendación de acuerdo a las reglas”.

El pasado sábado, 9 de junio en Las Vegas, Pacquiao (54-4-2, 38 KOs) y Bradley (29-0, 12 KOs) se midieron por el título welter de la OMB, que estaba en poder del filipino, y el pleito terminó en una victoria por decisión dividida a favor del estadounidense con votaciones de 115-113 (Duane Ford), 115-113 (C.J. Ross) y 113-115 (Jerry Roth).

“Quiero aclarar que de ninguna manera esto dice que estamos dudando de la capacidad de estos jueces, a los que consideramos como honestos y competentes”, precisó Valcárcel.

          Recuerden la 25ta Convención Anual y Elecciones de la Organización Mundial de Boxeo (OMB), que se efectuará del 22 al 26 de octubre de 2012 en el Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino de Hollywood, Florida.

          Para reservaciones en el Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino de Hollywood, Florida, pueden llamar al teléfono 1 800 937-0010 ó verificar en la página del hotel a la dirección www.seminolehardrockhollywood.com, así como la página cibernética   www.wboboxing.com.

If you listen really carefully, you could hear the sound of laughter. Where is it coming from? From the Palm Springs area in the Southern California desert.

Still do not have an idea who it is coming from? Well, he was criticized by the media and diehard boxing fans for passing up on a guaranteed payday against Amir Khan last year and is about to step inside the ring against Manny Pacquiao this Saturday night.

Timothy Bradley had heard all the criticisms before, yet stood steadfast on his decision and the hope that there would be a big payday down the road.

That hope became a reality when he signed the contract and is only days away from taking on the one of if not the pound for pound boxer today.

Bradley will face Pacquiao in a 12 round bout at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, NV. The bout will headline an eight-bout card, presented by Top Rank. The card will be televised on HBO Pay Per View.

Lost in the buildup and hype of the bout is that Bradley is challenging for Pacquiao’s world title belt. However, the bigger prize for Bradley is to assume the mythical title of pound for pound fighter, to certain members of the media, and cashing his biggest payday as a professional fighter.

Bradley (28-0, 12 KOs) is coming off an eighth round technical knockout over faded former world champion Joel Casamayor back in November. Ironically, Bradley appeared on the undercard of the Pacquiao-Juan Manuel Marquez III bout, which Pacquiao won by a disputed 12 round majority decision.

Prior to the Casamayor fight, Bradley was involved in a roller coaster of events. After defeating Devon Alexander in January of last year, Bradley had a guaranteed $1.4 million payday waiting for him and a potential deal lined up to fight Amir Khan.

However, that deal never materialized as Bradley was involved in promotional issues with Gary Shaw and Thompson Boxing. After being sued by both promotional companies and waiting for his contract with both promotional companies to expire, Bradley signed on with Top Rank.

The move by Bradley and manager Cameron Dunkin was widely criticized by the media, especially when there was a guaranteed payday of almost $1.5 million for Bradley after his victory over Alexander.

However, the decision by Bradley turned out to be a shrewd and wise one as he will be making about five million dollars for the fight, about the same amount that Juan Manuel Marquez and Shane Mosley made. Marquez and Mosley were Pacquiao’s last two opponents. Not to mention that he has a legitimate opportunity to defeat Pacquiao.

“I heard all the criticisms from the media regarding that deal,” Bradley told Fightnews.com over the phone on Tuesday afternoon. “I didn’t care about what they said about me. I knew there was a better opportunity out there for me and I capitalized on it. Cameron Dunkin deserves the credit for working hard and making this fight happen.”

“When it was all said and done, I was the one who had the last laugh.”

However, the last laugh would be to defeat the popular Filipino fighter, an achievement nobody has done since Erik Morales defeated Pacquiao back in March of 2005.

Bradley’s style could give Pacquiao problems as Bradley has shown in previous fights to press the fight and be the aggressor in an attempt to back up his opponents. However, Bradley has shown in the last couple of years that he could box and not just come forward and throw wild punches.

Bradley’s speed and tenacity could work for him or against him, but one thing that he does not lack is confidence, something that he has showing more of during press conferences and on the hit HBO series, 24/7: Pacquiao-Bradley.

“I talk more now because I have a lot of confidence in what I do. I didn’t have as much confidence as I do now and now that I have that confidence, I’m more open. It’s through all that hard work that I’ve put in with my team (his trainer Joe Diaz and his father, Timothy, Sr.) over the years.”

While Bradley admits that the intensity of this camp has been the most strenuous of his career, he has not had any outside the gym distractions like Pacquiao has had in leading up to Saturday’s fight.

Aside from the hardcore training regimen one is accustomed to seeing in the gym by Pacquiao, most of the news on Pacquiao has been on him participating in bible readings due to prior infidelity issues and the ongoing drama between trainer Freddie Roach and strength/ conditioning coach Alex Ariza.

Bradley does not think that will be a problem for Pacquiao, wanting to fight him at his best and not because of any distractions. Bradley would know about bible readings as he is deeply religious and involved in his church back home in the Coachella Valley.

“Manny is a good fighter and a professional. Being at those bible readings will help make him a stronger person. I don’t think any of those issues with Freddie and Ariza will get to him. He’ll still have both guys in his corner.”

After a stellar amateur career that began when he was 10 years old, Bradley began his professional career almost eight years ago at an outdoor warehouse yard in Corona, CA. No one at the venue knew that night Bradley, nine days shy of his 21st birthday, would be in the position where he is now based on his second round technical knockout over Francisco Martinez.

The Bradley fight opened the card for fighters such as Chris Arreola and Josesito Lopez that night.

Bradley has worked hard to get to where he is at now. While some favor for Pacquiao to win on Saturday night, it has not hurt the ego or confidence of Bradley. He has heard it all too often in the past and has enjoyed proving naysayers wrong.

He did so when he traveled to England and defeated Junior Witter to win his first world title belt. He did so when he got up from being knocked down twice to defeat Kendall Holt.

He is confident he will do the same on Saturday night against Pacquiao.

“I have motivation to fight for my family, but I also have the motivation to prove these people wrong. A victory over Manny will just be the beginning for me. I’ve worked so hard to get to where I’m at now.”

“I can’t wait to fight on June 9th.”

A victory on June 9th will indeed give Bradley the last laugh.

Story by Francisco Salazar
Photos by Chris Cozzone

http://www.fightnews.com/Boxing/bradley-ready-to-have-last-laugh-117584

Manny Pacquiao’s June 9 defense of his WBO welterweight belt opposite WBO junior welterweight titleholder Timothy Bradleywill be streamed live from the MGM Grand in Las Vegas on toprank.com as part of a new deal signed between Top Rank Inc. and MLB Advanced Media, baseball’s interactive arm.

The union will allow MLB Advanced Media to not only stream the HBO Pay Per View event, but also help to develop subscription digital content and create mobile applications as Top Rank seeks to improve its ability to monetize its digital content for major fights.

“We’re pushing to get boxing back into the mainstream,” Lucia McKelvey, Top Rank’s executive vice president, told The Sports Business Journal, “and we were looking to partner with somebody that owns their own content and understands exactly what we’re experiencing and trying to do.”

MLBAM and Top Rank Boxing will participate in a revenue-sharing agreement, selling the live stream of Pacquiao-Bradley separately from the traditional pay-per-view telecast for $54.95. The telecast will cost $54.95 for standard definition, and $64.95 for high-definition.

A series of apps for the Apple iOS and Android mobile platforms and several other connected devices is also under development.

Hollywood, California.– El campeón mundial invicto Tim Bradley hizo un viaje especial por carretera a Hollywood de California desde su campo de entrenamiento en Indio, California, para continuar promocionado su esperado duelo contra Manny Pacquiao, que se realizará el próximo 9 de junio en el MGM Grand de Las Vegas.

 “ Esto ha sido muy grato para mi, pues estoy muy contento de todo la atención que esta pelea muy ha atraído y la oportunidad de demostrar todo mi talento”, dijo Bradley, actual monarca de peso welter jr. de la Organización Mundial de Boxeo (OMB). Bradley, habló con la prensa en el Gimnasio Fortune de Hollywood, antes de trabajar con su entrenador Joel Diaz por espacio de una hora y media.

“ Ya me siento listo y estoy ansioso de subir al ring para enfrentar al reto mas importante de mi carrera profesional. Estoy seguro que será una gran pelea”, dijo Bradley.

 ¿Que tan confiado estará el equipo de Bradley de ganar? Ayer durante el entrenamiento, traina un poster gigante y presentaron a la prensa credenciales para la segunda pelea contra Pacquiao el próximo 10 de noviembre.

 “ Ya firme para la revancha de Pacquiao, todo lo que tengo que hace es ganar esta primera pelea, pero como estoy tan seguro que la ganaré, ya quiero que le gente se prepare para la segunda en noviembre,”, dijo un sonriente Bradley.

“ A mi nunca nadie me han regalado nada y es que tendré que estar al cien por ciento para derrotar al mejor peleador del mundo y crean me que lo voy estar. Esta la victoria que cambiara mi vida y la de mi familia”, dijo Bradley.

 Pacquiao (54-3-2, 38 KO’s) expondrá su campeonato de peso welter de la Organización Mundial de Boxeo (OMB) ante Bradley (28-0, 12 KOs), el actual monarca superligero de la OMB en el duelo estelar de una función que será televisada en vivo a través del sistema de pago por evento, comenzado a las 6:00 p.m. (Hora del Este)/ 9:00 p.m. (Hora del Pacifico).

 La magna función que incluiría el regreso del tetra campeón mundial mexicano Jorge “Travieso” Arce quien se enfrentara al boricua Jesús Rojas, y dos peleas de campeonato mundial, en una Mike Jones buscara su primera corona mundial cuando se enfrente al ex campeón mundial Randalla Bailey por la corona de peso welter de la Federación Internacional de Boxeo (FIB) y en la otra el cubano Guillermo Rigondeaux expondrá su corona de peso supergallo de la Asociación mundial de Boxeo (AMB) ante Teon Kennedy.

La magna función será promovida por Top Rank en asociación con MP Promotions, Tecate, AT&T y el MGM Grand de Las Vegas.

 Los boletos para la Pacquiao-Bradley ya están la venta y tienen un precio de $1,200, $900, $600, $400 y $200. Los boletos de $1,200, $900, $600 y $400 tienen un límite de compra de10 por persona y los de $200 tiene un límite de dos boletos por persona. Por teléfono pueden ser adquiridos llamando a Ticketmaster al (800) 745-3000. Por Internet www.mgmgrand.com o www.ticketmaster.com.

Por Ricardo Jiménez, Top Rank

http://www.notifight.com/artman2/publish/Reporte_7/Tim_Bradley_ansioso_de_subir_al_ring.php

El popular boxeador y congresista filipino Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao y su rival, el campeón mundial invicto Timothy “Desert Storm” Bradley, realizarán entrenamientos para la prensa de la ciudad de Los Ángeles en miras a su esperado combate titular que se realizara en el MGM Grand de Las Vegas el sábado 9 de junio.

 El entrenamiento de Bradley será hoy martes 29 de mayo a las 11:30 a.m. (hora del Pacifico) en el Fortune Gym. Junto con Bradley estarán sus entrenadores, su padre Ray Bradley y Joel Díaz, su apoderado Cameron Dunkin y el legendario promotor y miembro del salón de la fama Bob Arum.

 Por su parte, el entrenamiento de Pacquiao será mañana miércoles 30 de junio en el Wild Card Boxing Club. Su entrenador Freddie Roach y el promotor Bob Arum podrán ser entrevistados a las 12:30 p.m., mientras que Pacquiao atenderá a la prensa a las 2:00 p.m. y entrenará a las 3:00 p.m. (horario del Pacifico).

 Pacquiao (54-3-2, 38 KOs) expondrá su campeonato de peso welter de la Organización Mundial de Boxeo (OMB) ante Bradley (28-0, 12 KOs), el actual monarca superligero de la OMB en el duelo estelar de una función que será televisada en vivo a través del sistema de pago por evento, comenzado a las 6:00 p.m. (Hora del Este)/ 9:00 p.m. (Hora del Pacifico).

 La magna función que incluiría el regreso del tetra campeón mundial mexicano Jorge “Travieso” Arce quien se enfrentara al boricua Jesús Rojas, y dos peleas de campeonato mundial, en una Mike Jones buscara su primera corona mundial cuando se enfrente al ex campeón mundial Randall Bailey por la corona de peso welter de la Federación Internacional de Boxeo (FIB) y en la otra el cubano Guillermo Rigondeaux expondrá su corona de peso supergallo de la Asociación mundial de Boxeo (AMB) ante Teon Kennedy.

 La magna función será promovida por Top Rank en asociación con MP Promotions, Tecate, AT&T y el MGM Grand de Las Vegas. Los boletos para la Pacquiao-Bradley ya están la venta y tienen un precio de $1,200, $900, $600, $400 y $200. Los boletos de $1,200, $900, $600 y $400 tienen un límite de compra de10 por persona y los de $200 tiene un límite de dos boletos por persona. Por teléfono pueden ser adquiridos llamando a Ticketmaster al (800) 745-3000.   Por Internet www.mgmgrand.com o www.ticketmaster.com .

 Para más detalles sobre la pelea visite las páginas www.toprank.com y www.hbo.com

Por Ricardo Jiménez, Top Rank

http://www.notifight.com/artman2/publish/Reporte_7/Pacquiao_y_Bradley_mostrar_n_sus_armas.php

Situaciones que sacudieron su entorno familiar fueron razones de peso para que el púgil Manny Pacquiao cambiara dramáticamente su estilo de vida.

Atrás quedaron las noches de fiesta en clubes nocturnos y ahora su única preocupación es estar listo para enfrentar a Tim Bradley el 9 de junio.

“Poco antes de la pelea contra Juan Manuel Márquez, estuve pasando por unos problemas y mi mente no estaba 100 por ciento en la pelea, pero ya todo quedó atrás”, mencionó Pacquiao ayer durante una conferencia telefónica para promover el evento que será transmitido por HBO PPV.

De hecho, el entrenador Freddie Roach aseguró que, en lugar de sufrir alguna merma en su rendimiento, Pacquiao ha lucido “mejor que nunca” en los entrenamientos.

“Todavía no hemos visto lo mejor de Manny. Su enfoque está bien, no tiene distracciones, no se ve cansado y la gente lo verá mejor que cuando le ganó a Miguel Cotto y a Antonio Margarito”, agregó Roach.

“Trabajo duro, entreno fuerte y confío en que voy a ganar”, concluyó Pacquiao.

Carlos González / Primera Hora

http://www.primerahora.com/mannypacquiaoconnuevoenfoque-650790.html

BAGUIO CITY – After logging 70 rounds of punching the mitts and 210 minutes of road work, World Boxing Organization welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao declared himself ready to move into the more grueling and tedious aspect of his high altitude training here.

Pacquiao, who is putting his 147-pound plum on the block against undefeated American junior welterweight kingpin on June 9, asked chief trainer Freddie Road to advance the sparring in his preparation two days ahead of schedule and the Hall of Fame guru obliged.

For the first time since his last fight November last year, the eight-division belt-owner will have the taste of how it is to trade blows with an opponent today when he mixes it up with Russian junior welterweight prospect Ruslan Provodnikov.

Roach scheduled only four rounds of sparring in order not to preserve the gains the camp had attained in almost two weeks here and a fortnight each in Sta. Rosa, Laguna and General Santos City.
“Manny personally asked me to advance the start of sparring session Thursday and I consented,” Roach told Business Insight after the training session last Tuesday. “That only means one thing, Manny is fit and ready to move into the next level of preparations.”

“Only four rounds. I don’t want him rush things up, especially at this stage of readiness program. However, if he asked to, say two round more, why not,” Roach said.

“As I have been saying, Manny knows Manny. Only he knows what to do and what not to do as far as his physical status is concerned. That’s what differs him from the other fighters, Roach explained,” Roach said.

“I approved of advancing the sparring because I know he’s already ready to stand the rigor of that part of training,” the 52-year-old Hall of Famer assured.

The start of the sparring session was originally scheduled Saturday, the day Pacquiao would have completed his first two weeks of altitude training in this, the country’s summer capital.

“Okey na ako, ready na for sparring,” Pacquiao said. “Maganda ang simula ng camp at so far, na-accomplish na ang dapat ma-accomplish, so there’s no need to wait for another two days.”
“Mas inspirado ako mag-train ngayon kasi nandyan si Madam,” he said with a wide smile in reference to wife Jinkee who arrived here Monday night and watched, along with her 15-man retinue , the entire training session Tuesday training ast the Shape Up Gym in Cooyeesan Hotel.

Both Pacquiao and Roach agreed the fighter is far from reaching his fighting form and that there are still many things to accomplish.

“Marami pang dapat gawin, but I feel I am already 50 percent ready to fight,” the 33-year-old Pacman said. “Pero hindi kami aalis ditto (Baguio) na hindi ako 100 percent.”
“Yeah, we are still at the halfway mark of preparations,” Roach butted in. “We still have some five weeks to go.

Provodnikov,with lightweight compatriot Rustam Nugaev, a former Pacquiao sparmate, tagging along set foot in this city Monday night after a long 15-hour plane trip from their hometown Beryosovo, Russia. Nugaev is not new in the Philippines having been Pacquiao’s mate twice, the first during the Filipino hero’s preparations in his second fight with Erik Morales and during the fine tuning program against Oscar Larios.

Only Provodnikov though will serve as the Filipino’s mate at the Baguio training camp. Provodnikov said he had watched some of Pacquiao’s fight but expressed amazement seeing Pacquiao did the mitts with Roach.

“He’s very powerful and fast,” he said through Nugaev, who servers as his interpreter. “I am honored for inviting as Manny’s sparring partner and I’m ready to provide him all he needs in his training.”

Provodnikov and Nugaev joined Pacquiao in the latter’s roadwork at the Philippine Sports Commission training camp oval inside the Teachers’Camp

Eddie Alinea

http://philboxing.com/news/story-69204.html