Playtime Over for Pacquiao as Roach, Sparmates Arrive

MANILA, Philippines – Playtime for Manny Pacquiao is over.

Top trainer Freddie Roach arrived in Manila early Sunday morning from Los Angeles accompanied by a pair of mean-looking junior-middleweights who will lend a hand in Pacquiao’s buildup for the Nov. 13 showdown with Antonio Margarito.

“We’re going to train tomorrow (Monday),” Roach told the Bulletin as soon as he emerged from a throng of well-wishers and fellow passengers at the Centennial Airport.

Roach came in with Glen Tapia (from the Dominican Republic) and Michael Medina (Mexico), who will be the other half of sparring partners that would also include Vanes Martirosyan (Armenia) and Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. (Mexico).

Tapia has a 7-0 record with five knockouts, while Medina has a 24-2 mark with 19 stoppages.

“We’re looking forward to working with Manny Pacquiao,” said Tapia, who got Roach’s attention as he shadow-boxed while waiting for their hotel keys at the lobby of the New World.

Martirosyan and Chavez Jr., son of the legendary Julio Cesar Sr., are expected to hit town anytime this week in time for the start of training camp in Baguio City, according to Roach.

Roach said Rashad Holloway, who was tapped when Pacquiao revved up for Oscar De La Hoya in 2008, will be utilized once Pacquiao and the celebrated cornerman return to the familiar confines of the Wild Card Boxing Club in Hollywood in the third or fourth week of October.

Roach had wanted to proceed immediately to Baguio City but Pacquiao’s adviser Mike Koncz said the pound-for-pound king plans to send a few more days or the rest of the week in Manila before going up to the City of Pines.

Baguio had been used by Roach and Pacquiao as training camp when they were preparing to face Miguel Cotto at around the same time last year.

Last week, Pacquiao trained briefly at the Elorde Gym on Del Monte Ave. in Quezon City before returning to General Santos City for a brief R&R.

Already in the country since last week is Alex Ariza, the revered conditioning coach and nutritionist of Pacquiao.

Source: mb.com.ph

US experts speak on Pacquiao-Margarito fight

BY JUN MEDINA SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT

Boxing historian Bert Sugar is picking World Boxing Organization welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao over former welterweight champion Antonio Margarito in their November 13 fight at the Dallas Cowboys Stadium.

Sugar, 73, and former publisher-editor of Boxing Illustrated and Ring magazine, told FanHouse.com’s Elie Seckbach in a brief video interview that Pacquiao is “too fast” for the bigger Margarito, a former three-time world welterweight titlist.

Sugar also thinks that Marga-rito “throws a lot of wild pun-ches,” which would create openings for Pacquiao to deliver his power punches.

But boxing commentator and trainer Teddy Atlas thinks Margarito would pose serious problems for Pacquiao because of his size advantage and power.

“As far as the fight goes with Margarito, I think that’s a dangerous fight for [Pacquiao],” told Percy Crawford of FightHype.com.

“I personally think Pacquiao could lose this fight. I think that you’ve got a naturally bigger guy. He is really the bigger guy because Margarito is a big welterweight. He’s a horse,” Atlas said in breaking Pacquiao-Margarito.

He said the 5’11” Margarito throws a lot of punches and is capable of hitting and hurting Pacquiao.

“[Margarito] presents a lot of areas of danger and real potential problems for Pacquiao that he hasn’t faced for awhile . . . The opportunity is there to hit this guy [Pacquiao],” Atlas said.

Atlas said that although Pacquiao has fought bigger foes before—Oscar De La Hoya, Miguel Cotto and Joshua Clottey—none of them is as big as Margarito, who enjoys a five-inch height advantage and seven-inch reach edge over Pacquiao.

Atlas—a trainer who has worked with the likes of world heavyweight champion Michael Moorer, light heavyweight titlist Danny Lalonde and featherweight champion Barry McGuigan—said he finds the
Margarito fight too risky at this point in Pacquiao’s career, adding that there were less dangerous opponents available for him to fight and still make as much money.

“I’m not sure that if I was managing Pacquiao, that I would be saying, ‘You know what, at this point in his career, he needs to fight Margarito,’” Atlas said.

The HBO pay-per-view televised Pacquiao-Margarito will be for the vacant World Boxing Council junior middleweight title (154 pounds) at an agreed catch weight of 151.

Source: manilatimes.net

Pacquiao to spar with Margarito clones

Act, look and box like Antonio Margarito.

These were the requirements trainer Freddie Roach had in mind while selecting the core of sparring partners he will be bringing in when he arrives in Manila on Sunday for the start of Manny Pacquiao’s training camp for the November 13 title fight with Margarito.

So far, all four fighters – from Vanes Martirosyan to Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. – appeared to be in the mold of the controversial 32-year-old Mexican who is a two-time world champion.

Martirosyan, Rashard Holloway and Glen Tapia are flying over with Roach. They will immediately proceed to Baguio City, where Pacquiao is going to hold fort for the first four weeks of his two-month-long training camp.

Chavez Jr. is expected to follow two weeks later.

Already in the country as early as Tuesday was conditioning coach Alex Ariza.

Holloway, Martirosyan, Chavez Jr. and Tapia were carefully scrutinized by Roach, primarily for having the same built and height of Margarito, who at 5-foot-11 is the tallest opponent the 31-year-old Pacquiao will be facing in the ring.

With a 73-inch reach, Margarito also holds a six-inch advantage over the Filipino.

The 24-year-old Martirosyan is a Roach protégé from Armenia who carries a perfect 28-0 record, with 17 KOs. He stands 6-feet and like Margarito, also has a 73-inch reach.

At 5-foot-10, Tapia is the youngest of the four at 20 and is just beginning to embark on a boxing career with a 7-0 record (5 KOs).

A native of New Jersey, Tapia sparred with Joshua Clottey at the time the Ghanaian was training for his 2009 World Boxing Organization (WBO) welterweight duel with Miguel Cotto.

"Freddie was looking to give Manny a different look in this training camp," said Top Rank vice president of operations Carl Moretti.

"He was looking for a young, aggressive kid to give Manny something to think about, so that it’s not the same old thing. Glenn was the first kid that came to my mind. He’s built a little like Margarito. He’s right-handed, he throws a lot of punches and he’ll give it his all."

Holloway has sparred with Pacquiao several times and even served as the world pound-for-pound champion’s chief sparring partner during his 2008 showdown with the great Oscar De La Hoya.

The 29-year- old American is 11-1 (5 KOs) and stands 5-feet-10.

'Junior’, the son of legendary warrior Julio Cesar Chavez, who is regarded as one of the greatest boxers Mexico ever produced, was originally dropped as one of Pacquiao’s sparmates since Top Rank chairman Bob Arum was arranging a December 4 fight for him against Cotto.

But after negotiations broke down, Chavez Jr. was given the green light to follow the group in the country’s Summer Capital.

Chavez will still see action on the same date in December but opposite a lesser-known opponent. Now being trained by Roach, the Mexican stands 6-feet and boasts of a record 41-0, with 30 KOs. – JVP/KY, GMANews.TV

Source: GMANews.tv

Margarito in Top Shape

By NICK GIONGCO
September 18, 2010, 9:09pm

MANILA, Philippines — The past couple of weeks, Antonio Margarito has been giving his trainer Robert Garcia a wide grin.

“His weight and his conditioning is remarkable,” Garcia told the Bulletin from Los Angeles on Saturday where they have been holed up at the South El Monte Boxing Gym.

Garcia is helping Margarito rev up for a Nov. 13 showdown with Manny Pacquiao and he is more than optimistic of pulling off a surprise come fight night at Cowboys Stadium in Dallas.

Margarito starts the day jogging in the mountains and by next week, he will also do roadwork at the beach as the training camp shifts to high gear in Oxnard, which is about 40 miles north of Los Angeles.

Even the choices for sparring partners have been finalized and one of them would be Sergio Martinez, the Argentine world champion, said Garcia.

Pacquiao, whose last fight was a lopsided win over Joshua Clottey of Ghana last March, is a huge favorite going into the scheduled 12-round bout for the vacant World Boxing Council super-welterweight crown.

Meanwhile, Freddie Roach is arriving this morning from Los Angeles in preparation for training camp in wwBaguio City sometime in this coming week.

Roach will have two sparring partners with him.

Pacquiao’s adviser Mike Koncz said Pacquiao, who is in General Santos City and should be back in Manila on Monday, plans to travel to the City of Pines either Wednesday or Thursday.

Source: mb.com.ph

Manny Pacquiao: Boxing is my passion, my life and my first love

In his regular column on Philboxing.com written in the local dialect, popular Filipino boxer Manny Pacquiao says boxing is his passion, his life and his first love.
Pacquiao says he feels differently whenever he steps into the ring. He recalls when he watches his brother Bobby Pacquiao fights, he feels nervous and uneasy. But once he steps into the squared ring, he feels unusually different.
"Once I am up in the ring, my fears are transformed into excitement and joy because this is really the sport where I started my career and eventually built my fortune", Pacquiao said in his column.
"Boxing changes me", Pacquiao said. "Being a congressman and being able to help and inspire other people around me, completes me", he added.
In his regular column, Pacquiao talked about his forthcoming fight with giant Antonio Margarto in the junior middleweight division.
Pacquiao is aiming for his 8th title in eight different divisions, a feat that no other boxer in history has achieved in his professional career. Pacquiao is determined to be the first to break into this prestigious title.
Margarito is much superior than Pacquiao in terms of height, reach and general body built. The Mexican boxer enjoys five inches advantage in height and four inches in reach over the Filipino boxer.
Pacquiao's weapon against the giant boxer from Mexico is his speed and power. Pacquiao is currently a 4-1 favorite to win over Margarito despite his superior built and equally superior punching power.
In his message to boxing fans, Pacquiao said, he needs to take nutritious food and to maintain a balanced diet. because he needs to gain more weight for the junior middleweight division fight.
"My plate should always be full otherwise, my weight will fall and Margarito's edge will even get bigger on top of his reach and height advantages.
In boxing, taking care of my health is very important and a good foundation for my victory in the sport," he said
As he touches on the health issue of boxers, he shifted to his friend and former opponent Ricky Hatton of England who is currently having problems with drug addiction.
"When I learned about Ricky Hatton's addiction to illegal drugs, I felt sad because I considered him a friend. I know he is a kind friend and a joyful person outside the ring.
I wish Ricky can sort out his own life", Pacquao said. Don’t tell God that you have a big problem, but tell your problem that you have a great God".Pacquiao advises his friend Ricky. If we put God at the center of our lives, there's nothing impossible.
"Like in every training that I go through and whenever I put God at the center of whatever I do, I feel happy and I eventually get over the hardship even if I have to face a giant opponent," Pacquiao added.
Pacquiao is scheduled to face Antonio Margarito on November 13 at the Dallas Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
The popular Filipino boxer has started training in Manila ahead of the arrival of his trainer, Freddie Roach who is scheduled to arrive over the weekend to start formal training in Baguio, a mountain city located around 300 kilometers north of Metro Manila.

Source: digitaljournal.com

Pacquiao vs. Margarito the Fight that Fans are Most Eager For… Really?

ProBoxing-Fans.com has been running a poll to see which fight fans are most excited about for the fall. The results will come as surprising to many hardcore boxing fans, particularly those based in the United States. In overwhelming numbers, the results show that fans are most excited to see the Manny Pacquiao vs. Antonio Margarito bout. Could this really be true? According to our very unscientific survey, yes.

Here are the full results of the poll as of September 17th:

* Pacquiao vs. Margarito: 248 votes - 64%
* Miguel Cotto vs. Julio Cesar Chavez Jr.: 51 votes - 13%
* Juan Manuel Lopez vs. Rafael Marquez: 31 votes - 8%
* Juan Manuel Marquez vs. Michael Katsidis: 20 votes - 5%
* Arthur Abraham vs. Carl Froch: 19 votes - 5%
* Andre Ward vs. Andre Dirrell: 10 votes - 3%
* Bernard Hopkins vs. Jean Pascal: 9 votes - 2%

Of course, the Abraham vs. Froch bout is now postponed, and the Dirrell vs. Ward bout is in jeopardy, but nonetheless, the results are very surprising. Two thirds of boxing fans chose Manny Pacquiao vs. Antonio Margarito as the fight they want to see most!

However, the numbers probably don't represent what most American boxing fans are interested in. In full disclosure of the poll, over the past 10 days, ProBoxing-Fans.com has received a very good share of its website traffic from users in the Philippines, who of course are all diehard Pacquiao fans. As boxing enthusiasts know, Pacquiao fans around the Internet certainly seem more likely to make their voice heard as well, posting comments, expressing ideas, and yes, voting in polls.

They are one of the most faithful and loyal fan bases there is. So while Pacquiao vs. Margarito gets the most fan support in our poll, there are still doubts as to whether this really represents the pulse of the boxing community elsewhere around the world, including in the United States, the UK and so on. This is just a fun, unscientific poll, but the fans' voices have been heard loud and clear.

Another surprise with the poll results was that Cotto vs. Chavez Jr. came in second place. For many American fight fans, the number 1 and 2 winners are more likely to be the number 1 and 2 fights in the "least looking forward to" category. However, the results are what they are, and the numbers don't lie. Those numbers overwhelmingly show that Pacquiao vs. Margarito is what fans are waiting to see.

So if you disagree with the results of this poll, then make your voice heard and vote, available on the right sidebar of this website. If you agree with the poll results, then go ahead and vote anyway and increase the huge lead that Pacquiao vs. Margarito holds on the other bouts. Thanks for participating in the poll, and we'll have another one up shortly.

Source: proboxing-fans.com

Pacquiao vs. Margarito tickets on sale Saturday at Cowboys Stadium Box Office

ARLINGTON, TX - Tickets for the Manny Pacquiao vs. Antonio Margarito fight November 13th go on sale officially Saturday September 18th at the ticket office of Cowboys Stadium in Arlington.

Tickets range from: $700, $500, $300, $200, $100 and $50.

Tickets can also be purchased by phone at 800-745-3000 or on line at
WWW.ticketmaster.com.

About 50,000 tickets were sold for the last Pacquiao card at the stadium March 13th and a bigger crowd is anticipated for this one because of the large Hispanic following of Margarito in North Texas.

In a 10 round fight, Kelly Pavlik will face Haitian Daniel Edouard. Pavlik, 36-2 (32 KO's) is a former middleweight champion while Edouard is 23-2-3 (14 KO's).

Dallas' own Roberto Marroquin, 15-0 (12 KO's) featherweight will face TBA.
Other fights are to be announced.
# # #

Source: Examiner.com