Filipino, Manny Pacquiao is now in full scale preparation for what could be the biggest fight of his career.
That's never a walk in the park for any athlete, but in this case, perhaps it is. Literally.
According to head trainer, Freddie Roach, Pacquiao has taken too much energy and effort away from training, instead deciding to take long organized runs with a group of local cadets, and playing several basketball games in local parks with friends, which could be the culprit in what many would describe as less-than-stellar sparring.
These type of reports leave many to strike a balance in the sentiments of trainer Freddie Roach, who never felt comfortable with the idea of Pacquiao training for such a key fight in his home country to begin with.
In the past, countless camp distractions have been noted, but never has it affected his performance, and never has it come from his trainer like it is now. As many around the sport know, when Freddie Roach speaks about Pacquiao, people listen, as this is the only person who many feel truly has Pacquiao's best interest in heart.
To some, the running and basketball is still a form of training, and not something that takes away from his athleticism like over-eating or drinking.
While that may be true, you have to strongly consider the opinion of Pacquiao's head trainer who knows full well that his charge needs to know far more about slipping powershots than making power dunks on the hardwood.
To top things off, it can't be comforting that promoter Bob Arum was on hand to witness one of Pacquiao's more recent sparring sessions and walked away very "unpleased" after seeing Pacquiao getting - what he called "peppered" - at the hands of a talented camp partner, Shawn Porter.
All of these type of comments coming from people directly involved can't be too comforting as he prepares for a challenge unlike any he's ever seen before.
The catch twenty-two hear is that if Pacquiao still wins the fight, it leaves him with the impression that it's ok to have such distractions because he always finds a way through them. The flipside to this argument is that if he loses, to critics, it will serve as a built-in excuse.
Hopefully, at the end of the day, Pacquiao will step up like he always has. I just hope that him stepping up doesn't come as a result of him first falling down.
(Silent prayer to all those affected in the Philippines by the recent and very unfortunate forces of nature)
Source: http://www.examiner.com/x-845-Boxing-Examiner~y2009m10d4-Problems-for-Pacquiao-Roach-Arum-not-pleased-with-camp-results
Dude, don't take words so literally. They're unpleased not because Basketball is a form of distraction that will take focus away. It's because doing it, he can sprained his ankles or his knees, putting in jeopardy the fight. As simple as that.
ReplyDelete