Roach, Pacquiao boast 'edge' in welterweight showdown

By Bob Velin, USA TODAY
LAS VEGAS — In Manny Pacquiao's eyes, Freddie Roach has transcended the title of trainer.

"Freddie is my master, my master in boxing," Pacquiao said.

Roach will have to be master and commander of Pacquiao's corner when the Filipino superstar (49-3-2, 37 KOs) meets Miguel Cotto for the WBO welterweight title Saturday at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas (HBO PPV, 9 p.m. ET).

Cotto (34-1, 27 KOs) is not happy playing second fiddle to Pacquiao, the closest thing to a global icon, in this fight, which will be fought at a catch weight of 145 pounds, a concession to Pacquiao's smaller frame.

"I know what I'm capable of doing, and there is no doubt in my mind that I'm going to win this fight," Cotto said at the final news conference Wednesday. "I've prepared for the best Manny Pacquiao, the fastest Manny Pacquiao, and I will be ready for anything he brings into the ring."

Roach doesn't believe that. He thinks Cotto is damaged goods, having not fully recovered from his only loss, a brutal beating by Antonio Margarito in July 2008 that had a bloody and battered Cotto taking a knee twice to stop the punishment.

"When you get knocked out for the first time and take a beating like he did, it takes a while to get over it, and I just don't think he's over it yet," Roach said Thursday. "He's going in the right direction. … That's why in the first round of this fight, I'm going to have Pacquiao make a statement. We're not going to give (Cotto) momentum, because if you give him that, he'll get stronger."

Pressed to go into more detail, Roach said, "We're going to show him our power in the first round. We're going to hit him, remind him of the punches he took in the Margarito fight."

Roach said he has a "Plan A and B. Either (Cotto's) going to use his strength and come forward and show us he's a bigger, stronger guy, or he'll try to become (Juan Manuel) Marquez and become a counterpuncher, and you can't become someone else in an eight-week period. I'm ready for whatever he brings."

"I truly feel that once he gets hit, he'll revert back to what he does best," Roach said. "He's got a great left hook. … And once he gets you on the ropes, he's very effective. Our job is not to be on the ropes at all, keep the fight in the middle of the ring."

Asked if Cotto's corner — his trainer, Joe Santiago, is Cotto's chief for only the second fight — will be able to make adjustments during the fight, Roach was typically blunt. "Nope. He's got a good cut man in Joe Chavez, but I think Miguel Cotto calls the shots in that camp," he said.

Roach said Pacquiao's foot speed will be the difference. "Manny has too much speed for Cotto," he said. "That's where the fight's won, foot speed, and Manny excels in that department."

Top Rank's Bob Arum, who promotes both fighters, is not totally convinced of that.

"Cotto is the biggest obstacle in Manny's path," Arum said. "He's a true welterweight, a strong welterweight, with a heart as big as this room. And when the bell rings, there won't be one legend in the ring but two great fighters. And Cotto will acquit himself like he always has and show he is one of the best in the world today."

Roach said he and his fighter, who is guaranteed $13 million, are in sync. "I don't have to tell him the game plan anymore. It's automatic now," he said. "I make moves like Cotto will make in the fight, and it's like a dance. He knows exactly what to do."

Source: http://www.usatoday.com/sports/boxing/2009-11-12-pacquiao-cotto-camps-boast_N.htm