by Joss Gooseman
Respect to the Coach
With the recent brutal 6th round KO loss of Manny Pacquiao (54-5-2, 38 KO’s) to Juan Manuel Marquez (55-6-1, 40 KO’s) last Saturday night at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada, there is widespread talk of his retirement. That Pacquiao is past his prime, that he is not what he used to be. That he may have lost his hunger and focus on the game. That may as well be, but should we not also focus on Freddie Roach? Don’t get me wrong, I have the utmost respect for Mr. Roach. He contributed a lot to the sports of boxing. He is even making the ultimate sacrifice in continuing his job the best way he could in spite of of his illness.
That when most people might just have given up and led a peaceful life, enjoying the fruits of their years of labor, Freddie continues to battle with the disease everyday just to be able to train his fighters and give us fights we all undeniably enjoy. But the nagging question remain – does his illness somehow diminishes his capacity as a boxing trainer? Instead of or with Manny Pacquiao, should Freddie Roach retire?
Flawed game strategy
Pacquiao had inborn natural talent for boxing. But in the past he was raw and crude, and Freddie Roach did a good job of refining Pacquiao’s game. But still, the fact remains that Pacquiao is flawed, his defense was his offense. Sad fact is that it could and would not always work, in a sense that defense and offense should be two different apects of the game, of any game, or of any strategy for that matter. Roach focused on developing Pacquiao’s right hand, and that was good, another tool in the shed, but he neglected a basic and fundamental aspect of the game – defense. It was manifested clearly in his star fighters – Julio Cesar Chavez Junior, Amir Khan, and now Manny Pacquiao. With Pacquiao though, it wasn’t always obvious because of his incredible hand speed and amazing foot work. He got away with the defect mainly because in past fights he had always blitzed his opponents with his overwhelming offense. But the flaw was always there, it was always inherent. And it was there to be exploited. All it took was a technically sound fighter with exceptional skills and reflexes to make a shot at that right time, in that right position and in that slim window of opportunity. So it is really unfathomable why then Freddie Roach, in all his wisdom, failed to see this flaw. Through all these years.
World wide fame and iconic stature
Sure, Manny Pacquiao owes a lot to Freddie Roach. His millions, his fame, his iconic stature. He wouldn’t be where he is without Roach, if he had been coached by an virtually unknown Filipino boxing trainer, fighting virtually unknown Filipino fighters in the Philippines. He was put right smack into the American and world boxing landscape primarily thanks to Roach, and subsequently by Mr. Bob Arum. So yes he owed that to Freddie Roach. But what many fans fail to see is that the relationship is symbiotic. Pacquiao owes Roach a lot, but so does Roach, who got his Trainer of the Year award for a record-setting five times, was inducted into the World Boxing Hall of Fame, in 2006 was inducted into the California Boxing Hall of Fame, and in 2008 was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award by the World Boxing Council, all thanks to Pacquiao. Not with the job with Oscar de la Hoya, not with Bernard Hopkins, not even the the job with Mike Tyson. It was all thanks to Manny Pacquiao.
And like I mentioned, the relationship is in fact, symbiotic. In terms of dividends and rewards, albeit in different forms, both profited.
Is it time?
It must be really humiliating and painful to admit one’s succumb to a disease. Any disease. We, as fans, can really never imagine the sacrifices Freddie Roach is going through everyday of his life. The day to day living of battling an illness like Parkinson’s specially and specifically in his job where mobility and reflexes and physical fitness are of the utmost importance. And we can only imagine the pain of giving up his job and subsequently giving up one’s goals and purpose in life. It would be devastating to a proud man like Mr. Freddie Roach, or to any man for that matter
We thank you for all the awesome fights and for what you have contributed to the sports of boxing, be it as a fighter or as a trainer…….but is it time to take off that body pad and hang up those training mitts, Coach?
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