By Edward Chaykovsky
In a recent interview with the New York Times, Manny Pacquiao's trainer, Freddie Roach, discussed a possible fight with Floyd Mayweather Jr. Based on the recent information going around, Pacquiao and Mayweather are going to face different opponents in the coming months. Mayweather looks to be on the verge of facing Saul Alvarez or Robert Guerrero on May 5th in Las Vegas, and Pacquiao will possibly face Miguel Cotto, Lamont Peterson, Timothy Bradley or Juan Manuel Marquez.
"Sometimes I think it will be forever up in the air. Everywhere I go, they want that fight to happen. And I want it as badly as anyone. Hopefully it will get made soon. Manny probably has four or five fights left in him and I’m sure Mayweather will be one of them," Roach said.
After three twelve round fights, Pacquiao has been unable to solve the counter-punching style of Marquez. Mayweather is the best counter-puncher in boxing. Roach welcomes the challenge of solving Mayweather's style.
"We do have trouble with the counterpunching style, and Floyd is a great counterpuncher. We have to go in with a good game plan. If one guy averages 85 punches a round and one guy averages 15 punches a round, I think the 85 will beat the 15. The thing is, Mayweather is very precise and very conservative with his punches. But he’s very accurate and he lands good shots. There’s no doubt it’s a tough fight. It’s a challenge and that’s why I like it. I like getting ready for challenges. And Mayweather is the biggest challenge for me and Manny,"Roach said.
