By T.K. Stewart

For much of the past two months, Manny Pacquiao has relied on two sparring partners in his preparations for the 'Dream Match' against Oscar De La Hoya.

Rashad Holloway and Marvin Cordova were previously unknown names within the sport of boxing. But because of their involvement with the world's top ranked pound-for-pound boxer, they have been thrust into the limelight. Their unique views on Manny Pacquiao offer telling insight to what boxing fans may see unfold on Saturday night at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

Both Holloway and Cordova took a moment on Monday to talk exclusively with BoxingScene.com from Freddie Roach's Wild Card Gym in Hollywood, California.

Pacquiao concluded his training and was given a huge send off as hundreds of fans lined up to wish him luck as he prepared to make the trek to Las Vegas.

Holloway and Cordova were recruited by Freddie Roach as sparmates because of their size, speed, youth and their ability to mimic De La Hoya's stylistic tendencies.

Rashad Holloway is a 27 year-old from Raleigh, North Carolina who has fought at weights ranging from 143 to 153 pounds and has a professional record of 9-1, 5KO's. At 5'10" tall with long arms, quick hands and a sharp left jab, Holloway fed Pacquiao a steady diet of left hands throughout training camp. Holloway has trained out of the Wild Card Gym for some time and knows Roach very well.

"Manny is a very tricky little fighter and the thing about him is that he can explode on you anytime he decides he wants to," said Holloway of the 5'6 1/2" tall Pacquiao. "He's smaller than I am, but you really have to be careful with him and you have to watch him all of the time. Manny is going to go to Oscar's body, that's the plan as far as I know it.

"I don't see Manny knocking Oscar out because Oscar is an experienced fighter who has only been stopped with a kidney shot by Bernard Hopkins," continued Holloway, who has also sparred with Shane Mosley, Peter Manfredo and Alfredo Angulo. "I think Manny can hurt Oscar, and as long as he keeps to Freddie's game plan, goes to the body and stays on Oscar every round, he'll win."

Marvin Cordova, Jr. is a 23 year-old fighter with a record of 20-0-1, 11KO's. At 5'9" tall he has fought as low as 139 pounds and as high as 153. Cordova is from the small agricultural town of Rocky Ford, Colorado and currently resides in Las Vegas.

Interestingly, Cordova, who goes by the nickname "Much Too Much" sees Saturday night playing out a bit differently than does Holloway."I think in the first half of the fight that Manny will box Oscar. But after that, Manny's gonna' put him away," said Cordova, who described Pacquiao as "an animal" in the ring.

In Cordova's opinion, De La Hoya's well publicized stamina problems will likely rear their ugly head again on Saturday night. Cordova figures once Oscar fatigues that the pendulum in the fight will swing in Pacquiao's favor.

"Oscar gets tired after six rounds or so," said Cordova. "I really think once that happens that Manny will put him away in eight or nine rounds. I really think he'll knock him out."

Cordova didn't back off his prediction that Pacquiao would stop De La Hoya, despite the fact that he is one of the few predicting a Pacquiao win via the knockout route.

"It's going to happen in the eighth or ninth round," stated Cordova. "Oscar is a great fighter and I'm not taking anything away from him, but he's over-the-hill."

At times throughout the sparring sessions, both Holloway and Cordova admitted that, on occasion, they were able to get the better of Pacquiao. Neither fighter would speak about exactly what transpired in those sparring sessions, except to generally characterize that Pacquiao, like all fighters, had good days and bad days throughout his nine-week long training camp.

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