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"Yes and yes," were his replies. "It was a little more personal. I trained Oscar before and I thought we'd be together for a long time and it only lasted one fight and he replaced me and he told me he'd never fight without me in his corner again. But yeah, there's a little bit of get-back at him, I'm happy about that. It's great."
While many scoffed at him, Roach was instrumental in making this fight a reality. He was convinced that his man (even moving up in weight significantly) could handily defeat the 2008 version of De La Hoya. And he was absolutely correct – De La Hoya simply couldn't pull the trigger anymore. Beyond that, his legs looked worn and his reflexes dulled - all of which were apparent in his bout against Steve Forbes back in May.
The technical improvements made by Pacquiao the last few years are striking. There was a time when he was just strictly a jab-jab-left cross puncher, where invariably his back leg would always lift up, causing him to lose balance and alignment. Now, Pacquiao has a much wider array of combinations and he can actually box effectively backing up. He has become a complete fighting package.
And his success from 112 to now 147 pounds is nothing short of remarkable.
"He's getting a little older, he's a lot thicker than he once was. He's not the skinny little 112-pounder we once knew. He's matured, he's a man, now, he's not a boy," said Roach. "And he reminds me of Henry Armstrong, the great fighter of the past. He's a throwback. He can fight in any era. Manny Pacquiao is just a machine, he's very awkward, and he's hard to read. I knew the in-and-out motion would give Oscar so much trouble. That's why I said he couldn't pull the trigger because he couldn't time Manny. He didn't know if Manny was coming or going."
MEXICUTIONER
De La Hoya had promised all Mexicans retribution and revenge for all the past Mexican fighters who had been vanquished by Pacquiao. Instead, he would suffer an ignominious defeat at the blazing hands of this whirling dervish.
Marco Antonio Barrera, Erik Morales, Juan Manuel Marquez and now, De La Hoya, have all fallen to Pacquiao. But Pacquiao downplays the talk of his success against Mexican boxers.
“Like I said to all of you, nothing personal," he would tell the media. "It's not between Mexican and Filipino, but it's about the performances in the ring to make people happy." He would add, "It just happens that in my times there's a lot of Mexican boxers in my weight divisions. It's not my intentions to fight all the Mexicans. I love Mexicans also."
Roach was asked if his charge would face another Mexican, Antonio Margarito.
"We're brave," he would say. "But we're not that brave."
So I chimed in and asked, "What about Wladimir Klitschko then?"
"I'd let him face Klitschko before I would Margarito," replied Roach, with a chuckle.
While many scoffed at him, Roach was instrumental in making this fight a reality. He was convinced that his man (even moving up in weight significantly) could handily defeat the 2008 version of De La Hoya. And he was absolutely correct – De La Hoya simply couldn't pull the trigger anymore. Beyond that, his legs looked worn and his reflexes dulled - all of which were apparent in his bout against Steve Forbes back in May.
The technical improvements made by Pacquiao the last few years are striking. There was a time when he was just strictly a jab-jab-left cross puncher, where invariably his back leg would always lift up, causing him to lose balance and alignment. Now, Pacquiao has a much wider array of combinations and he can actually box effectively backing up. He has become a complete fighting package.
And his success from 112 to now 147 pounds is nothing short of remarkable.
"He's getting a little older, he's a lot thicker than he once was. He's not the skinny little 112-pounder we once knew. He's matured, he's a man, now, he's not a boy," said Roach. "And he reminds me of Henry Armstrong, the great fighter of the past. He's a throwback. He can fight in any era. Manny Pacquiao is just a machine, he's very awkward, and he's hard to read. I knew the in-and-out motion would give Oscar so much trouble. That's why I said he couldn't pull the trigger because he couldn't time Manny. He didn't know if Manny was coming or going."
MEXICUTIONER
De La Hoya had promised all Mexicans retribution and revenge for all the past Mexican fighters who had been vanquished by Pacquiao. Instead, he would suffer an ignominious defeat at the blazing hands of this whirling dervish.
Marco Antonio Barrera, Erik Morales, Juan Manuel Marquez and now, De La Hoya, have all fallen to Pacquiao. But Pacquiao downplays the talk of his success against Mexican boxers.
“Like I said to all of you, nothing personal," he would tell the media. "It's not between Mexican and Filipino, but it's about the performances in the ring to make people happy." He would add, "It just happens that in my times there's a lot of Mexican boxers in my weight divisions. It's not my intentions to fight all the Mexicans. I love Mexicans also."
Roach was asked if his charge would face another Mexican, Antonio Margarito.
"We're brave," he would say. "But we're not that brave."
So I chimed in and asked, "What about Wladimir Klitschko then?"
"I'd let him face Klitschko before I would Margarito," replied Roach, with a chuckle.
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