As far as Freddie Roach is concerned, the Wild Card gym is off limits – no exception.
With the odds stacked up against his boy Manny Pacquiao, Roach is literally 'kicking out' people at the gym who aren't doing anything. And from the looks of it, Pacquiao and company want to be focused as they gear up for the Filipino boxer's match against the undefeated Floyd Mayweather Jr.
Roach does acknowledge that Pacquiao prefers to have friends around when he trains. But the truth of the matter is, Pacquiao needs to be at his best against Mayweather.
Among the people who Roach had to kick out included Dave Chappelle and his family, something he admits that he really felt bad about.
Hence, all is quiet at the Wild Card Gym, allowing Roach, Pacquiao and the rest of his team to focus and make sure that there would be no slip-ups come May 2.
With this development, it looks like Roach and promoter Bob Arum want to keep their game plan under wraps. In contrast, Mayweather has somehow revealed what his game plan would be.
In an effort to somehow simulate the fighting style of Pacquiao, Mayweather hired the services of a couple of southpaws in DeMarcus Corley and Zab Judah. Mayweather also claims that he has been sparring nine rounds at a time, perhaps providing an idea of how this mega bout will potentially turn out.
For Pacquiao, only the name of Edis Tatli has cropped up among his sparring partners. Other than that, Roach and company are mum.
With the Mayweather-Pacquiao fight fast approaching, it should be interesting to see what Pacquiao and Roach have in store for Mayweather. This early, critics and fans are not expecting a knockout since they believe Mayweather will use his normal strategy - stick and move throughout the fight.
