Former eight-division world champion Manny Pacquiao and his team have come under fire in the aftermath of May 2nd, when the Filipino superstar was defeated by Floyd Mayweather Jr. on points at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
Freddie Roach, Pacquiao’s Hall of Fame trainer, and Michael Koncz, his adviser, came under heavy scrutiny after Pacquiao suffered a right shoulder injury in early April. After injuring himself further during the fight, Pacquiao was forced to undergo surgery to repair a “significant tear” to the rotator cuff, according to Dr. Neal ElAttrache. Pacquiao is expected to be out nine months to a year.
Alex Ariza, Manny Pacquiao’s former strength and conditioning coach, blamed Pacquiao’s team in an exclusive interview with Rappler.
“I saw a Manny that was fighting by himself. I did not see any direction, I did not see them trying to set things up to turn the fight into Manny’s way. Manny was doing the same thing every round,” said Ariza. “I just think those people are not competent enough to do that.”
In 2013, Ariza was fired by Roach, who accused Ariza of trying to do everyone’s job in camp, and for Pacquiao’s persistent calf problems.
In late March, Roach admitted that Pacquiao had been suffering from cramps in his legs while preparing for Mayweather, claiming they were being treated by a combination of massage and a special cream, proving the issue was not solely the fault of Ariza, and an even bigger issue that Roach hasn’t been able to decipher.
Pacquiao, in an interview with Filipino radio station DZMM, said that there are no issues with his team.
“About my team, I believe there is no problem.”
Ariza also spoke with Quinito Henson of The Phillippine Star, where he described Pacquiao as an “elite athlete,” but one that deserves a better team.
“We had a game plan prepared for Manny to be explosive, to be like the Manny of five years ago. It didn’t happen. He had no adjustments; I thought he cramped in the middle rounds; I saw the guys in his corner running his leg in between rounds. Those issues should’ve been addressed in training camp. It was all Manny out there doing what he thought he had to do. Maybe, because of cramps, Manny couldn’t move to his right like he should’ve to avoid Floyd’s straight right. He kept moving to his left and was an easy target for Floyd’s right.
“I think Manny can come back 100 percent, but he’s got to change his team introduce some science to what he does in training. He’s an elite athlete who deserves the best trainer and conditioning coach. I didn’t see any improvement in Manny’s style from when I was with the team. Floyd knew exactly what he had to do to win. He was prepared for whatever Manny brought to the ring.”
It’s safe to say that this is the end of Manny Pacquiao as we know it. With no basic understanding of adjustments, he’s a sitting duck if a rematch comes to fruition, and should retire when he has the chance.
