With 15 days remaining until fight night, trainer Freddie Roach has gone on record with a prediction that Manny Pacquiao will notch a dominant knockout win in six rounds or less over Brandon Rios.
From his training camp in the Philippines, Roach disclosed that Pacquiao has engaged his heavy sparring and focused on learning the “boxing blueprint” they believe was laid down by Mike Alvarado, who defeated Rios via unanimous decision in March.
“I expect big things out of Manny in this fight,” said Roach earlier today on an international conference call. “I watch a lot of tapes. Fighting taller guys is different from shorter guys. Manny fights them differently and he’ll be a few inches shorter in this fight. I told Manny the Alvarado rematch is how you beat this guy. No need to trade – use your speed and power and it will be easy. I feel Manny outboxes him and gets him outta there in six.”
Despite Pacquiao having not scored a KO in his last six fights since November 2009, Roach believes the combination of Rios’s aggressive, trading style and a perceived lack of defensive acumen will be his undoing.
“Rios leads with his face,” added Roach. “Tough guys don’t win fights, to be honest with you. Manny is going to outbox this guy and do it with ease.”
Pacquiao and Rios square off November 23 live on HBO pay-per-view.
Beats, Boxing and Mayhem 