Pacquiao wants Roach to call the shots

By NICK GIONGCO

MANNY PACQUIAO wants a special someone to be in his corner when he makes a return trip to the venue of one of his most storied victories. Not his wife, but his trusted cornerman Freddie Roach.

Pacquiao told his lawyer Franklin Gacal that he would like nothing more than to have Roach at the stadium when he takes on Jorge Solis at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas on April 14.

"Manny told me that he wants Freddie Roach to be in his corner," Gacal said yesterday from General Santos City when contacted by the Manila Bulletin.

Roach is currently under contract with Oscar de la Hoya whom the American trainer is preparing for a May fight against Floyd Mayweather Jr. and De la Hoya has been at odds with the Pacquiao camp since Manny rescinded a contract to fight under his promotional firm in favor of Bob Arum’s Top Rank.

In fact, De la Hoya filed an injunction to stop the Pacquiao-Solis fight which a Las Vegas court threw out.

With so much animosity between De La Hoya and Arum, observers are asking why would Oscar release Roach to be at Pacquiao’s’ corner?

Roach, in an interview conducted by Brad Cooney in fightnews.com that came out yesterday, admitted he had talked to Pacquiao.

"Yes, I talked to Manny last night. Manny asked me if I could come to San Antonio to work his corner for the Solis fight. I told him that I would talk to Oscar about that tomorrow, I will only miss one day if I do, and I told Manny that I would do my best to be there," Roach told fightnews from San Juan, Puerto Rico.

De la Hoya has not committed to Roach’s request.

Roach feels that Pacquiao does not need him in his corner.

"I think Manny will do fine against Solis. Anybody that decides to trade punches with Manny doesn’t do very well," added Roach.

If De la Hoya agrees to let go of Roach for Pacquiao, Roach wants to fly out of Puerto Rico on Friday, call the shots for Pacquiao the following day and reunite with De La Hoya on Sunday.

It was also at the Alamodome where Pacquiao scored arguably the biggest win of his career – an 11th-round stoppage of Marco Antonio Barrera that sent his star soaring and that of Roach as well.

Pacquiao’s training is being supervised by Roach’s right-hand man Justin Fortune and Filipino assistants Buboy Fernandez and Nonoy Neri.

Meanwhile, Gacal will have his hands full in the next two days in relation with Pacquiao’s impending entry into politics.

"I have been very busy talking and trying to convince the owners of the commercial billboards of Manny to remove these materials at the soonest possible time," said Gacal.

Under election laws, those aspiring for public office are not allowed to appear in commercial advertisements.

Gacal said Pacquiao appears in billboards, streamers and posters of McDonald’s, Circulan and Magnolia.

"I have been having a hard time convincing them to take these off but if they don’t, I might be forced to go up and take them off myself."