Papa Roach: The Man behind Manny Pacquiao
Article By
Dennis Anthony F. Guillermo
Manny Pacquiao is on the brink of becoming an international household name. Finding a genuine boxing fan that hasn’t at the very least heard of his name is like finding a Filipino who has never been to a karaoke party. After bursting in the American boxing scene in 2001 by beating the then-IBF Super Bantamweight champion Lehlohonolo Ledwaba, the once unknown jumping jellybean of a bantamweight has climbed 4 weight classes from bantamweight to lightweight and has amassed belts in 5 different divisions overall in his career. However, after 14 wins, 3 conquered Mexican legends, a few more tough Mexicans, a few movies, a couple of music albums, 80 something commercials, 1 political loss and about 100 different managers, lawyers, political hangers-on, leeches and Team Pacquiao members, one thing has never changed: his trainer Freddie Roach.
When Manny first came to America and knocked on the boxing gyms looking for someone to take him in, he received the cold shoulder most Filipinos before him got from trying to crack into the American boxing scene. Let’s be real, there was little to no interest from this side of the globe for professional boxers coming from that other side of the globe. You just didn’t see too many Asians, especially Filipino boxers fighting out here back then. For whatever reason, that was the case. Manny saw more shut doors than the Jehovah’s Witnesses… well maybe not more but you know what I mean. But one fateful day, Manny walked inside the now hallowed doors of 1123 Vine Street in Hollywood- address of what is more known to the boxing world as the gym of the Wild Card Boxing Club- and the rest is history. I guess it’s just as they say. “If you want to be a star, come to Hollywood.”
It was supposedly Manny’s second to the last stop before he goes back to Manila and bid his American dreams goodbye. It’s then when Freddie Roach first saw Manny Pacquiao’s potential. He must’ve seen something that the rest did not have, for him to want to take on trainer number one, two, six and thirty six’s sloppy seconds. He saw a diamond in the rough. He gave the unknown kid from General Santos city Philippines a home. And now General Paulino Santos must be rolling in his grave in fears of his name getting permanently deleted from the map of the Philippines because we all know that General Santos City, Philippines is really Manny Pacquiao City, Philippines.
From that point on, Freddie and Manny built a solid trainer-boxer relationship. Manny worked his tail off from day one, and Freddie responded by sharing and giving his all to help the boy reach his potential. And boy did he reach and surpass his potential! Can you imagine now, how things would’ve been without a Manny Pacquiao? C’mon, I challenge you. Think about it. What if Freddie Roach overslept that day or got his car towed or something and that meeting never happened? I’m pretty sure Juan Manuel Marquez has thought of a world without a Manny Pacquiao a few times before but let’s get real. I know Halloween is coming up but do I really have to put on my Larry Merchant costume to stress out how big of an impact Manny Pacquiao has made for the sport of boxing? He singlehandedly resuscitated a sport gasping for air. He not only kicked the door open for Filipinos and Asian boxers alike, he also helped reacquaint the boxing public to the lower weight classes- not to mention spawning a newfound passionate boxing fan base that is the Filipino boxing fans. (His website Pacland is probably the most active boxing forums website in the web).
Just as the legendary Larry said it himself, “If there was a Manny Pacquiao in every division in boxing, the world would be a better place. We’d have peace in the Middle East.”
And fact of the matter is, there wouldn’t be a Manny Pacquiao, if there wasn’t a Freddie Roach. Freddie took an unwanted, unknown kid and thrived on his work ethic and potential and saw it through to the end. Even to this day, it’s no secret that Freddie considers Manny his favorite fighter ever and even went as far as saying he attributes his potential Hall of Fame career as trainer to Manny. However, Manny isn’t just any other teacher’s pet. Freddie and Manny are like brothers, father and son even to a certain extent. It’s common practice that trainers stay away from their fighter’s business transactions with promoters, but Freddie has stuck his neck out for Manny many times before. He was the one who pushed Manny and helped him get out of a bad contract from Murad Muhammad. And just last year, when Manny’s personal life was starting to seem out of control and affect his boxing career, Freddie flew all the way to Manila during the Christmas season to help his ward get back on track.
We are talking about a guy who’s trained Mike Tyson, James Toney, Oscar De la Hoya, among others, and was voted as Trainer of the Year by the Boxing Writers Association of America in 2003, 2006 and 2007. Dedham Freddie as some call him, who was born and raised in Dedham, Massachusetts, has handled the best of the best. If he decided to walk away on Pacquiao during the latter’s struggling times, I don’t really see how it could blemish what he’s already accomplished in the boxing game. But Freddie stuck with Manny, just like how a good father sticks with his troubled son. Freddie and Manny may be different people with totally different personalities- as Freddie has shown he does not mind talking trash with opponents, while Manny does his talking in the ring. But one thing these two men share, and something fair weathered fans or cheating spouses can never comprehend, is loyalty. Manny knows he has somebody he can trust and who would do anything just to help him succeed. Freddie has Manny’s best interests.
For his next fight versus De la Hoya, Freddie even offered to waive his pay if Manny ends up losing, just to prove a point that it’s Manny’s legacy that he is interested in building up and not his personal bank account. It’s often overlooked, but just ask Miguel Cotto how much it sucks to have a trainer you don’t even really like. You can’t put a prize on having somebody be it your dad, role model, trainer, a coach for that matter in any sport, that believes in you, helps you and pushes you to achieve more than even you yourself sometimes thought you could never reach. And did I already tell you that this guy is a great tactician and trainer too? See Pacquiao’s right hooks against Diaz. You get the point.
Manny knows why he’s here. He has stated time and again, he will never work with a different trainer ‘til the day he retires. Yes, all of his fans and supporters have helped him get there too. He knows. Among all of Manny’s positive traits, Manny is a smart person. He knows damn well, if it wasn’t for a fellow named Freddie Roach, he might’ve well ended up just like past fallen Filipino champions as boxing footnotes.
