Manny Pacquiao, once considered the pound-for-pound equal of welterweight champion Floyd Mayweather Jr., has dropped his last two fights, and if he is knocked out by Brandon Rios on November 24th, his trainer Freddie Roach believes retirement will follow.
Roach believes the bout between the noted two sluggers will end in a knockout one way or the other, and if Pacquiao is on the receiving end of said KO, it's time to hang up the gloves.
"It's over, 100 percent [if Pacquiao is knocked out by Rios]," Roach said. "We have a deal. When I tell him it's over, he'll say it's over and that's it. He's pretty loyal with his words and if that happens, it will be the end."
In the first of Pacquiao's two losses, he outboxed his opponent Timothy Bradley by a wide margin and lost because of poor decisions by the ringside judges. In his next fight, however, Pacquiao hit the canvas twice against his longtime rival Juan Manuel Marquez, the second of which sealed his fate.
Pac-Man has 61 professional fights under his belt, so although he is just 34 years old, it is an old 34. He has also engaged in warlike affairs with the likes of Marquez, Erik Morales, and Marco Antonio Barrera.
While Roach is making noise about retirement should his fighter be knocked out, he has made clear he expects Pacquiao to be the man delivering the knockout punch.
"The thing is, people look at the losses and they think the reason is that he's getting old," Roach said. "That's not the case, not from what I see. Look, we all thought he beat Bradley, so throw that out. And in the Marquez fight, I thought he was doing well and was looking like he was going to win by knockout when he made a mistake and ran into a shot. That happens. That's boxing. It didn't happen because his skills aren't the same as they used to be. It happened because he made a mistake. It doesn't matter what age you are, you can make a mistake."
While Pacquiao is no longer held in the same regard as Mayweather, Roach believes that a fight between the two can still be made if Pac-Man makes quick work of Rios in spectacular fashion. Rios could be good fodder for such a victory, as he will assuredly march forward and trade.
The risk however, is that he could get caught with a shot that ends his career, and any wisp of hope at capturing the pound-for-pound crown.
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