Freddie Roach reportedly said that he will tell Manny Pacquiao to retire if the fighter loses for a third straight time.
Pacquiao (54-5-2, 38 KOs) is scheduled to fight Brandon Rios (31-1-1, 23 KOs) on Nov. 23 in Macau, China. Pac-Man is coming off back-to-back losses. He lost a controversial split decision to Timothy Bradley last June, and he suffered a devastating knockout loss to Juan Manuel Marquez in December.
Roach, Pacquiao’s longtime trainer, says he will advise his fighter to hang up the gloves if he loses to Rios.
“If he loses, I will tell him to retire,” Roach told ESPN. “If you lose three in a row it’s your time.
“He’s up there in age. I’ve got to keep a close eye on him. It’s part of my job to protect him. I will do the right thing.”
Pacquiao is 34 and already has a career in politics in the Philippines. Not only does he have other interests in life to look out for, but Roach has long felt that Manny’s training suffered because of his multiple interests. Maybe it wouldn’t be the worst thing for him to retire.
But this could also just be lip service from Roach.
If this story sounds familiar, it’s because Roach said the same thing last year before Pacquiao’s fight with Bradley. Manny didn’t look great, but he went back out to fight in December. And even though Pacquiao’s health has been in question since his knockout loss to Marquez, his camp is sending him back out there again. Roach may advise Pacquiao to retire, but I doubt he listens.
