Freddie Roach confirmed on Friday that he has split with Manny Pacquiao, but he says he is “hurt” by the way it went down.
Roach, who trained Pacquiao for 15 years, says Manny never personally contacted him about the decision.
“Manny and I had a great run for 15 years — longer than most marriages and certainly a rarity for boxing. I wouldn’t trade any of it. Inside the boxing ring and the political ring, I wish Manny nothing but the best. I would be lying if I didn’t say I wasn’t hurt that he didn’t contact me personally about his decision, but the great times we enjoyed together far outweigh that,” Roach said in a statement.
Freddie Roach’s statement about his split with Manny Pacquiao is sweet and professional, and it makes me sad pic.twitter.com/MN6uRhhaRB
— Greg Beacham (@gregbeacham) April 13, 2018
A split between the two seemed like it was in the works for a while, and it seemed almost certain that Pacquiao had moved on when he decided to make Buboy Fernandez his trainer for his upcoming fight against Lucas Matthysse. Roach’s statement confirms things.
Roach and Pacquiao enjoyed a long and fruitful partnership, which led both men to achieve worldwide fame. Roach’s profile was particularly raised through his partnership with Pacquiao, as he even became the subject of an HBO show during the height of Manny’s boxing career. However, the two seem to have clashed in recent years. Roach has advocated for Pacquiao to retire from boxing. He was critical of Pacquiao for not being focused enough on his training last year.
After Pacquiao’s loss to Jeff Horn in Australia last summer, Pacquiao’s promoter Bob Arum even threw Roach under the bus. Roach said he thought Pacquiao was upset with him and that he hadn’t been paid for the fight. At the least, this move will help Pacquiao save some money.
