PBA Star Barroca Awed By Pacquiao

GENERAL SANTOS CITY- Mark Barroca, the Most Valuable Player of the recently concluded Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) All Filipino Cup, witnessed in flesh down here how Manny Pacquiao does his training regimen in preparation for his April 12 bout with Timothy Bradley at the MGM Grand Arena in Las Vegas, Navada, U.S.A.

And like millions of Filipinos and boxing fans around the globe, the PBA star, who earned the moniker “The Coffee King” after his San Mig Coffee Mixers ball club beat the ferocious but unsteady Rain or Shine Masters, was all praises and admiration to boxing’s eight division world boxing champion.

Awed

“Grabe ang intensity ni Manny, yung footwork ang bilis, nakaka-bilib,” Barroca told Philboxing.com when asked while watching Pacman in between rounds of the exhilarating six rounds sparring with Lydell Rhodes in the Pacman Wild Card gym, just right across the SM City Gensan.

Donning a Manny Pacquuaio authentic white souvenir t-shirt paired with a shorts, Barroca brought along his pretty wife Russelle Anne, who became an instant head turner in the crowd whose mestiza looks became more evident as she came in yellow skirt and flat brown sandals.

Mark, who later that night joined a friendly basketball game with Pacquiao in the latter’s gym inside his sprawling mansion in Barangay City heights, admitted it was the first time that they saw Pacquiao physically performed in the ring and along with their buddies from Zamboanga City led by Jonie Navarro, agreed that Bradley would have a hard time beating their fellow Filipino, who is also a Congressman of Sarangani.

They cited Pacquiao’s dominance of boxing skills over Bradley, recalling how the previous split-decision encounter between the two fighters for the WBO welterweight championship would have been decided.

“Kabalo ta nga midaug gyud siya, maayo gyud si Pacquiao (We know that he really won, Pacquiao is really very good), the PBA MVP who is also conversant in Cebuano,“ thus said.

Previous Match

Barroca concurred with the majority of the spectators that included the media at the ringside, and the group of international boxing judges, who were commissioned by the World Boxing Organization (WBO) to review the controversial bout between Pacquiao and Bradley last June 9, 2012, that the result would have been in favor of the Philippine’s “Pambansang Kamao” (national fist).

The judges ruled it a split decision which were booed from those around in the MGM Grand and the millions of fight fans around the world glued on their television sets which prompted WBO Pres. Francisco “Paco” Valcarcel to order the review of the fight video, where all the international judges decided that Pacquiao would be the hands down winner.

CJ Ross and Duane Ford, however, saw it 115-113 for Bradley while only Jerry Roth saw it the other way around, 115-113 for Pacquiao, an official decision which was not overturned despite the adverse review leading Bradley to score two successive victories against Ruslan Provodnikov and Juan Manuel Marquez, the arch-nemesis of Pacquiao who stunned the Filipino boxer with a six round K.O. victory in December 12, 2012.

Victory in Macau

Pacquiao has since recovered however after scoring a dominating comeback victory against Brandon ‘Bam-Bam” Rios last November 24 in Macau.

Carlos Jomo, the chief security officer of Pacquiao confirmed to Philboxing.com that their team is flying to Los Angeles, California tomorrow night (Saturday via Philippine Airlines) where Pacquiao would resume at the Wild Card gym of celebrated coach Freddie Roach.

Team Pacquiao will first fly out of Gensan to Manila in a private plane owned by Ilocos Sur Governor Luis Chavit Singson after their sparring session.

Coach Roach

Roach for his part said that his ward will face four more sparring mates in their remaining four weeks of training where Kendall Holt and Steve Forbes are lined up.

The Hall of Fame trainer who is also declared as an adopted son of this City said that Pacquiao is already about seventy five percent ready for the fight.

“He (Pacquiao) is getting better and better everyday, maybe about seventy five percent already,” Roach told this writer who celebrated his 54th birthday last Wednesday, March 5.

Assistance

Cecilio Flores, Mexican-American former strength and conditioning coach of Rios, Sergio Martinez, Marcos Maindana and Kelly Pavlik is also assisting Roach which included Restituto “Boboy” Fernandez, Nonoy Neri and Fernandez younger brother Roger a.k.a. Haplas.

Flores, Roach quickly pointed out, would only have minimal role, however because in Los Angeles, Justin Fortune would be their main strength and conditioning coach.

Bob Arum’s Top Rank bankrolled the April 12 promotion of the fight co-presented by Pacquiao’s MP Promotions and Tecate.