Freddie Roach
is confident Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jnr will get the chance to settle their differences in the ring. The pair were scheduled to fight early in 2010, but it fell through on account of Mayweather Jnr's demands for Olympic-style drug testing. With the clash with Mayweather Jnr on ice, Pacquiao took on Joshua Clotttey and secured an overwhelming points victory - while Mayweather Jnr is set to fight Shane Mosley in May.
Talk continues about a meeting between Pacquiao and Mayweather Jnr and Roach is convinced the fight will happen once the latter has got past Mosley.
"Mayweather is a good fighter and I think he came up with these excuses because he was not ready for Manny," Pacquiao's trainer Roach told ESPN. "He had two years off and I think he needed more time.
"He has a fight coming up and if he beats Mosley all the rust will be gone. Then he will be sharp for a guy like Pacquiao."
Pacquiao is still smarting about the suggestions regarding steroids and Roach says his fighter has a score to settle. "We have never flunked a test," Roach said. "We are tested before and after a fight. If we were on steroids we would not pass."
Pacquiao was beaten by Erik Morales in 2005 and Roach says the Filipino blames the defeat on having to give blood for a doping test on the eve of the fight.
"Everyone knows that he blames losing the fight to Morales on that," Roach said. "He was tested the day before. When he gives blood I lose him for about three days and then he gets better.
"Mayweather is the first guy he has not liked who he has fought. He does not like Mayweather because of the attitude. Manny is clean, he was upset. But I can't let that get in the way in the fight. I can't let him fight angry. Mayweather is a good counter-puncher."
Roach claims the pair have an excellent working relationship, but is not afraid to speak his mind when the need arises.
"I don't hang out with him and go out to socialise with him," he said. "I want to keep that separation between trainer and fighter. I learned not to get too close because when I trained Virgil Hill we got too close and it affected our working relationship.
"I am the boss. I do have to put my foot down sometimes. One day they came in and were sleepy and they said they had been doing karaoke to 2am. I got the bunch together and told them all off. I told them we are in a camp and curfew is 9pm.
"Manny was quiet, he iced me for two days. But it worked itself out. I think he was more interested in who ratted him out."
Source: espn.co.uk
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