LAS VEGAS – Freddie Roach said the other day he almost scuffled with Oscar de la Hoya’s representative Richard Schaefer, CEO of Golden Boy Promotions, at the height of a bitter four-hour argument on hand wraps during the rules meeting presided by Nevada State Athletic Commission officials right after the weigh-in at the MGM Grand Garden Arena last Friday.
De la Hoya and Manny Pacquiao, the protagonists in the much-ballyhooed “Dream Match,” were not present.
“Oscar puts gauze, braided like rope, in between his fingers and sealed tight by layers of gauze and adhesive tape in bandaging for a fight,” explained Roach. “It’s against the rules to braid the gauze. But Oscar gets away with it because nobody complains. Well, he wasn’t going to get away with it this time.”
Schaefer reacted violently to Roach’s objection and they nearly came to blows. They debated the issue heatedly. Roach said Schaefer was accompanied by a lawyer and was surprised why the former investment banker spoke in De la Hoya’s behalf despite his lack of a boxing background.
“Just because nobody has complained doesn’t mean it’s not against the rules,” said Roach. “I stood my ground. I knew I was right and they were wrong.”
Roach was contracted by De la Hoya for a $1 Million paycheck to serve as his trainer for the Floyd Mayweather bout last year. When De la Hoya lost on a split division, he made Roach the scapegoat and blamed the Wild Card Gym owner for failing to map out a winning strategy.
“The problem was Oscar didn’t execute my plan,” countered Roach who was visibly upset by De la Hoya’s remarks.
Roach’s experience in De la Hoya’s camp opened his eyes to the bandaging violation.
Refusing to budge in pushing his point, Roach eventually convinced the commission officials to prohibit De la Hoya from braiding the gauze in between his fingers but conceded the use of a two-inch brown tape.
Under commission rules, the tape used to wrap a fighter’s hands must be white surgical tape that is 1 1/2 inches wide. De la Hoya’s camp uses two-inch brown tape. The final ruling was the Golden Boy could use brown tape but it had to be cut in half to one inch.
Roach said he wasn’t concerned about the disparity in weight between the fighters. Pacquiao tipped the scales at 142 pounds when the previous day, he was 149 and only a few minutes before, 146. De la Hoya, whose walking weight is about 160 pounds, came in at 145. There was suspicion that the scales were tampered to shield De la Hoya from paying the penalty of $3 million for every pound over the catchweight limit of 147 and protect him from losing more weight. A Pacquiao insider speculated the scales were rigged to show four pounds less, allowing De la Hoya at least two more pounds without shedding the excess.
Roach and Buboy Fernandez accompanied Pacquiao on the stage for the weigh-in and had the authority to question the proceedings. They did not protest.
“Scales don’t win fights,” said Roach. “I don’t care what Oscar weighed. I knew Manny would beat him at any weight.”
Roach said De la Hoya had to be dehydrated from losing so much weight even if he reportedly enjoyed an excellent training camp. When you’re 35 as De la Hoya is, it’s not as easy losing weight and staying strong compared to if you’re younger, added Roach.
Pacquiao entered the ring weighing 148 1/2 pounds and De la Hoya, 147. It was completely unexpected that the shorter Pacquiao would even weigh more than De la Hoya for the fight. What was more incredible was Pacquiao’s ability to stay agile despite the added poundage.
When De la Hoya stepped onto the ring,
Roach said he noticed intra-veinous marks on his arm, indicating the Golden Boy had been pumped up to regain his strength. Surprisingly, De la Hoya came in only two pounds more than what he scaled at the weigh-in.
On the point of De la Hoya not being able to pull the trigger, Roach said he saw it clearly in the Steve Forbes fight. De la Hoya couldn’t put Forbes away and settled for a win on points last May.
“I noticed Oscar would hesitate, his reflexes were gone yet Forbes was hardly hitting him,” said Roach. “That was when I knew Manny would beat him easily. I just knew Oscar wouldn’t be able to keep pace with Manny. He just wouldn’t be able to pull the trigger.”