Pacquiao starts US training vs Marquez

MANILA, Philippines - Freddie Roach had previously offered $1,000 to anyone who could knock Manny Pacquiao down or out in sparring.

This time, Roach is taking a different approach. Instead, he is offering Pacquiao $1,000 if he can knock any of his sparring partners down.

Pacquiao arrived in Los Angeles yesterday morning (Saturday evening in LA) for the final phase of his preparations for his Dec. 8 showdown with Juan Manuel Marquez.

The Filipino boxing icon, coming off a controversial loss to American Tim Bradley last June, spent the first three weeks training in his home province of General Santos City.

The original plan was for Pacquiao to train the whole eight weeks at the Wild Card Gym.

But it didn’t’ happen.

It was the first time Pacquiao spent the first few weeks of his training away from the eyes of his chief trainer although he insisted that everything went well in General Santos City.

Pacquiao said he worked as hard under his buddy Buboy Fernandez and Roger Fernandez, and that he could begin sparring this week if Roach wants him to.

Roach said the doors to his gym will be closed every minute Pacquiao is inside training.

Roach is not worried at all that Pacquiao came in a couple of weeks behind their normal schedule. In an attempt to fire up his fighter he came up with the offer.

“This camp I will pull a switch. I will offer Manny $1,000 out of my own pocket every time he knocks a sparmate on his a**,” Roach was quoted by Michael Marley of The Examiner.

In previous camps, Pacquiao has given his sparring partners a taste of hell with a couple of them getting off the ring with a bloody nose.

Of course, Roach wouldn’t mind losing a few thousand bucks in this camp.