Another Pacquiao KO loss means retirement – Roach

MANILA, Philippines – Manny Pacquiao can call it a career if he gets knocked out by Brandon Rios in their Nov. 24 fight in Macau, as far as his longtime trainer Freddie Roach is concerned.

Speaking to Kevin Iole of Yahoo! Sports, Roach, who has been Pacquiao’s cornerman for more than a decade, said he would be the first one to ask the Filipino boxing icon to retire if he ends up getting stopped by Rios.

"It's over, 100 percent [if Pacquiao is knocked out by Rios]," Roach told Iole. "We have a deal. When I tell him it's over, he'll say it's over and that's it. He's pretty loyal with his words and if that happens, it will be the end."

Pacquiao is trying to bounce back from back-to-back setbacks against Timothy Bradley and Juan Manuel Marquez, who brutally knocked him out in the sixth round last December.

Some boxing observers and fans believe Pacquiao’s best days in the ring are over. The fighting congressman turns 35 a few weeks after the Rios fight.

But Roach disagrees, saying he hasn’t seen any slippage from his prized ward.

"None whatsoever, and I'd tell you if I did. The thing is, people look at the losses and they think the reason is that he's getting old. That's not the case, not from what I see. Look, we all thought he beat Bradley, so throw that out. And in the Marquez fight, I thought he was doing well and was looking like he was going to win by knockout when he made a mistake and ran into a shot,” Roach countered.

"That happens. That's boxing. It didn't happen because his skills aren't the same as they used to be. It happened because he made a mistake. It doesn't matter what age you are, you can make a mistake," added the bespectacled trainer.

For the Rios fight, Roach expects a marquee performance from Pacquiao, who once sat atop the pound-for-pound rankings.

"Manny needs to show me a little more. That's why I think a tremendous performance at this point will help a lot. We're at a crucial point in his career. I don't see that he looks like he's getting too old. His work ethic remains great. I'm his friend more than I'm his coach, and I'm not going to let anything happen,” said Roach.

Roach’s relationship with Pacquiao goes beyond the boxing ring, and the multi-awarded trainer has said many times that he treats Pacquiao like his own son. And if the time comes that the Filipino needs to hang up his gloves, Roach will be the first one to let him know.

"The minute I think he doesn't have it, when I see that he's not the Manny Pacquiao of old, I'll tell him that's it. I don't think he's at that point, and I think you'll see him look good in this one, but this is a very important fight for him," he said.