Roach sure of KO win for Pacquiao

MANILA, Philippines – Freddie Roach is confident that Manny Pacquiao’s knockout drought will finally end against Chris Algieri in Macau this November.

In a conference call early Friday, the multi-awarded trainer provided an update on Pacquiao’s training in General Santos City with the fight just about a month away.

Roach said Pacquiao has been hurting his sparring partners, and based on what he saw, the Filipino icon will be on his way to his first knockout win in five years.

“Well, you know, we added some big sparring partners. Mike Jones is really a big, good puncher and so forth, and Manny is doing really well with him. He's hit him with some good shots here. He's hurt him a couple time in training camp already," Roach told reporters

"He's showing good power so far and he's showing the intensity that I want. When he hurts somebody, then he opens up on them and finishes them. I told him if we get rid of a sparring partner, we just get another one. So training camp is going really well,” he continued.

Pacquiao hasn’t scored a knockout since stopping Miguel Cotto in 2009, and Roach wants that slump to end against Algieri on November 23 at the Cotai Arena of The Venetian Macao.

The bespectacled trainer pointed to Pacquiao being undersized for a welterweight (147-pounder) as the reason he had not registered knockouts in his recent wins. The fighting congressman will take on Algieri at a catchweight of 144 pounds, after which he’ll likely to slide down to junior welterweight (140 pounds).

"I would love to see a knockout. The thing is, I think, you know, at ‘47, maybe he's a little bit smaller than most of the ‘47-pounders out there. We have to feed him five times a day to make that weight,” Roach explained.

“This fight's at ‘44. I think his punching power will come back and I see a knockout coming for sure," he added.

Pacquiao, for his part, shared his trainer’s confidence.

“I’m excited to fight again with a tall opponent like Algieri. I know what I’m doing in the fight,” he said in the same media call.