Mayweather blasts Roach for Cotto loss

MANILA, Philippines – Floyd Mayweather Jr. took a swipe at Freddie Roach, blaming the multi-awarded trainer for Miguel Cotto’s defeat at the hands of Saul Alvarez in Sunday’s middleweight title fight in Las Vegas.

Speaking recently to fighthype.com, the retired Mayweather claimed Roach gave Cotto the wrong advice in between rounds of his showdown with Alvarez, who came away with a unanimous decision win to claim the WBC middleweight title.

“I can understand him being a little hurt, but Cotto didn't have the right trainer. He wasn't giving him the right advice. What fight was he watching? When you're a trainer, you know what you have to tell a fighter if the fight is close? ‘Listen, you gonna have to pick up the [expletive] pace! You know what? The fight is extremely close,’" Mayweather told fighthype.com’s Ben Thompson.

Mayweather and Roach have had a history of animosity toward each other, with the latter working against the former in two previous fights. Roach trained Oscar De La Hoya in his showdown with Mayweather in 2007, then worked the corner of Manny Pacquiao during his turn to face the former pound-for-pound king last May.

The undefeated American outpointed both De la Hoya and Pacquiao. Now he’s gotten back again at Roach for Cotto’s setback against Alvarez.

“If you're losing, your coach don't need to wait for you to get to the 10th round to tell you that you losing. If your coach knows you're losing in the fourth round, if that was the case, that's when a trainer needs to step up and say, "You know what? Pick up the fucking pace. You losing" or "[Expletive] it! Go out like a soldier! Go for the knockout," Mayweather continued.

Mayweather went on to further downplay Roach’s achievements as a boxing trainer. The bespectacled cornerman has been named Trainer of the Year by the Boxing Writers Association of America for a record seven times (2003, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2013 and 2014).

“I hear people talking about Freddie Roach is a legendary trainer, but I think Cotto was fighting the same way before he got with Freddie Roach. I think Pacquiao was fighting the same before he got with Freddie Roach. Both guys were already world champions before they got to Freddie Roach,” said Mayweather.

“But when Pacquiao lost to [Juan Manuel] Marquez and he lost to me, they still keep talking about how legendary the coach is. When are y'all going to get on the coach's ass and say, "You know what? This coach done a [expletive] job."