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Sports

Pacquiao and trainer sing different tune on a Mosley KO

By Reuters
Published | Updated

By Mark Lamport-Stokes

While Pacquiao said a knockout had not been a specific focus during their preparations over the last two months, Roach felt stopping an opponent was the perfect way to end a fight.

Mosley, 46-6-1 with 39 knockouts, has yet to be knocked out during his professional career and Roach has set his sights on Pacquiao becoming the first boxer to achieve the feat.

"I think all fights should end in knockouts so I am looking for a knockout," Roach said on a conference call with the Filipino southpaw.

"Shane is a tough guy and a very durable guy and it would be a feather in Manny's cap to be the first one to stop him. It would just prove to the world how much better he is than that other guy (Floyd Mayweather) that couldn't stop him."

Eleven months ago, Mayweather resisted a furious early onslaught by Mosley to preserve his unbeaten professional record with an unanimous points victory in a welterweight bout in Las Vegas.

"Manny will fight at a fast pace and I don't know if Shane is going to be prepared to fight at that pace," Roach said of the Filipino who has been installed as an odds-on favorite by Las Vegas bookmakers.

"But we are going to force the action and we are going to go for it (a knockout) this time. If it comes, it comes. I think Manny is definitely the guy to do it."

Pacquiao, already established as one of the best offensive fighters of all time with a career record of 52-3-2 with 38 knockouts, was reluctant to talk about his chances of stopping Mosley.

KNOCKOUT FOCUS

"We are not very focused on the knockout," the 32-year-old said. "If the knockout comes, it will come. We have prepared ourselves that we are fighting 12 rounds."

Asked how much it would mean to him to become the first fighter to stop Mosley, Pacquiao replied: "I would be excited for that. My concern right now is the fight that we can give to the people and to the fans. I want them to be happy."

For all the talk that he should brush aside the threat posed by three-division world champion Mosley, the Filipino southpaw is not taking his 39-year-old opponent lightly.

"Shane Mosley is still strong and he moves like a 29-year-old or a 30-year-old," Pacquiao said. "He is the kind of fighter that you cannot underestimate. He is bigger than me and stronger and of course he is a former pound-for-pound champion. He is still good."

Mosley did not thrive in his last two bouts - dropping a unanimous decision to Mayweather in May and drawing with Sergio Mora in September -- but Roach believes the American suffered against opponents renowned for their ultra-defensive style.

"We are looking at his fight against Margarito, a guy that attacks and not those two runners that he (Mosley) had a little bit of difficulty with," said Roach.

"In the Margarito fight, he looked great and Margarito has an aggressive style like Manny," Roach added.

"And the way we are going to attack him (Mosley) is going to be a little more scientific of course. We are ready for the best Shane Mosley out there."

(Editing by Frank Pingue)