Roach ready to urge Pacquiao to retire

MANILA, Philippines – Manny Pacquiao better impress in his comeback fight, or else he’ll be told by no less than his longtime trainer Freddie Roach to call it quits.

In a report by boxingscene.com, Roach said he won’t hesitate to be blunt and tell Pacquiao himself if he no longer has what it takes to compete at the top level.

The bespectacled trainer already saw signs of Pacquiao’s decline in the Filipino icon’s bout with Floyd Mayweather Jr. last May, a fight he lost via unanimous decision.

“I didn't like how Manny looked in his last fight. I know there was an injury and so forth, but I think he could have done better in that fight,” Roach explained.

Top Rank chief Bob Arum recently said Pacquiao will return in February or March next year, as long as the fighting congressman is fully recovered from the shoulder injury he sustained while training for Mayweather.

Pacquiao could end up facing Amir Khan, Kelly Brook or Lucas Matthysse, and with Roach’s stance, it should be a must-win fight for him.

“If he doesn't look good in his next fight, I think I would [tell him to retire]. I've always told Manny that if I thought he was slowing down and the reflexes weren't there, I would tell him,” the trainer added. – Dino Maragay