MANILA, Philippines – Jessie Vargas’ trainer does not think Manny Pacquiao is already a wash-up fighter.
Dewey Cooper says he is preparing the WBO welterweight champion for the best version of Pacquiao on November 5 in Las Vegas.
“Pacquiao's still a beast and all in this time frame but however, the knockout loss to [Juan Manuel] Marquez, he started to be a little more patient since that fight which is not a bad thing,” Cooper recently told Steve Kim of boxingscene.com.
Pacquiao hasn’t scored a knockout since 2009 against Miguel Cotto and at 37 years old, many boxing observers believe the Filipino icon is already on the decline.
He showed some flashes of brilliance though when he floored Timothy Bradley twice in their fight last April, but still failed to finish him off.
Nevertheless, key personalities in Pacquiao’s camp, including trainer Freddie Roach and promoter Bob Arum, are convinced that Pacquiao can still duke it out for a few more fights.
Count Vargas’ cornerman among those who still believe in Pacquiao.
“So Pacquiao's still great, he still has his speed, he still has power, he's still really into fighting. He has the passion for it,” Cooper added.
“So in our minds we're facing the 2009, 2010 Manny Pacquiao and that's how we want it because we want the best Manny Pacquiao.”