Freddie Roach To Train De La Hoya For Mayweather Fight
Quote:
LAS VEGAS, United States (AFP) - Oscar De La Hoya named Freddie Roach as his trainer for his May fight against unbeaten Floyd Mayweather Jr, avoiding a family feud by dropping past trainer Floyd Mayweather Sr.
Mayweather Sr, who has worked with de la Hoya since 2001, had asked for two million dollars to train de la Hoya against his estranged son. Mayweather Jr fired his father as his trainer in 1999 to work with uncle Roger Mayweather.
"He was making those comments about two million dollars and fighting his son. Me personally I just didn't feel comfortable with him training against his son," de la Hoya said.
"You hate to see a father and son apart for so many years. Hopefully it will help bring the Mayweathers together."
De la Hoya said the two million dollar demand had no impact on his decision.
"The money wasn't an issue. My issue was would Mayweather Sr be passionate going for that knockout," de la Hoya said. "How would he be in the middle of training camp with family members saying, 'Don't do it.'
"I didn't want any distractions. I wanted someone like Freddie who will be on the same page."
World Boxing Council junior middleweight champion de la Hoya is 38-4 with 30 knockouts while WBC welterweight champion Mayweather, 37-0 with 24 knockouts, moves up a weight class to create a May 5 showdown of superstar US fighters.
"I want to feel as comfortable as possible in training camp. With comments Floyd Sr has made in the past I just didn't feel he was going to be as passionate as I will be on May 5."
"He is a great trainer. He has the tools to show me how to beat his son. When you have a trainer like Freddie who is a master at dissecting opponents, I have no worries. But I have to admit Floyd Snr is a great trainer."
De la Hoya said he had not yet spoken to Mayweather Sr but knew the veteran trainer was aware of his decision.
"He has already been told," de la Hoya said. "I have a call in to Floyd to explain the whole situation, why I feel what I feel. But he already knows."
Roach was happy to become a part of the "Golden Boy" versus "Pretty Boy Floyd" showdown even though it means he must exit Los Angeles for Puerto Rico to train de la Hoya, leaving behind Filipino star Manny Pacquiao among others.
"I will be with Manny until I do leave for Puerto Rico," Roach said, expecting the Asian star will fight in April. "I sat down and talked with all of them. They understand the situation."
De la Hoya, who will begin work in Puerto Rico with Roach in late February, said that once he chose not to add fuel to the Mayweather fire and have a circus atmosphere around the bout, the decision of Roach was easy.
"It was a very thoughtful decision. It really wasn't a difficult decision," de la Hoya said. "In my heart I knew it was going to be Freddie. Aside from him being a great mitt worker, he's a good strategist.
"He knows how to dissect opponents and come up with a good strategy. That's what I need in my career. I need that sense of secureness."
Roach was confident de la Hoya would be in peak for the fight.
"You're going to see the best Oscar de la Hoya you have seen in your life fighting Mayweather. We will do whatever it takes to win," Roach said. "The adjustments are the key thing. It's a must-win situation in my mind."
De la Hoya said he would not be averse to having Mayweather Sr train him in the future, should he fight again, but made no assurances.
"I haven't made a decision whatsoever," de la Hoya said. "I'm keying on this fight. I might not even fight again. It all depends on how I feel. Right now I'm focused on having Freddie in my corner for this fight."
Mayweather Sr. is a nutjob, so I'm not surprised De La Hoya went with someone else. I doubt its going to matter either way, De La Hoya is probably going to retire on a loss regardless.
