Manny Pacquiao was last seen in the ring not with his arms raised in victory but kissing the canvass after Juan Manuel Marquez of Mexico knocked him out cold in one of the greatest knockout victories of all time.
When he faces Brandon Rios in Macau on November 24, Pacquiao will knock out his upstart opponent and start on a glorious comeback trail, predicted his Hall of Fame trainer Freddie Roach.
The American trainer made this bold prediction while in the midst of training Pacquiao for his fight against Rios, saying that the Filipino ring icon has looked impressive in training camp and has regained his hunger that made him the best fighter in the sport several years ago.
"Manny will be doing me a big favor by knocking this guy (Rios) out," Roach told the Philippine Daily Inquirer.
Roach himself has admitted that he wants to see Rios kissing the canvass as the boxer has mocked him once in the past. According to Roach, a 2010 video showed the Mexican-American mocking his slurred speech and mannerism in front of trainer Robert Garcia and Antonio Margarito.
The trainer said his ward's hunger is back as Pacquiao has looked impressive in training camp. However, Roach is wary that Pacquiao may have been overtraining and this could potentially burn out the man who has won titles in eight different weight divisions.
Still, Pacquiao is focused and indicated his desire to work out more to regain lost glory.
"I need to train more," he told the Philippine Daily Inquirer. "I am hungry."
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