Welterweight titleholder Manny Pacquiao’s training camp came to end on Monday as he, trainer Freddie Roach and the rest of their team broke camp at Roach’s Wild Card Boxing Club in Hollywood, California.
They boarded their team bus for the four-hour drive to Las Vegas, where Pacquiao will fight fellow champion Floyd Mayweather on Saturday night (pay-per-view, 9 ET) at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in their long-awaited fight.
Pacquiao sparred four rounds on Monday, worked the mitts with Roach, and then hit the road for Vegas.
“Our long, international, boxing nightmare will soon be over,” said Roach. “Boxing has been held hostage by Floyd Mayweather and his antics long enough. Manny is going to stand up to Floyd on [Saturday] and put a bully in his place. On paper -- and in the sports books -- Manny shouldn’t stand a chance. But neither did David against Goliath. Just remember, Manny has always come out on top when he was the underdog] and you don’t have to look any further than his victories over [Lehlo] Ledwaba, [Marco Antonio] Barrera and [Oscar] De La Hoya.
“As Manny said earlier, ‘It’s time for Floyd to lose.’ Manny is on a mission. This fight is his crusade. The fans of the world are rooting for Manny to win just like they willed this fight to happen. He is their champion. This will be their victory.”
Mayweather does not need to lengthy trip to Las Vegas for fight week. He lives in Las Vegas, about 15 minutes from the MGM Grand.
