By CARLO ANOLIN
Manny Pacquiao showed no signs of jetlag when he arrived at Freddie Roach’s Wild Card Boxing Club in Los Angeles, California on Tuesday (July 6)
Pacquiao’s training in the Philippines paid off well as the eight-division world boxing champion kicked off Day 1 of his training camp ahead of his mega-bout against Errol Spence Jr. at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on Aug. 21.
On his first day, Pacquiao reportedly started with a five-mile morning run and 1,000 situps before proceeding to Wild Card to work the mitts with Roach with nine rounds for three hours, displaying his classic speed and footwork as seen on his social media channels.
Another video showed Pacquiao hitting a three-pointer at an outdoor basketball court and wowed spectators with his speedy shadow boxing afterward.
Speaking to veteran boxing reporter Elie Seckbach over a good meal, the 42-year-old fighting senator simply flashed a huge thumbs up and said he had a “very good” workout for Day 1.
Earlier that day, Pacquiao underwent a random drug test from the Voluntary Anti-Doping Association (VADA).
Roach, for his part, was amazed at how his long-time student performed a day after arriving in the United States.
“If this is how Manny hits with jet lag, I may need to get new gloves with thicker padding for our next sessions,” said the 61-year-old Roach as stated in a news release through BoxingScene.com. “He was incredibly sharp for his first day. He hit hard with good power. After all these years, I’m still amazed at the great condition he’s in when he comes to training camp.
“After traveling around the world yesterday (June 4), he put in a full day here – mitts, speed bag, shadow boxing – the works. The best part was at the end when he lifted his shirt to show me his six-pack and said, ‘Freddie, I’m still here.'”
Also present in the gym were Manny Pacquiao (MP) Promotions president Sean Gibbons, strength and conditioning Justin Fortune, long-time trainer Buboy Fernandez, and MP Promotions talent Mark Magsayo.
