MANILA, Philippines - No matter how much Miguel Cotto weighs, conditioning coach Alex Ariza said the other day Manny Pacquiao will be bigger and stronger than he ever was in his bid to become the first fighter in history to win seven world titles in seven different divisions.
Pacquiao will shoot for the record when he faces Cotto who is defending his WBO welterweight crown at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on Saturday night (Sunday morning, Manila).
Ariza, 34, was hired by Pacquiao to join his team in preparing for the David Diaz fight for the WBC lightweight title last year. The Colombian did such a good job in firming up Pacquiao’s body that he was retained as the conditioning coach for the Oscar de la Hoya, Ricky Hatton and Cotto fights.
“I like what Alex is doing,” Pacquiao once said. “When I was an amateur, the approach in training was similar. But as a pro, this was the first time I was exposed to scientific strength and conditioning.”
Ariza’s HIIT (high-intensity intervolt training) system is the comprehensive approach that he introduced to Pacquiao. The system zeroes in on fast-twitch muscle fibers to enhance explosiveness and applies nutritional values to reach an ideal body composition. It is supported by a monitoring program where heartbeat, pulse, body fat and recovery rate, among others, are closely checked.
Ariza said he works closely with two associates Teri Tom of UCLA and Andrea Macias of San Diego State in formulating Pacquiao’s conditioning program. “I run everything through Teri and Andrea so we cover all the aspects, including nutrition, isometric exercises and muscle build-up. Our program isn’t the work of any one person. It’s a team effort.”
Ariza called it a “catch 22” situation in analyzing what a fighter goes through in either gaining or losing weight. “I can’t tell you what’s harder – to gain or lose weight,” he said. “When you go up or down, you lose something either way, sometimes in terms of speed or power. Your body has to make the adjustments right away and that’s where nutrition comes in. With Manny, it’s not a problem. We let him eat what he wants, even high calorie food sometimes because he needs about 5,000 calories a day anyway. He’s a workhorse. What he does in training for six weeks is probably what a normal fighter does in training for a year. That’s how hard he works.”
Ariza said the HIIT system builds functional muscles and is complemented by a diet that Tom prepares. “We want Manny to be explosive and we want him to build up muscle in moving up to 145 pounds,” he said. “We use supplements, not steroids. Someone who never finished high school, like Floyd Mayweather Sr., wouldn’t understand the difference and that’s why they make dumb comments.”
Ariza said Tom would’ve joined the training team in Baguio but she couldn’t make it. “We were communicating by computer because she monitors Manny’s body composition,” he said. “We just reinforced what she’s worked on with Manny.”
Allaying fears that Cotto’s size may be too imposing, Ariza said De la Hoya and Hatton were also bigger than Pacquiao but they were stopped just the same. “There’s no concern that Manny might not be able to bring up his power to welterweight,” said Ariza. “Some people thought Manny wouldn’t be able to hurt Hatton because he’s so big. When Manny took him out in two rounds, they called him a shot fighter. Manny just has to prove it all over again against Cotto.”
As for his ability to take the power of a bigger opponent, Ariza said Pacquiao feasted on sparring partners who outweighed him by 15 to 20 pounds. “It made no difference,” said Ariza. “Shawn Porter and Jose Luis Castillo are so much bigger than Manny but they couldn’t bring him down and Manny could take what they dished out. It’ll be the same with Cotto.”
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