Legendary boxing trainer Freddie Roach is no stranger to training some of the greatest champions in the sport. His latest endeavor is preparing Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) superstar Andrei “The Pitbull” Arlovski for his upcoming bout against WAMMA World Heavyweight Champion Fedor Emelianenko.
The Affliction M-1 event entitled “Day of Reckoning” will take place on Saturday, January 24 at Honda Center in Anaheim, CA and will be broadcast live on pay-per-view.
This is Roach’s second fight with Arlovski who retained the esteemed trainer’s services to help him with his boxing skills and overall readiness. Roach, who has trained some of the biggest names in boxing-reigning pound-for-pound champion Manny Pacquiao, Oscar de la Hoya and Bernard Hopkins to name a few-now finds himself preparing Arlovski for the biggest MMA fight of the new year.
Roach and Arlovski are preparing both mentally and physically, and they are supremely confident that come fight night, there will be a new man labeled the “Best on the Planet.”
“I think a lot of people lose to Fedor before they even step into the ring,” said Roach. “You need to have the balls to fight him and I know Andrei is ready and will dominate.”
Roach is working alongside Arlovski’s wrestling and jujitsu coaches at his Los Angeles based “Wild Card” gym. Arlovski trains early in the morning focusing on running and strength work, followed by afternoon sessions at the gym where Roach takes the lead honing Arlovski’s boxing skills. During their afternoon sessions, Roach mimics Fedor’s various moves that Roach has observed by watching film of Fedor’s past performances. In the evening, Roach stands by and observes Arlovski’s ground work preparation.
“I watched Fedor’s last 20 fights and I am tired of him,” said Roach. “It is easy for me to emulate his moves because he is predictable. He sucks at boxing. He can’t box. He can punch, but he can’t box. I know he’s great on the ground. I know his moves. He won his last fight with his fists, but he ended it with a submission. There are certain moves that he has that we can take advantage of.”
“We are working on the complete game,” Roach said. “We will be prepared if the fight stays standing up or ends up on the ground. Andrei is very confident and so am I.”
Affliction M-1 “Day Of Reckoning”- Promoted by Golden Boy Promotions and brought to you by Affliction Entertainment and its partners, Donald J. Trump and M-1 Global, Affliction M-1 “Day of Reckoning” is scheduled for January 24 a Honda Center in Anaheim, CA and live on Pay-Per-View. The loaded fight card includes 11 rousing bouts of fierce, full-throttle action headlined by Fedor Emelianenko vs. Andrei Arlovski.
The six-fight blockbuster PPV telecast, beginning at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT, features MMA stars Josh Barnett, Renato “Babalu” Sobral, Chris Horodecki and Matt Lindland in separate bouts. As a prelude to the highly anticipated PPV telecast, HDNet will televise live beginning at 7:30 p.m. ET/4:30 p.m. PT five additional fights with the marquee match-up of Antonio Nogueira vs. Vladimir Matyushenko as the main event.
Ticket prices range from $50-$450 and can be purchased through Ticketmaster (available online at www.ticketmaster.com or at all Ticketmaster outlets, by phone at (714-740-2000) and at Honda Center Box Office (714-704-2500).
Freddie Roach has been talking trash about Fedor for months now and sure he is a fantastic boxing coach, but will those skills translate in an MMA fight?
Are we to assume that Fedor hasn’t been working on his hands either?
Consistently everyone who has gone up against Fedor has tried to downplay his utter dominance in the heavyweights of the world.
Let’s look at this from another scenario, everyone is always saying Fedor hasn’t faced top flight competition in ages, but the same argument could easily be made about Arlovski.
As far as top tier heavyweights in the UFC’s thinnest division Arlovski has beaten Tim Sylvia and Fabricio Werdum, with other notable wins over Ian Freeman and Vlad the Janitor.
Fedor has plowed through the pack of best heavyweights in the world: Coleman, Mirko, Mark Hunt, TK, Big Nog, Kevin Randleman, Fujita, Lindland, Heath Herring, Semmy Schilt, Babalu, Arona, all while sustaining minimal damage other than the occasional broken hand.