“Manny” Rodriguez to prepare for Inoue in Cuba
IBF Bantamweight Champion Emmanuel “Manny” Rodriguez (19-0- 12KOs) is set to face off against WBA regular titleholder Naoya Inoue (17-0, 15KOs) in the semifinals of the WBSS tournament.
As of now, no date and location has been announced. With the upcoming bout looming, Rodriguez is stepping it up a level in terms of his preparation.
3KingsBoxing has learned that Rodriguez has decided to move preparations away from his native Puerto Rico. Instead, the champ will make Cuba his home base for an 11-week training camp in order to get his mind and body right to face one of the best pound-for-pound boxers in the sport.
Hitting the Road
Shortly before boarding a flight to Cuba, the champ shared some words from the Luiz Munoz Marin Airport in Carolina, Puerto Rico.
“I will be quartered in Cuba for 77 days. It will not be easy to be away from my family for so long, but the sacrifice will be worth it. We trust the plan that we have with my new coach William Cruz, an on the track with veteran Jose Bonet. The results will show in this fight. The chemistry we developed in these past weeks of light training has been very good. This will be the first time that I’m not the favorite in a fight, and the motivation is incredible. It’s very huge. I like challenges. Our goal and focus is to take the victory and that Puerto Rico continues to shine in boxing.”
Emmanuel Rodriguez
Juan Orengo, Rodriguez’s promoter, provided further explanation.
“This camp will not have room for distractions. It will have a lot of boxing and teamwork. Manny will be in top condition. We are very enthusiastic about everything that is happening. Manny was always looking to fight Inoue, and it’s finally happening.”
Juan Orengo
“Manny” is taking a super serious approach for what is the biggest bout of his career against the best fighter he has faced. There is no time to play around!
His team knows what’s at stake here and truth be told, they have no other choice against such a dangerous and talented foe in “Monster” Inoue.
By: Michael Wilson Jr.
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