No tuneup: Roach wants Marquez after Pacquiao ban

If Freddie Roach had his way, there’s no need for Manny Pacquiao to go through a tuneup fight in April. The Hall of Fame trainer wants Pacquiao to tangle with Juan Manuel Marquez right away in September. Though aware that negotiations are underway for Pacquiao to fight either on April 13 or April 20 outside the United States, Roach told fighthub.tv that he would prefer that Pacquiao skip the bout and prepare for a grudge rematch with Marquez instead. “I don’t really want the tuneup fight,” Roach said. “I would rather just go straight into the fifth fight (with Marquez).” In their fourth bout last Dec. 8, Marquez caught Pacquiao with a right straight coming in and knocked out the Filipino eight-division world champion cold with one second to go in the sixth round. Pacquiao later told Roach his desire to fight Marquez one more time. After being cleared of head injuries, however, Pacquiao is pining for an early return and has given his adviser, Mike Koncz, the signal to seek a fight through Top Rank Promotions. In a television interview on Sunday, Koncz said nine names—among them, Timothy Bradley, Vyacheslav Senchenko, Jessie Vargas—are being considered for Pacquiao’s return fight which could be held in Macau, Singapore or Abu Dhabi for “lesser tax” purposes.