Freddie Roach believes Floyd Mayweather has been forced into a fight he would rather avoid and questions whether the American will even turn up for his welterweight epic against Manny Pacquiao.
Mayweather and Pacquiao collide in Las Vegas in the early hours of Sunday morning with the outcome of the showdown at the MGM Grand deciding who is the greatest boxer of their generation.
The build up to the richest fight in history has been notable for the lack of trash talking from Mayweather and Roach, Pacquiao’s master trainer, views that as a symptom of his uncertainty.
See more: All of The National's "fight of the century" coverage at our Floyd Mayweather v Manny Pacquiao home page
Roach believes the 38-year-old’s television paymasters Showtime, who have outlaid a minimum of £130 million (Dh735.9m) for a six-fight contract, ordered the clash the boxing world has craved for the last five years.
“I don’t know why Floyd’s been so quiet. I’m wondering if he’s going to show up, I really am,” Roach said.
Saying he had earlier taunted Mayweather at the first press conference, Roach was surprised, “there was no response”.
“His speech was very low-key and subdued. I’m not sure he is going to show up.
“I think Floyd was forced into this fight and it’s not a fight he wants. He always gets to pick and choose his opponents, but he wasn’t able to pick and choose this one because Showtime wanted this fight.
“I don’t think he wants this fight. Sometimes we do things we have to do to please companies and to make money. He was forced into a fight he didn’t want.”
Also: Where to watch the Floyd Mayweather v Manny Pacquiao fight in the UAE
Pacquiao’s promoter Bob Arum, who was sat alongside boxer and trainer at Wednesday’s press briefing, jumped in quickly to reassure the public the fight is not in danger of collapsing.
“What Freddie means is, will Floyd show up when he gets in the ring. Of course he’s going to show up ... people – keep buying the pay per views,” Arum said.
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WWE TLC results
Asuka won the SmackDown Women's title in a TLC triple threat with Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair
Dean Ambrose won the Intercontinental title against Seth Rollins
Daniel Bryan retained the WWE World Heavyweight Championship against AJ Styles
Ronda Rousey retained the Raw Women's Championship against Nia Jax
Rey Mysterio beat Randy Orton in a chairs match
Finn Balor defeated Drew McIntyre
Natalya beat Ruby Riott in a tables match
Braun Strowman beat Baron Corbin in a TLC match
Sheamus and Cesaro retained the SmackDown Tag Titles against The Usos and New Day
R-Truth and Carmella won the Mixed Match Challenge by beating Jinder Mahal and Alicia Fox
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How to play the stock market recovery in 2021?
If you are looking to build your long-term wealth in 2021 and beyond, the stock market is still the best place to do it as equities powered on despite the pandemic.
Investing in individual stocks is not for everyone and most private investors should stick to mutual funds and ETFs, but there are some thrilling opportunities for those who understand the risks.
Peter Garnry, head of equity strategy at Saxo Bank, says the 20 best-performing US and European stocks have delivered an average return year-to-date of 148 per cent, measured in local currency terms.
Online marketplace Etsy was the best performer with a return of 330.6 per cent, followed by communications software company Sinch (315.4 per cent), online supermarket HelloFresh (232.8 per cent) and fuel cells specialist NEL (191.7 per cent).
Mr Garnry says digital companies benefited from the lockdown, while green energy firms flew as efforts to combat climate change were ramped up, helped in part by the European Union’s green deal.
Electric car company Tesla would be on the list if it had been part of the S&P 500 Index, but it only joined on December 21. “Tesla has become one of the most valuable companies in the world this year as demand for electric vehicles has grown dramatically,” Mr Garnry says.
By contrast, the 20 worst-performing European stocks fell 54 per cent on average, with European banks hit by the economic fallout from the pandemic, while cruise liners and airline stocks suffered due to travel restrictions.
As demand for energy fell, the oil and gas industry had a tough year, too.
Mr Garnry says the biggest story this year was the “absolute crunch” in so-called value stocks, companies that trade at low valuations compared to their earnings and growth potential.
He says they are “heavily tilted towards financials, miners, energy, utilities and industrials, which have all been hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic”. “The last year saw these cheap stocks become cheaper and expensive stocks have become more expensive.”
This has triggered excited talk about the “great value rotation” but Mr Garnry remains sceptical. “We need to see a breakout of interest rates combined with higher inflation before we join the crowd.”
Always remember that past performance is not a guarantee of future returns. Last year’s winners often turn out to be this year’s losers, and vice-versa.
11 cabbie-recommended restaurants and dishes to try in Abu Dhabi
Iqbal Restaurant behind Wendy’s on Hamdan Street for the chicken karahi (Dh14)
Pathemari in Navy Gate for prawn biryani (from Dh12 to Dh35)
Abu Al Nasar near Abu Dhabi Mall, for biryani (from Dh12 to Dh20)
Bonna Annee at Navy Gate for Ethiopian food (the Bonna Annee special costs Dh42 and comes with a mix of six house stews – key wet, minchet abesh, kekel, meser be sega, tibs fir fir and shiro).
Al Habasha in Tanker Mai for Ethiopian food (tibs, a hearty stew with meat, is a popular dish; here it costs Dh36.75 for lamb and beef versions)
Himalayan Restaurant in Mussaffa for Nepalese (the momos and chowmein noodles are best-selling items, and go for between Dh14 and Dh20)
Makalu in Mussaffa for Nepalese (get the chicken curry or chicken fry for Dh11)
Al Shaheen Cafeteria near Guardian Towers for a quick morning bite, especially the egg sandwich in paratha (Dh3.50)
Pinky Food Restaurant in Tanker Mai for tilapia
Tasty Zone for Nepalese-style noodles (Dh15)
Ibrahimi for Pakistani food (a quarter chicken tikka with roti costs Dh16)
