[Dennis Principe | fightnews.com] Freddie Roach and Robert Garcia have started to provide the verbal fireworks that is sure to prop up whatever is left of the opportunities to promote this weekend’s much-anticipated bout between their respective wards Manny Pacquiao and Antonio Margarito. During separate interviews with this writer, both Roach and Garcia sounded livid when told about a brewing duel between the prominent trainers.

It all started when Garcia, in a previous internet report made a claim of having a 2-0 edge in his head-to-head clash with Roach.

Garcia said he scored his first win when his American ward Steven Luevano won by disqualification over Roach’s Filipino pupil Bernabe Concepcion last August 2009 in Las Vegas.

The second win, Garcia asserted, was when he first handled Margarito in the Mexican’s return from a much-publicized suspension opposite Wild Card Gym-trained Roberto Garcia staged May of this year in Mexico.

Roach meanwhile refuted his rival’s claim by first stating that he never trained Garcia for the Margarito fight.

“I wasn’t in his corner. He trained at my gym, that’s all. He is Eric Brown‘s fighter” said Roach.

Roach then went ballistics when asked for his comment on Garcia’s 2-0 tally.

“Tell him to go (expletive) himself because I’m bringing my ace this time. What’s this childish? Like ‘Oh I beat one of your fighters before’.. What does that do with this fight?” said an irked Roach.

Roach also belittled Concepcion’s defeat where the Filipino got disqualified for punching Luevano after the bell sounded ending the seventh round that illegally knocked the then world champion out.

“But whose fighter ended up being knocked out?“ said Roach.

In an apparent retort, Garcia lambasted Roach’s insistence that he had nothing to do with Garcia’s fight against Margarito.

“Now he’s trying to change the story but I remember clearly when Freddie Roach made some comments to the press saying Roberto Garcia hitting so hard and he was going to knock out Margarito. To say that, obviously he was training Roberto Garcia,” said Garcia.

Garcia went on with his critical remark on Roach.

“He didn’t want to go to Mexico because he knew he was going to lose. He didn’t want to look bad inside the ring that night,” said Garcia. “For Freddie not to show up was a disrespect to Roberto Garcia who deserves to have Freddie Roach in his corner. If my fighter lose a fight, I take responsibility even if I don‘t show up in his corner.”

Meantime, Pacquiao and Margarito made their final public workout yesterday at the Gaylord Texan Hotel where they did several rounds of mitts, jump rope and shadow boxing in front of an appreciative crowd.

Fight promoter Bob Arum addressed the crowd by stating one of his few more remaining sales pitches, and that is to sell the hugely underdog Margarito as a livewire opponent for Pacquiao.

“Manny will overwhelm him early on with his speed and the question can Manny maintain that speed over the 12 rounds because this guy doesn’t wear down, Margarito, and he throws a lot of punches and that’s going to tell the story”, said Arum.

Today protagonists and their entourage will hold their final press conference that will be open to the public at the East End Zone Platform of the fight’s stadium.

Though their 12-round bout is for the vacant World Boxing Council 154lb crown, Margarito and Pacquiao agreed to a catch weight of 150lbs with a penalty of $500,000 for every excess pound during the official weigh-in set the day before fight night.