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Pacquiao-Marquez third bout possible By Eddie Alinea PhilBoxing.com Tue, 30 Nov 2010 Whatever people say ? whether they?re for or against a Manny Pacquiao-Juan Manuel Marquez third fight ? the 37-year-old Mexican boxing hero has, once again, proved he has every right to demand completion of a trilogy with his Filipino counterpart. Last Saturday at the MGM in the sin city Las Vegas, the ageless warrior came out of a third round knockdown, engaged Australian Michael Katsidis in a toe-toe exchanges in the next five rounds and stopped the game but outclassed opponent in the ninth.Showing extraordinary toughness, fighting heart and superior technical skills, Marque put a stop to the slambang, street-brawl type of fight only he could dish out at the two minutes and 14 seconds mark of the decisive period. The same qualities, it will be remembered, he displayed in bouncing back from three first-round knockdowns to earn a draw in his first fight with Pacquiao. It was Marquez?s warrior spirit, too, that lifted him off the canvas after a second-round knockdown against a much heavier Floyd Mayweather Jr., and from another third-round knockdown in his rematch with the Pacman. . Reason why, he thinks, he shouldn?t be counted out as Pacquiao?s next opponent, a fight he has been lobbying for as long as one can remember which he immediately repeated right after disposing off the Katsidis.That is, if a Pacquiao-Mayweather classic, which had been aborted twice, can no longer be revived. ?I want the third fight with Pacquiao,? Marquez blurted out during the post-fight press conference at the MGM Grand. . ?I?ve been beating opponent after opponent. I?ve been beating young, strong fighters like Juan Diaz and Michael Katsidis,? he declared. ?Pacquiao is fighting bigger men, but not better fighters than I have been fighting. Pacquiao?s Antonio Margarito, (Pacquiao?s last opponent) did not deserve to fight Pacquiao. He served a one-year suspension, and before that he was knocked out (by Shane Mosley).? "I thought that I won the first fight with Pacquiao and clearly won the rematch,? he added in reference to his rematch with the now eight-division world champ that ended in a split decision in favor of the ?Pacman.? ?I feel that I deserve a third fight. The people want that fight,? the pride of Mexico City averred, referring to the a confrontation boxing fans most preferred than the other fighters the pound-for-pound king?s camp is reportedly considering, which includes welterweight belt-holder Andre Berto and former champ Shane Mosley, who struggled to a draw with Sergio Mora in his last bout. Some issues will have to be resolved though before the third leg of the trilogy can be realized. First is the bad blood that exists between Pacquiao?s promoter Top Rank Inc. and the Golden Boy Promotions, which holds promotion rights of promotes Marquez. Top Rank?s top honcho Bob Arum and his Golden boy counterpart, boxing legend Oscar De La Hoya, one of Pacquiao?s victims in claiming his pound-for-pound title, had been reported to be willing to forget their differences at least temporarily so the fight can be held. The other, of course is the weight class the two will fight. Pacquiao?s trainer Freddie Roach has repeatedly stated on record that he will not allow his fighter to face Marquez in any division but welterweight (which has 147-pound weight limit). Pacquiao?s strength and conditioning trainer has a different view though, saying, in an earlier interview that the Filipino icon will be more at home as a lightweight Marquez, a small lightweight who can probably still make junior lightweight (130 pounds), experimented with fighting above 135 pounds before -- his welterweight fight with Mayweather last September -- and he did not look sharp while being outclassed over 12 rounds by the much-bigger master boxer. Marquez told the media that Pacquiao, who currently holds titles at welterweight and junior middleweight, must agree to come down to at least a 142-pound catchweight for their third bout to happen. It?s a weight that Pacquiao, who weighed in at 144.6 pounds against Margarito, can probably still make but it?s unlikely that Roach or the good folks at Top Rank will agree to Marquez?s stipulation. Should the most-likely possibility that a third bout with Pacquiao cannot be made in 2011, Marquez said he would consider fighting Erik Morales, a popular but faded fellow Mexican star he never got the chance to face during the former three-division titleholder?s prime, and young Robert Guerrero, the No. 1 contender for one of his alphabet titles. Click here to view a list of other articles written by Eddie Alinea.  |
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