Not unless Manny Pacquiao beats Juan Manuel Marquez can the Filipino say that he’s the best there is in the crowded, star-studded super-featherweight division.
And this goes for Marco Antonio Barrera, too.
“Pacquiao and Barrera cannot feel they are the best until the moment that they defeat Marquez,” Jose Sulaiman, the World Boxing Council president, told boxingscene.com yesterday.
“If they don’t defeat him, they can never say they are the best,” added Sulaiman, who wore a Pacman cap when he came to watch the Filipino beat Jorge Solis in San Antonio last April.
Pacquiao is scheduled to face Barrera at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas on Oct. 6 while Marquez, the WBC titleholder, is getting ready to take on fellow Mexican Jorge Barrios.
Sulaiman hopes that should Pacquiao beat Barrera a second time, the 28-year-old Filipino will be pitted against Marquez for a rematch of their controversial draw in 2004.
Sulaiman said Pacquiao should remain as the top challenger to Marquez when the June rankings come out.
Marquez was floored three times in the opening round against Pacquiao but went on to salvage a controversial draw, leaving the two boxers with a very big score to settle.
Marquez snatched the WBC belt from Barrera earlier this year, and has been calling out Pacquiao’s name. But a court case between Top Rank and Golden Boy prevented this fight from happening.
However, things have changed over the last few days as Top Rank and Golden Boy have agreed to settle their differences, and can now pit their boxers against each other.
Pacquiao belongs to Top Rank while Barrera and Marquez are under Golden Boy, which also has ties with Edwin Valero and Joan Guzman, two other possible opponents for the Filipino superstar.
