If the stars are aligned just right, fans could be in for a thriller tonight when Juan Manuel Lopez and Rafael Marquez square off for Lopez’s featherweight world title at MGM Grand in Las Vegas (on Showtime).
All the elements are there. Both are knockout artists. One is Mexican and one is Puerto Rican, which means boxing’s biggest rivalry will be in play. Marquez is a lock for the International Boxing Hall of Fame while Lopez still needs a few big wins to be assured of landing there.
But there’s also the possibility this could be a one-sided quick fight won by the younger Lopez, who at 27 is eight years Marquez’s junior. That age difference has been one of the hot topics of this promotion, and it’s one that seems to have gotten under Marquez’s skin.
AOL Fanhouse took a poll of 10 boxing journalists this week. Nine picked Lopez to win, seven by knockout. All but two mentioned Lopez’s youth while giving their reasons.
Marquez scoffed at such talk.
“I tell them that they’re wrong,” Mexico’s Marquez said when asked what he says to those who question what he has left at 35. “As long as you take care of yourself and as long as you prepare well for a fight, that shouldn’t be any problem.
“I think my brother proved that against Juan Diaz, who is 10 years younger than him.”
Marquez is right. His brother, 37-year-old Juan Manuel Marquez, has two victories over 27-year-old Juan Diaz in two lightweight title fights over the Advertisement
past 21 months. But Diaz does not hit like Lopez (29-0, 26 KOs) and the elder Marquez never had a brutal four fights like his brother had against Israel Vazquez.
Juan Manuel Marquez has been in two rather mean fights with Manny Pacquiao, but the punishment Rafael took in losing two of three against Vazquez was more severe. Yes, Rafael Marquez came back and knocked out Vazquez in the third round of their fourth fight last May at Staples Center, but Vazquez was a mere shadow of his former self, so that didn’t mean all that much.
Also keep in mind the first three Vazquez-Rafael Marquez fights took place in a period of just one year between March 2007 and March 2008. The two fights between Juan Manuel Marquez and Pacquiao – a draw and a Pacquiao win by split decision – were almost four years apart.
Lopez said during a recent telephone interview from his native Puerto Rico he doesn’t view Marquez as a fighter who might be too war-torn to be competitive with him.
“I truly believe right now at this point in our careers we are at the same level,” Lopez said. “I don’t think he’s a lot better than me like he once was, and I don’t think I am better than him. I think it’s a 50-50 fight.”
There’s something else. Even though Marquez (39-5, 35 KOs) has tasted the canvas and has been stopped inside the distance in four of his five losses, he is not considered to be weak of chin. Lopez has at least a slight reputation of being what is known in the boxing world as “chinny.”
He was badly hurt by Rogers Mtagwa in the last of his five super bantamweight title defenses in October 2009. Lopez chalked that up to having trouble making the 122-pound weight limit. He moved up to the 126-pound featherweight division and took the world title from medium-hitting Steven Luevano via seventh-round knockout.
Lopez was decked in the first round of a title defense against Bernabe Concepcion in July. Lopez reacted strongly by knocking Concepcion down three times and stopping him in the second round. But Concepcion has only a 45 percent knockout ratio, which does make one wonder.
“I’ve seen some videotape on him,” Marquez said about Lopez. “I see how strong and powerful he is, but I also see his weaknesses. I see that he has a weak chin. So we have to take advantage of that and put our punches together and use a lot of combinations.”
Lopez, speaking at this week’s final news conference, said he knows all about that comment by Marquez.
“I read that the team of Rafael Marquez said that I have no chin,” he said. “But the one that is undefeated is me. I know he has won a few fights by knockout, but on Saturday night you’ll see who can really take a punch and who can’t.”
Gary Shaw, Marquez’s promoter, is co-promoting tonight’s card along with Bob Arum. He had an intriguing thought about what this fight might be like.
“In some respects I wish I didn’t have a fighter in the fight,” Shaw said, “so I can buy a seat and really enjoy the fight.”
For as long as it lasts.
Win over `Ghost’ would be big step for Escobedo
Oscar De La Hoya this week talked about how important tonight’s lightweight fight between Robert “The Ghost” Guerrero and Vicente Escobedo is to both fighters who will tangle at Prudential Center in Newark, N.J. (on HBO).
“We feel both sides, whoever wins this one, is on the verge of challenging the top guys in the lightweight division,” said De La Hoya, who promotes both boxers.
That might be true. But whereas Guerrero already has won world championships in the featherweight and super featherweight divisions, Escobedo is trying to win his first major belt.
Escobedo, of Woodland, is 29 today. During his nearly six-year pro career, he has fought for one interim lightweight title and was defeated by Michael Katsidis in September 2009 in Las Vegas.
A win over Guerrero almost certainly would put him in a spot where he can fight for a world title. A loss would be a major setback because, as it is, Escobedo (22-2, 14 KOs) is seen as someone who has not lived up to his potential.
But he doesn’t seem concerned his window is closing.
“I’m going to be 29, but I don’t feel 29,” Escobedo said. “I feel young. I don’t feel this is late in my career like, `Oh, you’re 29 and getting close to 30.’ I feel young and I have a lot left in the tank, so I’m not worried whatsoever.
“I’ve got something more important, which is a fight to worry about. I have Robert Guerrero in front of me. The only thing on my minds is to go out and win this fight.”
Guerrero (27-1-1, 18 KOs) is 2-0 as a lightweight since giving up his super featherweight belt to be with his wife Casey, who has been battling leukemia; she is in remission. Even though he already has realized his dream of winning a world championship, Guerrero remains hungry.
“You have to make yourself better every time you get into that ring, every time you get into the gym,” said Guerrero, 27, of Gilroy. “I’m still not at the elite level where I think I’m the top guy.
“I have things I want to achieve. There is so much out there in boxing for me and I’m not done yet.”
This fight will be on the undercard of the Zab Judah-Lucas Matthysse junior welterweight title elimination bout.
Etc.
The undercard of next Saturday’s junior middleweight title fight between Manny Pacquiao and Antonio Margarito at Cowboys Stadium took a hit this week when former middleweight champion Kelly Pavlik had to pull out of his scheduled fight with Brian Vera. Pavlik’s team said he suffered a rib injury. The 10-round welterweight fight between Mike Jones (22-0, 18 KOs) of Philadelphia and Jesus Soto Karass (24-4-3, 16 KOs) of Mexico now will serve as the main undercard event. The card will be available on HBO pay-per-view for $54.95. … Tonight’s main undercard bout to the Juan Manuel Lopez-Rafael Marquez featherweight title fight at MGM Grand will feature Allan Green (29-2, 20 KOs) against Glen Johnson. The fight is part of Showtime’s Super Six super middleweight tournament. Johnson (50-14-2, 34 KOs), a former light heavyweight champion, has not fought at super middleweight for 10 years. He’s also 41. But he is entering the tournament late as a replacement for the injured Mikkel Kessler.
