Here we go… Here we go.
Unable to lure Amir Khan, IBF welterweight champion Kell Brook has his sights set on another big name.
Fresh off his impressive showcase against Jo Jo Dan a few days ago, Kell Brook, 28, is now calling out 41 year old fight legend Juan Manuel Marquez. Brook insisted it would be a dream come true to face the future Hall of Famer in his native Sheffield early this summer while Marquez would get one more opportunity to win a title in a fifth weight class, something he dearly covets.
My career is all about challenges,” Marquez stated after defeating Manny Pacquiao in December 2012.
“Right now the challenge [for my career] is to get a fifth title.”
The obstacle Juan Manuel Marquez may have fought his last professional bout. Apparently, he suffered a nagging knee injury while training for his May 2014 bout with Mike Alvarado and hasn’t been well since.
During a December 2014 interview on ESPN Deportes, JMM broke the news that an injury may force an untimely retirement.
“I wanted to have another fight in 2014, but I injured my knee while training for my fight with Mike Alvarado,” confessed Juan Manuel Marquez.
“Right now I need to take my time to see how my knee responds to training. I just need time.”
“Being a boxer is my job, and the ring is my place. But now I need to take my time. I do not want to retire, but if my body doesn’t allow me I will be forced into retirement.”
If Marquez can rehabilitate his injured knee, Marquez vs Brook would be an intriguing fight. And even if Marquez’s knee is only 85 or 90 percent upon entering the ring, the match-up is mouthwatering.
Already looking past JMM? Brook insists a fight with the 41 year old Marquez would make him a superstar and elaborated on all of the positives such a bout would produce for him. And, in fact, a win over Marquez would certainly catapult Brook’s stock, not only in the UK but internationally…. But legends are legends for a reason, Mr. Brook, and Marquez, if healthy, is well-capable of handing you your first defeat. In the last nine years, Marquez has lost only to the cr?me de la cr?me of boxing, Floyd Mayweather, Manny Pacquiao and Tim Bradley. Moreover, the losses to Pac-Man and Bradley were razor thin with each defeat failing to produce a unanimous verdict.
If Marquez decides to pursue a fifth world title and accepts the challenge, let’s hope Brook & Co truly understand what they are asking for.
