MARCO Antonio Barrera the toughest boxer of his division?
Take it straight from Manny Pacquiao.
?Sa kaniya pa din ako talaga nahirapan sa lahat ng laban ko,? Pacquiao told BusinessMirror. ?Siya na siguro ang pinakamalakas na Mexican na nakalaban ko.?
It was the same statement Pacquiao blurted a few days after his first fight with another Mexican icon, Erik Morales, in March 2005. Pacquiao lost his initial bout with Morales via a 12-round decision but scored two thrilling knockout wins in completing their classic trilogy.
In his only encounter with Barrera on November 2003, Pacquiao totally dominated the Mexican legend inside 11 rounds of their ?Peoples Featherweight? Ring Magazine title fight at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas.
The win catapulted Pacquiao to where he is right now, one of the top pound-for-pound boxers in the world, second only to kingpin Floyd Mayweather, Jr., the reigning World Boxing Council (WBC) welterweight champion.
Pacquiao also fought current WBC super-featherweight champion Juan Manuel Marquez of Mexico in a spine-tingling 12-round encounter that ended in a split draw. In that fight held three years ago in Las Vegas, Marquez survived three first-round knockdowns and made what is perhaps one of the most memorable comebacks in the history of boxing.
?Magaling sa counter si Marquez pero hindi naman siya kasing-lakas ni Barrera,? added Pacquiao.
Barrera, who once reigned as WBC super-featherweight king which he won from Morales in November 2004, defended that same belt against Marquez last March in Las Vegas
A week before the Barrera-Marquez encounter, Pacquiao told BusinessMirror he is choosing Barrera to win the fight, another proof of the Filipino?s high regard for his foe on October 7 at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, Nevada. Marquez, however, won via 12-round verdict.
His respect for Barrera is probably what motivates Pacquiao to give his all in training despite the fact that the Filipino superstar scored one of his most impressive wins against Barrera.
Yesterday at the Wild Card Gym in Hollywood, American trainer Freddie Roach expressed his satisfaction with their preparation for the upcoming bout. ?I?m happy seeing Manny really happy in training. Barrera is still a tough opponent but with what I saw in Manny during training is enough for me to feel good about the fights,? said Roach.
