LAS VEGAS: Juan Manuel Marquez and Manny Pacquiao easily made weight on Friday before their rematch bout for the WBC super featherweight title.
Marquez weighed in right at the 130-pound (59-kilogram) limit, while Pacquiao weighed 129 pounds (58.5 kilograms) in front of a spirited, pro-Mexican crowd at the Mandalay Bay Events Center. Marquez and Pacquiao are the main event on Saturday, nearly four years after their acclaimed first matchup ended in a draw.
Both fighters appeared to be in exceptionally good shape, even by their own lofty standards. Neither had any evidence of body fat as they flexed and shook hands while the crowd chanted rude slogans in Spanish at Pacquiao, who has beaten Mexican fighters in his last six bouts.
Pacquiao (45-3-2, 34 KOs) could have even a bit more muscle in his next bout. He’s a slight favorite to claim Marquez’s title, but the Filipino champion has said the fight will be his last at 130 pounds (59 kilograms).
His next fight is expected to be at Mandalay Bay in late June against WBC lightweight champion David Diaz, who’s fighting Ramon Montano on Saturday’s undercard. After that, Pacquiao hopes for a unification fight in the autumn with Nate Campbell, who won the other three major 135-pound (61-kilogram) belts last week by beating Juan Diaz.
Marquez (48-3-1, 35 KOs) hopes a victory over Pacquiao will lead to a third meeting, since both fighters have rematch clauses in their contracts. Marquez won his title last year with a unanimous decision over Marco Antonio Barrera.
Steven Luevano and Terdsak Jandaeng also made weight on Friday before their undercard fight for Luevano’s WBO featherweight title.
