Mexican icon Juan Manuel Marquez (55-6-1, 40KOs) is once again considering retirement.
The 40 year old fight legend will face WBO Welterweight Champion Timothy Bradley (30-0, 12KOs) on October 12th at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas.
“[Retirement] is a possibility. I won’t rule anything out right now.” “First things first, we have to see how I feel physically, which is a very important factor and then see what happens, said Marquez via BoxingScene.
“Bradley can say whatever he wants, but [saying he will retire me] and doing it are two different things. Anything can happen in the ring. We will allow him to keep talking, but I will let my fists do the talking.”
If Marquez trumps Bradley, it would mark his 5th world title in as many divisions. Can Marquez become the first Mexican to win five titles in five weight classes?
According to sources, Marquez will assess his performance against Bradley and make his decision soon thereafter.
All this talk about JMM retiring is bad news for Manny Pacquiao fans who would love nothing more than to see their hero engage in a fifth fight with the Mexican star and follow-up from where he left off prior to being KO’d by the Mexican counterouncher in Round 6 of their encounter in December.
If Marquez wins… Don’t expect JMM to retire if he defeats Bradley because there would simply be too much money left on the table in a possible 2014 showdown with Manny Pacquiao. And even if Pac loses in November, there would likely be too many possible high-money options still available.
Keep in mind, Marquez, while certainly well-compensated, has not generated the monstrous cash sums of other top pound-for-pound fighters such as Pacquiao, Floyd Mayweather and the Klitschko brothers. Manny Pacquiao received a lion’s share of the purse in Pacquiao vs Marquez 3 and 4 – And, aside from the upcoming bout with Bradley, Marquez has never participated in a PPV superfight where he generated as much or more money than his opponent. Currently rated the No. 3 and 4 pound-for-pound fighter by RING and FightSaga, respectively, a victorious Marquez would have possible lucrative match-ups looming with Pacquiao, Mike Alvarado, Brandon Rios, Ruslan Provodnikov, Adrien Broner, Amir Khan and Danny Garcia to name a few,
And while several of the aforementioned fighters are signed with a rival promoter and network, public demand always trumps promoter grudges and network bickering.
If Marquez wins impressively, a high-profile bout with a non Pacquiao opponent certainly wouldn’t be out of the question.
If Marquez loses… A non-controversial loss to Bradley would probably make retirement imminent. Pacquiao vs Marquez 5 would lose “some” luster and Marquez wouldn’t have the leverage to demand the kind of money he’d be looking to earn in a fifth bout with PacMan or someone else.
