JUST about the most intriguing match of the year happens in Las Vegas on Saturday (October 12) when Timothy Bradley meets Juan Manuel Marquez.
The last two men to have beaten Manny Pacquiao square off for Bradley?s WBO welterweight belt and I, like many others I?m sure, remain utterly uncertain about who will prevail.
Bradley has yet to lose in 31 fights – although I will go to my grave convinced he was fortunate against the Pacman in June 2012, while Ruslan Provodnikov almost knocked Tim out in March. Marquez has held world titles of sorts at feather, super-feather, lightweight and light-welter to make a strong claim for ?modern great? status.
Yet what intrigues about the Mexican?s career is, well, how un-Mexican it is.
Juan Manuel celebrated his 40th birthday on August 23 yet looked better than ever when flattening Pacquiao with one stunning right hand 10 months ago (his last fight). The man who was a long-time featherweight looked ripped at 143lbs/10st 3lbs for the Pacquiao bout ? unlike the way he looked a blown-up lightweight when losing to Floyd Mayweather in a welter fight back in September 2009.
As he?s got older, he?s become more muscular and stronger, which is unusual for a fighter from Mexico, whose ring representatives traditionally peak early.
Great Ruben Olivares became world bantamweight champion at 22 and was an ex-bantam champ at 25, arguably in decline already. (He went on to hold both WBA and WBA versions of the featherweight crown, with his big punch holding up even as his skills faded).
Pipino Cuevas turned pro at 14 and became WBA welterweight king at the ripe old age of 18 years and eight months, dethroning Angel Espada on a second-round stoppage in July 1976. Cuevas was still only 23 when Thomas Hearns relieved him of his crown in August 1980 and, although he boxed on until 1989, Pipino never again contested a world title.
Of course Olivares and Cuevas relied heavily on power punching, especially with the left hook, while Marquez is more of a rounded boxer who can hit accurately and in combination. He also has an excellent defence, producing the sort of package that is always likely to lend itself to ring longevity.
Let?s not forget that ?JMM? was three months short of his 20th birthday when he made his pro debut ? ancient by Mexican standards. He didn?t contest a world title until he was 26 (lost to Freddie Norwood) and didn?t win one until he was 29 (beat Manuel Medina). He hasn?t had more than two fights in a calendar year since 2006 (when he had three), so he?s well-preserved.
Whatever the outcome against Bradley, Marquez looks sure to fare better than another Mexican great, Julio Cesar Chavez Snr, did when he fought Kostya Tszyu for the WBC light-welter crown in 2000. Chavez Snr was 38 and had not won a world title fight for nearly five years; Tszyu hammered him in six one-sided rounds.
