Not too long ago it seemed like a fifth fight between rivals Manny Pacquiao and Juan Manuel Marquez would never happen. It seemed like Marquez was happy with the way their fourth fight ended (he knocked Pacquiao out cold) and would refuse to take a fifth fight because he had nothing left to prove.
Now is sounds like Top Rank head honcho Bob Arum is working his butt off to get a fifth fight done between these two legends.
“Bob Arum of Top Rank wants Marquez as Pacquiao’s opponent for this fight date, and he doesn’t seem ready to take no for an answer,” Fight News stated via Boxing News 24.
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With a little pressure from Arum, Marquez has seemingly changed his entire tone on a potential fifth fight. He now says he is willing to make it happen, but only if Pacquiao agrees to a 50/50 purse split.
“It was important for Manny Pacquiao to look good, so they gave him an opponent like Brandon Rios for his return and he looked impressive,” Marquez told BoxingScene.
“I believe that Bob Arum is doing his job in getting him these types of opponents, but it will be important to see him face tougher competition and see how he looks against those kind of fighters after suffering that knockout,” he added.
Then again, there are still people who do not see a fifth fight happening between these two even if Pacquiao would accept a 50/50 split. Veteran boxing analyst Ed Tolentino is one of those people.
“Juan Manuel Marquez, I don’t see him fighting Pacquiao anymore,” the analyst said in an interview with ABS-CBN News. “Because Marquez is already contented with the fact that he was able to knock out Pacquiao. Let that be the lasting memory of the rivalry.”
In the world of boxing, everyone has their price. Marquez may not want to take a fifth fight against Manny Pacquiao, but there is no chance he is going to turn down $15 million if it’s on the table. If Pacman still wants a fight against pound for pound king Floyd Mayweather, he will definitely need to avenge his loss to Marquez.
A fifth fight between Manny Pacquiao and Juan Manuel Marquez would also do huge pay per view numbers and may be one of the two or three biggest fights that can be made in boxing today. Their fourth fight will go down in history as one of the best fights of the modern era.
