MANILA, Philippines — having settled the business at hand, Juan Manuel Marquez can now train his sights at the direction of one of the world’s best pound-for-pound fighters today: Manny Pacquiao.
Marquez again flaunted his superior technical skills in gutting out a unanimous decision triumph over fellow Mexican ring legend Marco Antonio Barrera in Las Vegas, setting him up for a rematch that could very well define his career.
And with the World Boxing Council super featherweight belt that came with the victory now wrapped around his waist, Marquez has enough leverage to negotiate for a fight against the Filipino ring sensation — despite a strong clamor from fans to stage a Pacquiao-Barrera rematch.
Marquez has long wanted a rematch against the hard-punching Filipino, especially after getting knocked down three times in their first meeting in May 2004 and then battling back to forge a controversial draw.
“It is like a small thorn in a lion’s paw,” Marquez once told boxingconfidential.com. “I want to remove that thorn, of drawing with Pacquiao, from my paw.”
The last time a rematch was in the works, Marquez’s camp turned down a purse offer from Top Rank and opted for a fight against Chris John at a lower purse. Marquez lost that fight.
Several boxing experts were hoping for a Barrera victory at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas that would have set the stage for a megabuck fight between the Mexican and Pacquiao, who had already crossed paths before.
Pacquiao knocked Barrera out in the 11th round of their 2003 battle in San Antonio, Texas.
But Barrera had previously played it coy when asked on his thoughts on a lucrative rematch against Pacquiao.
“I am past that fight,” Barrera had told boxingconfidential.com in a prior interview. “I wanted it. But if it does not happen, it does not happen. I am looking to retire in 2007.”
While Pacquiao-Barrera is still a hot item, Marquez can now make a case for himself as the reigning world super featherweight champion.
Still any rematch between Pacquiao and either of the two Mexicans will need a lot of ironing out, boxing experts say.
Marquez and Barrera are both promoted by Oscar De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions while Pacquiao is still signed to Bob Arum’s Top Rank.
Golden Boy Promotions and Top Rank are currently entangled in a legal mess as both companies claim to have a legitimate right to promote Pacquiao, who signed contracts and took bonuses from both camps.
