Where does Juan Manuel Marquez rank in the history of Mexican boxing?

Where does Juan Manuel Marquez rank in the history of Mexican boxing?By Emilio Camacho, Esq. Mexico has an impressive imprint in boxing history. The current most dominant Mexican boxer is Juan Manuel Marquez. Several of you have emailed me asking where does Marquez stand in history.

Experts will argue that Julio Cesar Chavez Sr. and Salvador Sanchez rank above Marquez. This is not hard to justify. In addition, I believe that Ricardo “Finito” Lopez should be ranked above Marquez. Lopez was the most dominant force in Mexican boxing and retired undefeated. However, Chavez and Sanchez arguably had the better opposition.

What is important to think about is not how Marquez ranks in all-time Mexican boxing history but rather how he ranks in his own era. This is because there are two other fighters, Marco Antonio Barrera and Erik Morales, who dominated that era for a long time, and actually overshadowed Marquez for many years while all three had active boxing careers. This is significant because it is rare to have great talent at the same time, though it has certainly happened before (Ali, Frazier, Foreman as well as Leonard, Duran, and Hagler are some examples).

continue

Pacquiao starts training camp on October 15th; Marquez already training in Mexico

Pacquiao starts training camp on October 15th; Marquez already training in MexicoBy Rob Smith: Manny Pacquiao will be starting his training camp on October 15th with trainer Freddie Roach at the Wildcard Gym in Los Angeles, California. Pacquiao and Roach plan on trying to take Pacquiao back to where he was in his earlier days when he was a seek and destroy fighter. For whatever reason Pacquiao has evolved into a slow plodder that moves with great effort, can’t cut off a ring very well, and who only fights hard for the last 30 to 40 seconds of every round. Pacquiao thinks he can get back to the form of his early youth by working out harder.

Pacquiao is currently being put through his paces by one of his team members Buboy Fernandez, but this isn’t the official start of his training camp.

As for Marquez, he’s already busy working out in the mountains of Mexico and is reportedly training at the 15,354 foot Nevado de Toluca, in the mounts of Mexico to work on his conditioning. According to the Manila Bulletin, Marquez plans on working at high altitude for 10 days to build up his endurance for the Pacquiao fight.

continue

Roach still wishes Pacquiao had chosen Bradley to fight rather than Marquez

By Rob Smith: Trainer Freddie Roach says he wished that his fighter Manny Pacquiao had selected WBO welterweight champion Tim Bradley to fight next instead of facing Juan Manuel Marquez for a fourth time when they meet on December 8th. Roach has made it clear in the past that Marquez is a really tough fight for Pacquiao and he doesn’t see anything to be gained from fighting him yet another time after having already faced him three separate times.

continue

Few tickets left for Pacquiao-Marquez 4 bout

Few tickets left for Pacquiao-Marquez 4 boutBy Rob Smith: While the hardcore boxing fans might be incredibly sick of seeing Manny Pacquiao and Juan Manuel Marquez fight endlessly, the casual boxing fans are clearly not bored as they’ve purchased nearly all of the 16,800 tickets for the Pacquiao-Marquez scheduled for December 8th at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada. As of Monday morning there were only 3000 tickets left with 13,00 having been sold over the weekend. By now the 3000 remaining tickets are probably reduced to even lower numbers.

Pacquiao’s promoter Bob Arum is pretty excited about this, saying to ESPN “We are ecstatic with the response.”

I bet Arum is. The last Pacquiao fight was against Tim Bradley and it reportedly didn’t do well on pay per view. This is one of the reasons why Bradley didn’t get a second chance to beat Pacquiao again.

continue

Gamboa could fight on Pacquiao-Marquez 4 undercard on December 8th

By Michael Collins: Former IBF/WBA featherweight champion Yuriorkis Gamboa (21-0, 16 KO’s) could wind up on the undercard of the Manny Pacquiao vs. Juan Manuel Marquez 4 fight on December 8th, according to Steve Kim. Gamboa hasn’t fought since last year in September in beating Daniel Ponce De Leon. Gamboa has been out of action due to promotional problems in leaving Top Rank.

continue

Pacquiao has to beat Marquez impressively this time

Pacquiao has to beat Marquez impressively this timeBy Rob Smith: With Manny Pacquiao’s performances looking less and less impressive with each fight, Pacquiao now has to look especially good for him to be still considered as one of the best fighters in boxing. Getting beaten and/or winning controversial decisions isn’t helping him. You can’t look at Pacquiao’s last three performances against Shane Mosley, Juan Manuel Marquez and Tim Bradley and Pacquiao as a superstar type fighter. He lost to Bradley and should have to Marquez.

That’s two defeats in his last three fights. That’s terrible. While some boxing fans feel that Pacquiao deserved a win over Bradley last June, Pacquiao’s performance in that fight wasn’t superstar type material. Pacquiao just looked like an old guy that could no longer fight hard for three minutes of every round, and who also couldn’t cut off the ring to save his life.

If for no other reason that they can’t find another big money opponent to put him in with, Pacquiao will be fighting Juan Manuel Marquez on December 8th. With the Top Rank – Golden Boy rivalry limiting the number of options Pacquiao has in terms of opponents, sadly he’s reduced to fighting the same guys over and over again.

continue

Pacquiao vs. Marquez IV: Can Manny knock-out JMM?

Pacquiao vs. Marquez IV: Can Manny knock-out JMM?By Joseph Herron: “Insanity is doing the same thing, over and over again, but expecting different results.”Albert Einstein (1879-1955)

On December 8th, at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada, eight division world champion Manny Pacquiao will take on Mexican legend Juan Manuel Marquez for a fourth time in what could prove to be another great war of wills.

Although neither fighter has ever dominated their respective nemesis, both men have publicly stated that they feel a sense of urgency to end the ongoing rivalry with a sensational and resounding knock-out.

But will the fourth installment materialize into another strategic but action filled tug-of-war, or will the boxing universe finally witness a decisive victory for the eventual winner?

Despite getting the decision in two of his three epic battles with JMM, the Filipino Congressman is coming off a disappointing loss to Timothy Bradley and is convinced he has much to prove to his fans as well as his critics.

continue

Pacquiao vs. Marquez IV – “It has to happen…really?”

By Marc Livitz – Change is good…Complacency kills.

Neither of these well known socially accepted proverbs holds any weight if each of them is universally governed by the words of the great P.T. Barnum.

Oceans worth of fans still feel jilted from the fallout which resulted from the past three fights between a certain Emmanuel D. Pacquiao and a noteworthy Juan Manuel Marquez Mendez. To their credit, there is enough evidence however much it may be clouded by opinion and anger on each side to support their respective arguments.

Throughout the thirty six rounds contested between the two, we have been constantly reminded afterwards just how microscopic the differences have been in terms of how the scoring has played itself out. The knockdowns have made the difference, at least they have (or did) in the first and second contests, which took place in May 2005 and March 2008, respectively.

A show of hands, please. Who really wants to see a fourth meeting between the two?

Take into consideration for just a moment how age is certainly going to factor into the bout once the bell rings to commence round thirty seven on December 8 of this year. Manny Pacquiao will be closing in on his 34th birthday, while Marquez has already settled into the final year of his thirties.

Win?…pissed off at the result. Lose?…pissed off at the result. Draw?… pissed off at the result.

continue

Manny Pacquiao vs. JM Marquez IV: Will cuatro “sinko” at the bank?

Manny Pacquiao vs. JM Marquez IV: Will cuatro “sinko” at the bank?By Joseph Herron / On December 8th, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, eight division world champion Manny Pacquiao (54-4-2, 38 KOs) will attempt to defeat Mexican legend Juan Manuel Marquez (54-6-1, 39 KOs) for a third consecutive time.

Although every meeting between the two future Hall of Famers have been riddled with controversy, the all time great trilogy has given fight fans around the world many memorable flashes of elite level action.

Despite the popularity of both fighters, most fight fans are divided regarding their support of the scheduled event. But realistically, what choices were Pacquiao and Top Rank left with?

Whereas most casual and die-hard fight fans are in agreement concerning whom they would prefer to see Pacquiao face in the ring on December 8th, that distinction has never been solely on the shoulders of Manny or the Top Rank brass; contrary to popular belief.

And while Palm Springs resident Tim Bradley won the Pac-Man’s WBO Welterweight title this past June, most fight fans are in congruence regarding the validity of the controversial “Split Decision” victory. Even after two consecutive losses to Pacquiao, a fourth bout with JMM still holds more credibility with the boxing faithful than a rematch with the current Welterweight title holder.

continue

Bradley stunned that Pacquiao will be facing Marquez next

Bradley stunned that Pacquiao will be facing Marquez nextBy Marcus Richardson: WBO welterweight champion Tim Bradley is less than pleased with the news that Manny Pacquiao won’t be fighting him next in a rematch to try and avenge his loss to Bradley from last June. Pacquiao and his promoter Bob Arum have chosen to go with a proven pay per view money maker in 39-year-old Juan Manuel Marquez for Pacquiao’s next fight on December 8th.

Bradley told the Desert Sun at mydesert.com “I can’t believe these guys. He didn’t want any part of me. Marquez is an easier fight. He knows that a fight with me and two good legs are going to be hell…Any champion who lost his belt, you would want to redeem yourself.”

In fairness to Pacquiao, he probably does want to avenge his loss to Bradley, but it’s not just Pacquiao making the decisions here. It’s a team process and and I think he realized after hearing the arguments from his fellow team members that it was simply more logical to go with Marquez because of his potential to draw in more PPV buys from his large Mexican fanbase. Bradley still doesn’t have a large fanbase and it’s going to take a while for him and Arum to build one up.

continue