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Dethroned super-featherweight champion Juan Manuel
Marquez is ready to take on other marquee fights if ever
negotiations for a rematch with Manny Pacquiao come to
nothing.
This was
bared by Marquez’s Mexican promoter Jaime Quintana in an
overseas interview with the BusinessMirror yesterday.
Quintana
said Top Rank and Golden Boy Promotions (GBP) are
currently in talks for a possible Pacquiao-Marquez III
but also mentioned a probable return encounter with
Mexican legend Marco Antonio Barrera.
“Juan
Manuel is willing to fight anyone, especially Pacquiao.
Many Filipinos are saying Juan Manuel was robbed of a
decision,” said Quintana. “Barrera is being mentioned as
possible opponent, and Juan Manuel is ready for anyone
by September.”
Marquez,
34, captured the World Boxing Council (WBC)
super-featherweight crown by decisioning Barrera in
March of last year.
Marquez
defended the crown once via 12-round verdict over
American Olympian Rocky Juarez last November, but lost
the crown via split decision to Pacquiao two Sundays ago
at the
Mandalay
Bay
in Las Vegas, Nevada.
“Juan
Manuel is vacationing with his family in Mexico. He will
soon be back in training and will be ready to fight the
best fighter available,” said Quintana.
A bout
with Barrera will probably be Marquez’s next best option
outside of Pacquiao. Barrera, despite his twin losses to
Pacquiao, is still regarded as one of the top
crowd-drawers of the sport.
Barrera’s last two fights were against Marquez and
Pacquiao. Experts believe Barrera’s loss to Marquez was
debatable, while his fight against Pacquiao was
something that he could have won had he fought more
aggressively, instead of thinking about simply surviving
the fight up to the last round.
Pacquiao,
meanwhile, admitted two days ago in a press conference
that they are now finalizing a deal that will give him a
shot at the world WBC lightweight crown currently held
by David Diaz.
In the
same presser done hours after his arrival from the US,
Pacquiao welcomed a rematch with Marquez but an
immediate bout with the Mexican may not augur well, as
the Filipino icon does not want to create any personal
battle between him and the Mexican.
“If we
do it again for my next fight people might think it’s
getting personal between me and Marquez. I’m just doing
my job inside the ring, and I respect Marquez as a
fighter,” said Pacquiao. “I’m willing to face anyone,
but I don’t want people to picture me as someone who is
bragging.”
In
winning the super-featherweight crown, Pacquiao achieved
the distinction of being the first and only Asian to win
three world crowns in as many divisions. By fighting
Diaz, Pacquiao may finally claim boxing immortality as
no Filipino has ever won the 135-lb crown. |
