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Friday, November 11, 2011

PACQUIAO - 143 LBS, MARQUEZ - 142 LBS


LAS VEGAS -- Boxing pound for pound king and WBO welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao of the Philippines (L) came in at 143 lbs while Mexican challenger Juan Manuel Marquez stepped in at 142 lbs during the official weighin held moments ago at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in front of a capacity crowd for the highly anticipated bout Saturday night at MGM Grand Garden Arena.

Source: PhilBoxing.com

Legendary trainers collide in Las Vegas

LAS VEGAS – Not only will two of the top fighters in the world compete in the main event Saturday, but they’ll be handled by arguably the two best trainers working today: Nacho Beristain and Freddie Roach.

And as different as they may be, the trainers agree that work will be over once Juan Manuel Marquez and Manny Pacquiao step into the ring. They’ll become little more than spectators.

“Everybody wants to make it Freddie Roach against me,” Beristain said. “But that is wrong. It is Manny Pacquiao against Juan Manuel Marquez. Once that bell rings, we have nothing to do it with it.”

eristain leaned back in his chair, patted his (relatively) flat midsection and all but sneered.

“I feel like [expletive],” the 72-year-old Hall of Fame boxing trainer growled.

For the past three months, Beristain hasn’t been able to do what he has done virtually every day for about a half century: run five miles.

Beristain has been preparing Marquez to face Pacquiao on Saturday at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in a welterweight title bout that is one of the year’s most significant. And a half dozen of his other fighters are also competing in noteworthy bouts. He’s got precious little time to do anything but work in his gym and watch tapes. Much of his time has been spent getting Marquez ready to meet Pacquiao, boxing’s pound-for-pound champion.

Marquez fought a pair of excruciatingly close bouts against Pacquiao, drawing in 2004 and dropping a split decision in 2008. Another loss to Pacquiao, close or otherwise, and Marquez will run out of chances.

And so Beristain, one of the game’s unheralded great trainers, the maker of 21 male world champions and two female champions, has thrown himself headlong into his work. Every waking moment, it seems, has been about finding a way to help Marquez defeat Pacquiao.

Daily run be damned.

Even when he gets to run these days, it isn’t as exhilarating, not since he was inducted last year into the International Boxing Hall of Fame. Now, whenever he runs, his solitude is interrupted by well-wishers and glad-handers.

“I go running by and they all yell, ‘Hey, Hall of Famer! Beristain, way to go!’ ” Beristain said. “They want to talk, or shake hands, just be around you. But I’ve got a lot to do. This Hall of Fame isn’t exactly what I wanted.”

Across the ring Saturday, Beristain will peer at a much younger man who will almost certainly be inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2012. Freddie Roach, 51, has trained Pacquiao for more than 10 years and has developed him into perhaps the most fearsome fighting machine on the planet.

Roach is a humble sort, even though his handlers are trying desperately to make him a star. Cameras follow him everywhere, reporters hang on his every word and HBO is planning a series on Roach’s life beginning in January.

Roach has won the Trainer of the Year Award three years in a row, four times in the last five years and five times overall.

His mentor, Eddie Futch, won it in 1991 and 1992, when he was 80 and 81 years old. The Boxing Writers Association of America didn’t create the award until 1989. Had it been given out when Futch started training, he might have a few dozen.

“There’s never been a trainer like Eddie,” Roach said.

The statistics would say that there is no trainer like Roach. When fighters develop bad habits, their managers send them to Roach. When mixed martial arts fighters want to learn to box, they seek out Roach.

Bruce Trampler, a Hall of Famer himself and arguably the greatest matchmaker in boxing history, said if he has a young fighter he wants to be developed properly, he’ll send him to Roach.

Beristain comes from a well-to-do Mexican family. His father was solidly middle class and his mother came from a wealthy family. She was horrified when she learned that her teen-age son had turned to boxing.

She tried desperately to convince him to do something else with his life, but he was fascinated with the fight game and wouldn’t be swayed.

He was a flyweight who won some significant amateur tournaments in Mexico and then went 13-1-2 as a pro before retiring in 1959. His passion for boxing remained, however, and he became a trainer good enough to coach Mexico in the Olympics in 1968, 1976 and 1980.

In those days, the Cubans and the former Soviet Union were dominant teams and Beristain admired their styles. He studied intently and built his own philosophy around what he learned from them, adapting it for the professional game.

Three of his fighters, Ricardo “Finito” Lopez, Humberto “Chiquita” Gonzalez and Daniel Zaragoza, have been elected to the Hall of Fame.

His style relies upon three basic tenets: footwork, making the hands and feet work in unison and learning to throw combinations.

Marquez said Beristain is a perfectionist who isn’t pleased if a training session becomes sloppy or if Marquez isn’t paying close attention to his technique.

“He is always trying to make everything perfect and he gets very mad [if it’s not],” Marquez said. “That’s why I like to train with him.”

Roach, who as a fighter in the 1980s went 40-13 and was more tough than talented, has nearly perfected Pacquiao. When Pacquiao arrived by chance at Roach’s Wild Card Gym in Hollywood, Calif., in 2001, he was blazingly fast and generated extraordinary power because of his quickness.

But he was far from a complete fighter. He was left-hand dominant and rarely used his right hand. His footwork was a mess and he didn’t put his punches together particularly well.

They’d spend hours in the ring working on the most basic of concepts and pore over fight films, trying to discover and correct flaws.

“Freddie helped me to always keep working on my technique to get better,” Pacquiao said.

Their contributions to the outcome Saturday may lay in the plan they devised. Both Beristain and Roach watched video of the fighters for hours upon hours, rewinding and watching the same segments.

They’re looking for little tip-offs that they could make a difference. The result of the fight, and the balance of power within the sport, could hinge on what they noticed.

“Nacho has had great results with his fighters and obviously, he’s good at what he does,” Roach said. “The thing is, who will come up with the better game plan for this fight, me or him? I feel I got my guy 100 percent ready for whatever Marquez might bring.

“He’s been a counter puncher throughout his career, but he’s been more aggressive, more TV-friendly, in his last couple of fights. He’s put a lot of muscle on, too, and when you put muscle on, is it for counter punching and speed? No. It’s for exchanging and fighting toe-to-toe. I think I have a little bit of insight into what they’re thinking. I told Manny I think he’s going to come out quick. So we have a good sense of what they’ll do and of what we need to do.”

What they each need to do is win, Pacquiao to preserve the possibility of a super fight with Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Marquez to hopefully get one more big payday before he’s through.

Beristain is the father of three girls and a boy, all of whom have college degrees. One of his daughters has a doctorate in economics and another is studying for her Ph.D in economics. His wife, he said, has three degrees “and thinks she’s the smartest one in the family.”

But he said it’s not going to be his smarts or Roach’s smarts that carry the day.

“Whoever wins, [the media] will try to say that I had something to do with it or that Freddie Roach had something to do with it,” Beristain said. “I disagree. When you have good fighters and they’re in good shape, you look like you’re a lot smarter than you really are.”

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com

Thursday, November 10, 2011

Manny Pacquiao, Facts, Stats, & Figures


Some of this stuff you already know, but if you are looking for some statistical data for angle on Saturday’s night’s Manny Pacquiao-Juan Manuel Marquez fight, or if you’re placing a bet on it, some of this stuff might come in handy.

* Pacquiao’s winning streak is currently fourteen straight fights. He was won three consecutive fights by decision, with his last win inside the distance being a stoppage in the final round against Miguel Angel Cotto in November 2009.

* Pacquiao has fought four times at 144 pounds (the “catchweight” for this bout) or higher. Those were the last four bouts on his record.

* Seven of Pacquiao’s last nine fights have been held in Las Vegas, and four of his last six were at the MGM Grand, the site of Saturday’s fight.

* Thus far, Pacquiao has made two defenses of the WBO crown that will be on the line against Marquez. Those defenses were against Joshua Clottey and Shane Mosley. The decision win over Margarito, which took place a year ago, was for the 154-pound title as sanctioned by the WBC.

* Pacquiao’s first world championship bout took place in December 1998 (almost 13 years ago), as he was the eight-round KO winner over Chatchai Sasakul. His last defeat was in March 2005 when he was beaten on a decision by Erik Morales.

* Pacquiao’s first fight against Juan Manuel Marquez took place at 125 pounds, and for the second one, he was 129 pounds. This contracted weight constitutes a big step up in weight for both guys since that last meeting.

* The second fight against Marquez was the last time Pacquiao has fought below 130 pounds. Two years later, he was at his heaviest weight as a pro – 145-1/2 pounds against Clottey.

* Pacquiao’s fights in recent years have one things in common, in that they have not been particularly close. In his last bout, he won it by a combined 36 points (across the three judges’ cards) over Mosley. Previous to that he had a combined margin of 30 points against Margarito and 32 points over Clottey. He was ahead by a combined 27 points over Cotto until stopping him, led Oscar De La Hoya by 25 points until stopping him after eight rounds, and led David Diaz by 26 combined points when he registered a ninth-round TKO.

* The last fighter to have won on any judge’s scorecard against Pacquiao was in fact Juan Manuel Marquez, who in that last meeting on March 15, 2008 won on Jerry Roth’s card by a score of 115-112. In the first encounter (May 8.2004), despite suffering three first-round knockdowns, Marquez won on Guy Jutras’ card, 115-110.

* Currently Pacquiao has a won-lost percentage of 94.6%, though his 71.7% of KO’s as a percentage of wins is lower than that of Marquez. It is something that can be attributed to the moves up in weight for Pacquiao, which have happened in relatively rapid fashion.

* The knockout distribution for Pacquiao is as follows: 1st – 6, 2nd – 7, 3rd – 5, 4th – 5, 5th – 3, 6th – 4, 7th – 0, 8th – 3, 9th – 1, 10th – 2, 11th – 1, 12th – 1.

* Pacquiao has scored 23 of his 38 career knockouts (60.5%) in the first four rounds. Interestingly enough, only eight of those 38 KO’s have come after the sixth round

Source: boxinginsider.com

Juan Manuel Marquez – Facts, Stats, & Figures


Are you going to be watching the Manny Pacquiao-Juan Manuel Marquez fight on Saturday? We’re sure you will be. Maybe these statistical and numerical facts will help you take a look at it, or aid in some betting analysis of it, since there are so many gambling propositions on it.

* Since the draw with Manny Pacquiao in their first meeting, Marquez has compiled a record of 11-3, with a loss, of course, to Pacquiao, and defeats at the hands of two fighters (Floyd Mayweather and Chris John) who were undefeated.

* Marquez is the older fighter in this matchup, by a span of five years and four months. When he goes into the ring, he will be 38 years of age.

* Marquez has fought a total of 432 rounds in his professional career.

* The heaviest Marquez has ever been for a professional fight is 142 pounds, which he weighed when he fought Mayweather in September 2009. After that fight he was out of action for ten months, as he dropped to 133-1/2 for his WBO lightweight title rematch against Juan Diaz.

* Marquez will be moving up six pounds in weight (theoretically anyway) in a span of less than four months, as his last bout was at 138 pounds against Likar Ramos on July 16. For much of his career, Marquez has campaigned between 126 and 130 pounds.

* Marquez has won world titles in three different weight divisions – featherweight, junior lightweight (or super featherweight, if you prefer) and lightweight. That’s a weight span of 126 to 135 pounds.

* Marquez is the last fighter to win on any judges’ card against Pacquiao, but when he fought Mayweather, he was decisively beaten. Mayweather, in fact, beat him by scores of 120-107, 119-108 and 118-109,

* This will be the 16th world title fight in which Marquez has engaged.

* Marquez first fought for a world championship back in September 1999, when he lost to Freddie Norwood. So it has been over a dozen years since he first started to engage in world title competition. Despite the fact that he is more than five years older than Pacquiao, his first title shot came almost two years after Pacquiao’s first shot.

* Marquez is hardly a stranger to Las Vegas, having fought there 19 times in his career. In those bouts he is 15-3-1 with ten KO’s.

* Marquez was a win-loss percentage of 91.4% in his pro career. He has scored 73.6% of his wins inside the distance.

* Marquez and Pacquiao have fought some of the same opponents. For example, they have both faced Marco Antonio Barrera; Pacquiao has stopped Barrera and won a 12-round decision over him, while Marquez beat him on a 12-round decision. Pacquiao boxed to an ugly, bizarre six-round technical draw with Agapito Sanchez, while Marquez beat Sanchez in a 12-round decision in an NABO title fight (April 1997). Pacquiao stopped Reynate Jamili in two rounds in 1999, while Marquez took him out in three a year later.

* Marquez and his brother Rafael, a two-time world champion, have a better combined record than Pacquiao and his brother Bobby. The Marquezes, combined, are 92-11-1 with 74 KO’s, while the Pacquiaos are a combined 82-18-5. Marquez and his brother have chalked up 73.6% of their wins by knockout, while the Pacquiaos have a KO rate, expressed as a percentage of wins, of 63.4%.

* Marquez’s first-round knockout of Likar Ramos in July was his first fight since October 2001 that failed to complete six full rounds.

* This is the way Marquez’s knockouts have been distributed: 1st – 5, 2nd – 5, 3rd – 3, 4th – 3, 5th – 1, 6th – 2, 7th – 5, 8th – 4, 9th – 5, 10th – 4, 11th – 1, 12th – 1.

* Marquez’s knockout wins are much more evenly distributed than Pacquiao’s. He has scored a KO or TKO in every round. He also has 19 KO’s in the first six rounds, with 20 coming from rounds 7-12. Marquez has never been stopped in a fight.

Source: boxinginsider.com

Pacquiao-Marquez III: Expect a Classic


LAS VEGAS, Nevada – The virtual stalemate brought about by what many perceived was the indecisive result of their initial two meetings will finally be resolved when Filipino World Boxing Organization Manny Pacquiao and Mexican challenger Juan Manuel Marquez battle for the third time Saturday at the MGM Grand here.

This, Pacquiao himself, owner of the 147-pound belt, and Marquez, who will try to divest him of the crown, reiterated yesterday during a separate press conferences held at one of the function rooms of the official home of the fight.

“I thought this issue had been settled in our second fight, but some people, including Marquez himself, doubted the outcome. Much as I believed that this third fight is unnecessary, still I obliged to erase all doubts that, instead of him, I was the one who emerged triumphant in both fights,” Pacquiao said in Tagalog.

Pacquiao, actually, will try to remove one of the only two thorns tainting what was a supposed to be rosy career, the other one being his twice aborted showdown with American undefeated welterweight Floyd Mayweather Jr.

“He kept on saying he got robbed in the first two fights. This fight will answer all the doubts and all the questions,” the 32-year-old pound-for-pound king and eight-division champ, stressed.

“Everyone, including many of my countrymen, believe he (Pacquiao) really won those fights,” Marquez, the undisputed world lightweight kingpin, for his part, said through an interpreter.. “I will prove them wrong after this fight.”

“I have train harder than all my fights before for this. I know I am at a disadvantage because I have to put additional weights, but that’s the reason why, precisely, I got a new strength coach,” the 38-year-old Mexican “Dinamita” related in reference to an alleged former drug dealer Angel Hernandez (aka Heredia).

“I’ve really grown big, but that doesn’t necessarily mean I lost my speed,” he assured. “I can be as fast as he and as powerful as I used to be.”
Both vowed to give boxing fans all over the world a great fight during the subsequent media conference held under the auspices of Top Rank Promotion and major sponsor Tecate Beer at the MGM Hollywood Theater later in the day.

“Everything is all set,” Pacquiao said as he invited boxing fans to watch and enjoy the fight. “Not everybody can watch the fight live inside the stadium. But just the same, you will be seeing a great fight.”

“I seldom talk about a fight outside of the ring. Inside it, I’ll do my job,” Marquez warned even as he added he is dedicating this third encounter against Pacman to his countrymen and Mexico.

Pacquiao’s chief trainer Freddie Roach, strength coach Alex Ariza, adviser Michael KJoncz, assistant trainer and Pacman’s childhood friend Buboy Fernandez and Ilocos Sur Gov. Chavit Singson were also in attendance, seated in the presidential table allotted to the Filipino icon.

Roach’s counterpart, Hall of Famer Ignacio “Nacho” Beristain, Marquez promoter Fernando Beltran and WBO president Richard Stern accompanied Marquez in his side of the panel.

Arum, meanwhile, announced that all tickets have been sold as emphasized as he attested the tremendous popularity of the combatants.

“The tremendous demand for tickets speaks well of the popularity of Pacquiao and Marquez, the two best pound-for-pound fighters of this era,” the Harvard-educated lawyer, said.

“This is a fight between two gentleman boxers, who are not only sportsmen but warriors as well,” Arum said. “Expect a great fight, a classic fight,” he said.

Source: PhilBoxing.com

Youthful Juan Manuel Marquez


When I travel to new places I try to embrace that feeling of literally not knowing where I am for there are days when you just wish you could just disappear. When I travel to new places especially down the beautiful countryside I find these occasional stop-overs as perfect moments for it and you step out of the bus and look around and you're not able to identify yourself with anything that you see, and it feels like bursting into this world for the very first time. It's like you've been re-born. It's in that short span of time, however brief and temporary, that you are filled once again, regardless of your age, with the novelty of living your life and youthful energy.

Every round of the fight is going to be like new ground for Juan Manuel Marquez, who may at one point never have thought a trilogy with Manny would finally come to fruition. After two controversial loses, Marquez stood at the crossroads of his career and left to eat dust as his nemesis traveled high up in weight divisions. But the proud warrior perseveres. After living under the shadow of other great Mexican fighters Antonio Barrera and Erik Morales for years, perseverance is nothing new to Juan Manuel Marquez as he never gives up until credit is given where credit is due.

Now he is back again in the spotlight of the world's toughest sport. Every round is going to be a new ground and at 38 years of age, the Mexican champion is young again. He is revitalized with hope after being given another shot at making it right this time with the greatest challenge in his career. Time is giving him a chance to make amends.

Manny Pacquiao has continuously shown us how he has evolved by developing many facets of his game starting from that beat down of Diaz to breaking Margarito's eye socket. Without a face, it would be very difficult to identify the fighter he once was years ago to how he is as a fighter at present. The pound for pound number one fighter has not slowed down a bit. Come fight night we can expect a younger Juan Manuel Marquez. A re-born fighter standing in the middle of nowhere as if with a new lease in life; rejuvenated and hoping to shock the world, as they all say before a match. The question now is whether that new found enthusiasm is enough to come out victorious. He couldn't beat Pacquiao's speed at the featherweights and we really cant expect him to be faster at Welterweight. That goes for his power, too. Even the younger Juan Manuel Marquez never really had that one-punch knockout power, and bear in mind that his opponent has withstood the wrecking power of the likes of Miguel Cotto and Antonio Margarito.

I do not doubt that Marquez will go out fighting. I expect him to be as good as he was in his younger days, or at least during those two fights he's had with Pacquiao which ended up in controversy. Those fights were a perfect display of the classic resilience Marquez has been known for. I expect him to be as good as the Marquez of old who fought one Manny Pacquiao who had to starve to make weight and an under developed right hand and who's overall fighting skills were unpolished.

Source: PhilBoxing.com

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Pacquiao vs Marquez 3 HBO 24/7 - Episode 3



Roach lauds Marquez, gets raw on Floyd


Manny Pacquiao's trainer, Freddie Roach, is confident that his fighter's third encounter with Juan Manuel Marquez at the MGM Grand on Saturday will be the most entertaining yet. The reason, he says, is that Marquez, who has lately been campaigning as a lightweight, has apparently been adding muscle to make the 144-pound limit for this fight.

"Marquez has become a more fan-friendly fighter; he isn't strictly a counterpuncher anymore," Roach told reporters at the MGM Grand on Tuesday. "Let's face it, when you put muscle on, you put muscle on for one reason, and that's to exchange. I like that. If he wants to exchange with us, I think that's great. He's getting ready for a big fight. He used to be a pinpoint counterpuncher, and I think the muscles are going to hurt his counterpunching but help in the strength area, and so I think he's going to fight us. This will be the best of the three fights with the way both these guys are getting ready, in my mind.

"He's going to come and use his power the best he can. I think he's going to start quick and just go for it, and that's why I'm going to have Manny warmed up really well and ready. [This fight is] going to be good for boxing because both guys are going to try their best and really, really go at it. This is a much more exciting fight than [Floyd] Mayweather."

That said, he acknowledges that a fight between Pacquiao and Mayweather is something for which fans are clamoring and is, candidly, after the Marquez bout, the only one that really interests him. But that doesn't mean Roach is equally enthusiastic about the potential opponent himself, or optimistic the matchup will ever take place.

"I don't see any other real challenges," he said. "I think that fight needs to happen, because it's the only challenge out there. I think about that fight, and it's a great challenge and all that, and everywhere I travel in the world, people are excited about that fight and ask me to make it happen. But I'm getting kind of tired of Floyd, to be honest with you. Shut up and fight or not. He wants to make the rules, he wants to dictate everything. We'll fight him any day of the week, under Nevada state regulations. Who the f--- is he to try and make the rules?

"[If he doesn't fight Pacquiao] there'll be a question mark after his undefeated record. He only fights guys he can beat, little guys and all that stuff. Now he's calling us 'the little fella.' I think he's referring to Manny, but I really don't know. He sends Leonard Ellerbe, his gopher, to make a speech. Who the hell's Leonard Ellerbe? Why won't Floyd say it himself? I'm just kind of tired of it. If that fight doesn't happen, I'm not going to cry."

Source: http://espn.go.com

Pacquiao-Marquez III: The Only Preview You Need


Before we begin, a disclaimer: It is the opinion of your friendly neighborhood commentator that you’d get a better value for your boxing dollar if you simply saved your money and spent this coming Saturday on YouTube watching Angulo-Kirkland again and stirring in the Ali-Frazier trilogy in honor of the late Smokin’ Joe rather than watching the cavalcade of junk that will prove to be the biggest waste of money since Pacquiao’s last pay-per-view against Shane Mosley. But for those of you with enough disposable income that the 99% are planning to occupy your house, here’s everything you need to know about the fights Saturday night.

The undercard features a past-his-prime fighter against a guy who seems averse to truly taking on the very best boxers in his loaded weight class, along with a guy who has one signature win and a whole lot of unanswered questions and an intriguing scrap that would make a great main event on ShoBox. The main event features a guy who is a natural featherweight moving up to a catchweight of 144 to face a guy who rivals Denis Lebedev in his insistence on beating up guys way past their prime. Without further ado, let’s get to the breakdown:

Luis Cruz (19-0, 15 KOs) vs. Juan Carlos Burgos (27-1, 19 KOs), jr. lightweights

The opening bout of the evening promises to be the best potential all-action fight of the night. Throw a Puerto Rican (Cruz) in against a Mexican (Burgos) and you know you’re not getting a chess match. You’re getting a Brooklyn street fight that is unlikely to see the bell ring to end the tenth round. As Max Kellerman said last week about Angulo-Kirkland, “this will be a fun fight as long as it lasts.” Make sure the beer and chips and salsa are all out before the bell rings for round one and hang on tight.

Cruz, for his part, has been brought up against generally mediocre opposition, with his biggest wins coming in his last two fights against Martin Honorio and Antonio Davis. Both of those opponents have fought for world titles and made excellent scalps for the up-and-coming Cruz.

Burgos has himself fought for a world title, taking the only loss of his career against Hosumi Hasegawa for the WBC featherweight crown last November in Hasegawa’s backyard. Since that loss, Burgos has moved up in weight and first clobbered Frankie Archuleta on Friday Night Fights in February (an easy second-round TKO) before taking a wide unanimous decision from Gilberto Sanchez Leon in his last fight in July.

This is a great matchup between two evenly-matched fighters. Burgos is more advanced in his career, but his experience should not be intimidating toward the well-managed Luis Cruz, who seeks to show a large audience what he can do in the ring. The winner of this fight will elevate himself to prominence among the contenders at 130 pounds while if the fight is close, the loser will not see too much damage to his career. This promises to be a great fight.

Mike Alvarado (31-0, 22 KOs) vs. Breidis Prescott (24-3, 19 KOs), jr. welterweights

If ever a fighter has coasted on a fluke, Breidis Prescott is that guy. A Colombian club fighter at heart, Prescott starched Amir Khan, stopping him in the very first round of their battle in 2008. Since that fight, however, Prescott is 4-3 with only one knockout, a stoppage of tomato can Jason Davis. His losses have all come against the kind of guys that a true title contender should be able to beat, namely Miguel Vazquez, Kevin Mitchell, and most recently to Paul McCloskey two months ago. Prescott has some legitimate pop in his punches, but his stamina is the big question mark. The Colombian frequently loses rounds as the fight goes on, while his knockdowns (most notably against Khan) seem to come in the early stages, suggesting that he hasn’t yet figured out how not to punch himself out.

Alvarado is unbeaten and looks experienced, but his biggest wins have come over Ray Narh and Carlos Molina. Notably, the Molina fight was the last pro loss for the current junior middleweight contender before he moved up from welterweight and rattled off a string of 12 straight wins (yes, including the robbery draw he got against Erislandy Lara. Molina won that fight.) When Carlos Molina faced Mike Alvarado, he was not the same fighter.

In a sense, Prescott is the perfect litmus test for the unbeaten Alvarado, since a win, while not completely silencing the critics, would at least add a credible scalp to the resumé of the Colorado native. Meanwhile, Breidis Prescott is running out of chances. The win over Amir Khan is looking more and more like a fluke, and only a genuinely convincing victory, perhaps an early-round knockout, will be enough to shut up those folks who say he’s nothing but a Colombian club fighter at heart.

Timothy Bradley (27-0, 11 KOs) vs. Joel Casamayor (38-5-1, 22 KOs), WBO jr. welterweight title

If this fight had taken place in 2008, it might have been a classic, a case of the aging but still lively veteran against the young rising star. In the autumn of 2011 and the late autumn of Casamayor’s career, it borders on embarrassing. This is not the Joel Casamayor you remember from three or five or ten years ago, the man who reigned over the junior lightweight division like it was his playground once upon a time. This is a forty-year-old man who hasn’t beaten a championship-caliber opponent since he stopped Michael Katsidis in a fight he was losing on two of the three judges’ scorecards at the time of the tenth-round TKO. Juan Manuel Marquez stopped Casamayor in the 11th round of their fight and Robert Guerrero has beaten the Cuban as well. Casamayor’s only wins since the Katsidis fight have come against Jason Davis (the fourth of what is now nine straight fights without a win for Davis, including the aforementioned loss to Breidis Prescott) and Manuel Leyva by split decision.

Meanwhile, Timothy Bradley hasn’t fought since his lackluster win over Devon Alexander back in January; in the meantime he found himself stripped of his WBC title over his inactivity. Since graduating from the hobo circuit Bradley hasn’t knocked out anyone remotely of note, but this is not to say that Bradley has no power at all. He has put opponents on the floor (most recently dropping Lamont Peterson in the third round en route to a wide unanimous decision); he just isn’t a finisher. Against an aging fighter whose chin may go on him at any time, this may work to Bradley’s advantage in brutal fashion when some of that power lands on the chin of Casamayor.

Timothy Bradley needs to decide what his career is going to be. A fight with Amir Khan would make the most sense, otherwise Bradley needs to consider moving up to welterweight and making a matchup with Manny Pacquiao or Floyd Mayweather in order to shake the rap that he’s just another guy with a puffed-up record and no real Hall of Fame candidacy. Bradley is 28 years old; he cannot wait forever for that career-defining fight, and Joel Casamayor is not a career-defining fight. Not anymore.

Manny Pacquiao (53-3-2, 38 KOs) vs. Juan Manuel Marquez (53-5-1, 39 KOs), WBO welterweight title (catchweight 144 lbs.)

The Catchweight Champion of the World, Manny Pacquiao, the pride of the Philippines, boxing’s most bankable megastar, and an eight-division champ despite having taken the junior middleweight title while weighing in below the welterweight limit…you want a bio, go read People Magazine. As a fighter, love him or hate him, there’s no denying the fact that he’s Bob Arum’s baby, and this pay-per-view will do very little to dispel the notion that all of Pacman’s fights above junior lightweight have been carefully engineered money-making contests rather than genuine contests of pugilistic prowess.

All of the above doesn’t seem to matter to Marquez, however; he is looking to avenge what he believes to be two robberies at the hands of the judges in the two men’s previous fights and prove that he can move up beyond his lightweight domain despite Floyd Mayweather beating him like a redheaded stepchild the only other time Marquez did exactly that.

In the words of Bill Nye, “consider the following”. Even the most ardent fanboy would generally tend to concede that the discussion in boxing’s pound-for-pound ranking is in what order Mayweather and Pacquiao should be 1-2. This would, once the balance of opinion is considered, suggest that if Floyd Mayweather easily handled a guy at welterweight without really breaking much of a sweat, that Manny Pacquiao should at least be able to do the same, styles notwithstanding—and indeed, Pacquiao hits harder and is more aggressive than is Floyd Mayweather. Marquez looked like what he was—an overgrown featherweight—at 142 pounds in the Mayweather fight. It is hard to believe he will look any different Saturday night. Put any coat of paint you want on it, this fight is a mismatch, and a Marquez win, by decision or (especially) by knockout, will be a very grand upset indeed.

That said, anything can happen in boxing, which is why we the fans continue to shell out ungodly amounts of money for substandard cards while trying to convince ourselves that we wouldn’t want to miss the next Ward-Gatti I just because of the price tag. But when Sunday morning comes and you’re feeling the same way about boxing that you did about that girl you brought home from the bar on the morning after, don’t come crying to us. We here at Boxing’s Independent Media told you what you were getting. Bob Arum doesn’t pay us to pimp his substandard product and we wouldn’t take his money even if he did. Remember that when those other sites try to convince you that Pacquiao-Marquez III will be the Fight of the Year.

Source: http://theboxingtribune.com

Pacquiao-Marquez Prediction: Revisiting Manny Pacquiao’s Path North of 130


by Geoffrey Ciani – When Manny Pacquiao (53-3-2, 38 KOs) squares off against Juan Manuel Marquez (53-5-1, 39 KOs) for the third time on Saturday, it will have been over three and a half years since last they met. On March 12, 2008 Pacquiao walked away with an extremely close and competitive split decision victory in a fight many people felt Marquez deserved to win. As it turned out this would be Pacquiao’s last fight at 130 pounds, as he would soon make the move up to 135. A lot of fans were disappointed that Pacquiao did not immediately mix it up again with Marquez, but most figured their paths would cross again sooner or later. Few could have predicted, however, that Pacquiao would go on one of the most impressive runs in boxing history before a third fight with Marquez would finally take place.

When Pacquiao challenged David Diaz on June 28, 2008 for the WBC lightweight title it was widely viewed as nothing more than a testing the waters fight. Not many were expecting Pacquiao to lose. If the controversial win Diaz scored against common opponent Erik Morales told us anything, it suggested that at worst Pacquiao should be able to win a decisive points victory. The real question was whether or not Pacquiao could carry his power up with him. He did. He administered a prolonged beating on a very courageous but overmatched Diaz who finally succumbed to the assault in round nine. It was a good win for Pacquiao, but nothing sensational. Diaz was basically viewed as nothing more than a belt holder, as the top dogs at the time were Juan Diaz (unified champ) and Joel Casamayor (linear champ) when Pacquiao signed to take on David Diaz. Incidentally, Juan Diaz lost his titles to Nate Campbell a week earlier. So it seemed there were some fairly decent opportunities at 135, but Pacquiao had bigger fish to fry.

The prospect of a fight between Oscar De La Hoya and Manny Pacquiao seemed laughable when news first broke. In fact it was very poorly received by the general boxing public. Pacquiao, after all, had just one fight at lightweight! Oscar was fighting at junior middleweight for the last seven-plus years! How could Pacquiao possibly overcome the gargantuan size advantage enjoyed by De La Hoya? Very few observers were even giving Pacquiao a remote chance in this one. Sheer physics suggested that Pacquiao was in for a prolonged beating. This was not the same as Shane Mosley bypassing 140 for a mega payday with De La Hoya eight years earlier. Mosley had been a career lightweight moving up to welter, whereas Pacquiao had started his career at 106 pounds! This one had “mismatch” written all over it, and what a mismatch it was! Only it was De La Hoya who got thoroughly dominated and outclassed by the speedy pinpoint precision punching from Manny Pacquiao. This was December 6, 2008.

A new superstar emerged.

The De La Hoya victory was what really established Pacquiao on the map. It was both a literal and figurative passing of the torch encounter where Pacquiao assumed the mantle as boxing’s biggest star. Even Floyd Mayweather Junior had not beaten De La Hoya so impressively and so thoroughly, and there is where it all started. Pacquiao versus Mayweather—when will it happen? Money Mayweather, of course, was retired at the time. This is why Pacquiao landed the De La Hoya fight in the first place, as Oscar was originally gunning for the rematch with Floyd, and it appeared likely to happen. It did not. Instead Pacquiao had arrived and suddenly fans were excited for a big super fight with Mayweather that seemed to have materialized out of nowhere. This one had been nowhere on the radar, but then, there it was. Could it happen? Well it was probably no coincidence that Floyd decided to announce his comeback so soon after Pacquiao’s dominant effort against De La Hoya.

A fight between Pacquiao and Mayweather would surely have to happen sometime in the future, but first Pacquiao decided to go back to the division he initially skipped over. When it was first announced Pacquiao would be facing 140 pound top dog Ricky Hatton on May 2, 2009 a lot of people still doubted Pacquiao’s abilities north of lightweight. Hatton, after all, was no De La Hoya! De La Hoya was slow, he was old, he was a part time fighter, he was badly weight drained, and he was far removed from his prime. Hatton, on the other hand, was young, fresh, strong, transforming into a more complete fighter under the guidance of Floyd Mayweather Senior, and had just the right style to give Pacquiao hell. Or did he? Apparently not, as Pacquiao ended up demolishing him less than two rounds. Manny dropped him twice in the first and finished him off with a devastating bomb in the second. This was a fight that many felt would be tough and competitive, even for those favoring Pacquiao. As an interesting side note, Pacquiao had once again outperformed adversary Mayweather Junior against a common opponent.

Despite shockingly impressive victories against De La Hoya and Hatton, Pacquiao still had his doubters and not without good reason. Although Hatton did get to Pacquiao a little bit in moments that have long been forgotten, Pacquiao had yet to prove his ability to take a flush shot from a bigger fighter. Certainly a guy like Miguel Cotto could test Pacquiao in that regard, and on November 14, 2009 Cotto got his chance and test him he did. While some observers made a big deal of the fact that this fight was fought at a catch weight of 145 pounds, most did not give it much consideration because Cotto had weighed 146 pounds in his previous fight with Joshua Clottey. Would one pound really make that big a difference? During the fight Cotto mixed it up with Pacquiao early and actually had the advantage in the first round. It almost appeared that Pacquiao had finally bitten off more than he can chew, but his incredible combination of speed, accuracy, and angles began baffling the Puerto Rican fighter. Pacquiao dropped Cotto twice during the first half of the fight. After that Cotto went into survival mode as Pacquiao stalked him throughout the ring until the referee finally called a halt the bout in the twelfth and final round.

This was the last time Pacquiao would be perceived as a little guy. The victory over Cotto made him a bona fide elite fighter in the welterweight division. Pacquiao was a household name and the biggest star in boxing. With the string of improbable victories against De La Hoya, Hatton, and Cotto, commentators began mentioning Pacquiao’s name alongside true legends of the sport like Sugar Ray Robinson and Henry Armstrong. By this point in time the idea of a third fight between Marquez and Pacquiao seemed worthless. Floyd had already returned to the ring and dominated Marquez, who looked absolutely awful carrying the extra weight. Pacquiao had proven his meddle as a legit threat to anyone south of junior middle. There was really only one fight people wanted to see Pacquiao involved in, and that was a fight with Mayweather. Unfortunately, despite agreeing on the finances of the fight, “Olympic Style Drug Testing” prevented the fight from coming together and became one of the most highly disputed topics on boxing message boards.

Since the Cotto fight Pacquiao’s fights have not been as fascinating on a number of levels. For starters there was not the same level of intrigue. Even though Pacquiao’s next three opponents—Joshua Clottey (March 13, 20102), Antonio Margarito (November 13, 2010), and Sugar Shane Mosley (May 7, 2011)—were all significantly bigger men who were legitimate threats, Pacquiao was expected to beat these guys. There was no longer the question of Pacquiao being tested. Sure, these guys were tough fighters and big men, but the perception was that Pacquiao was better. And he was! He proved that by thoroughly outclassing all three of those foes in matches that were frighteningly one-sided. These are fights that, had they all taken place a year or so earlier, would have been considered dangerous for Pacquiao. But they weren’t because there was (and is) only one man that fans and the general public view as a true challenge for Manny Pacquiao, and that man is Floyd Mayweather Junior. Now Sergio Martinez is out there too, but he will continue to be stuck on the outside looking in. Pacquiao-Mayweather is the fight the public has demanded.

Some fans are viewing Juan Manuel Marquez as a real threat based on styles. After all, Marquez’s style gave Pacquiao so much trouble in their first two fights that it could just be one of those things in boxing where two guys will always match up well against each other. That is probably not the case here, however. Since they last met Marquez has been on a slow but visible decline. He is older, slower, and not quite as sharp as he once was with his timing and reflexes. On the flip side, Pacquiao is bigger, stronger, and has seemingly entered his prime fighting years since right after their long awaited rematch that happened back in March 2008. Marquez already proved he did not have that same “certain something” that made him special when he attempted fighting Mayweather at a higher weight. Pacquiao is better adjusted to these higher weights and he has also improved, whereas Marquez has declined. This fight will likely be another mismatch win for Pacquiao, but this time it will not be going to the cards. In fact, it will be surprising if Marquez survives to see the bell for the start of the fifth.

With Mayweather Junior having beaten Ortiz in a fight that only escalated his public persona as the villain, the timing could not be better for Pacquiao to obliterate Marquez and put an exclamation point on his three-fight series with the man who has been his biggest rival inside the squared circle. As much as Mayweather embraces the villain persona, in the same way Pacquiao is often perceived as the hero in this on-going out of the ring drama between Pacquiao and Mayweather. Should Pacquiao beat Marquez with an explosive stoppage victory, it would be the perfect way to pave the road to the showdown we have all wanted to see next May. Time will tell if this storybook vision will play out to kickoff what will become the biggest fight in boxing’s long celebrated history, but things are looking promising—at least for the moment.

OFFICIAL PREDICTION:

Manny Pacquiao TKO3 Juan Manuel Marquez

Source: ontheropesboxingradio.com

Pacquiao-Marquez III: Roundtable Preview


Only days away from the highly anticipated rubber match between Manny Pacquiao and Juan Manuel Marquez, the 3MoreRounds staff sits down to discuss the upcoming welterweight clash.

After the two engaged in a memorable encounter in 2004, which resulted in a disputed draw, the two did it again in another war that saw Pacquiao come away with a split decision in 2008. Now three years later, they’ll do it again at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas this Saturday night.

It’s been a little over 3 years since Pacquiao last faced Marquez. How much has each fighter advanced since then in terms of overall skills?

Ali Shakoor: Pacquiao has clearly advanced to an all-time, P4P, elite level. His power has improved, as well as his endurance. Clearly, he’s a better and stronger fighter above 140. He punches in combinations better, and has better angles and movement. He also has a better defense and chin.

Marquez has actually slowed down just a bit, but has very good power at 135. Otherwise, he does everything just about as well as he ever has. He’s a brilliant counter-puncher. But at 38, you gotta see that his speed and reflexes are just a bit on the downside.

Igor Frank: Their last fight in 2008 was spectacular. Both combatants were on top of their game. Since then, the speed and reflexes of Marquez have declined. Several years ago JMM was in a life and death battle with volume punching Juanl Diaz. In all fairness , he did knock him out, but not before going through hell and back early. Pacquiao was already a two-fisted fighter in 2008. He was on top of his game then, but in the words of well known Filipino journalist Chino Trinidad, who has been covering Manny since the beginning, Pacquiao broke through the ceiling and ascended into another dimension since 2008.

Jonathan Yaghoubi: I feel that both men have gone in the opposite direction since they last fought in 2008. Marquez has certainly not gotten better in terms of his overall skills but how could he now at the age of 38? He is not as quick and doesn’t have the same snap to his punches. He’s going to need all the power he can get to beat Manny. Marquez is still a great fighter and really has not had any need to improve his skills in the last three years.

For Pacquiao, he has really came into his own since the last time he stepped in the ring with Marquez and has taken over as the top boxer on the plane. He has become an all-time fighter by breaking Henry Armstrong’s record of five titles in five different weight classes. There is no doubt that Pacquiao has improved far better than Marquez.

Scott Tonelli: In so far as skills are concerned, Marquez hasn’t improved too much. Marquez has always been able to apply pressure, and use classical boxing skills (thanks to the teachings of Nacho Beristain) to make his fights competitive and highly entertaining. I don’t believe Marquez has necessarily learned anything new that could contribute to his gameplan against Pacquiao, but what he does have, and has always had, should be enough to make Pacquiao realize that he’s in for another fight. Although I will say that it seems as though Marquez has increased his punching power a little, I don’t expect a completely new Juan Manuel Marquez come fight night.The moral of the story here is, as the saying goes, if you always do what you have always done, you will always get what you’ve always got. Nacho Beristain won’t teach Marquez anything new for this fight, but he will keep Marquez’s natural skills in top form.

As for Pacquiao? forget about it. Everytime Manny Pacquiao comes to the ring he looks faster, counters better, and learns some new manuever that keeps his opponent on the losing end of every round. Freddie Roach has been able to successfully turn a powerful, one-handed fighter into a complete fighter with speed that has yet to truly be overcome. Although Pacquiao’s best punch is still, undoubtedly, his straight left hand, he has learned to use his right hand effectively in order to keep his opponent off-balance and confused as to his next move. However, the real crown jewel of Pacquiao’s skills is his foot work. Freddie Roach has done a tremendous job teaching Pacquiao how to effectively navigate around his opponent, and apply pressure from different angles that other fighters just do not have the skill to duplicate.

Moses Vered: In terms of overall skills I don’t beleive each fighter has changed all that much. The Pac-man is more accustomed to fighting bigger men while Marquez has become a more offensive counter puncher.

Raj Parmar: Obviously Manny has taken his game to another level and is much stronger and skilled than his last encounter with Juan. Marquez has not seen an Alex Ariza conditioned Manny before and he may be shocked when he feels the newfound power and speed combination Pacquiao now possesses. Marquez for his part has remained fairly consistent since he gave Manny the fight of his life 3 years ago. Juan has also attempted to focus on his physical conditioning with greater importance for this fight so we may also see a slightly different Marquez this Saturday, whether it’s in a good or bad way.

Speaking of their previous fights, how did you score their first two confrontations?

Ali: I didn’t really “score” the first one, but I’m okay with the draw, just by what I saw. I think the second fight was won by JMM by a couple points. Save for the knockdown, he was more durable and landed the more effective punches. He also seemed more “comfortable”.

Igor: I scored the first fight for Manny Pacquiao, because of the first round , which I scored 10-6. The second fight I didn’t score, but I think Manny got the decision because of the knockdown.

Jonathan: I had the first fight 114-111 Pacman. That first round is the sole reason why he won that fight. The second fight I had it 115-112 for Pacman again. Even without the knockdown, Manny still wins the rematch, but barely.

Scott: In their first fight back in 2004, I felt conflicted as the final bell rang. On one hand, being knocked down three times in one round round makes an astounding difference in the scorecards, and overcoming such a horrible round is a next to impossible task. However, Marquez was able to wear down Pacquiao, and use effective counter-shots to in order to bring himself back into the fight, and make it a competitive one at that. I found it really challenging to pick a winner in this fight, but I believed Pacquiao did just enough in the later rounds to earn him a split decision. However, I had no problems with the fight being declared a draw. Marquez showed a level of stamina and heart in the ring that night that inspired everyone who was lucky enough to watch the fight, and I believe that he ability to adjust to Pacquiao’s style in the later rounds made him worthy of receiving a draw instead of a loss. For the record though, I had it 114-113 for Pacquiao.

As for their second fight, that was, personally, even harder for me to score. The fight appeared dead even to me, although in my mind, and apparently the minds of the judges as well, the knockdown in the third round was the deciding factor in the fight. With a fight that close and competitive, one round can make all the difference. And in this fight, the third round made the difference for me. And although Marquez landed a higher percentage of punches, Pacquiao was able to keep himself in the fight, and barely get by with a split decision. Strangely enough, I once again scored the fight 114-113 for Pacquiao.

Moses: Had Pacquiao winning the first fight 115-110. Also Had Pacquiao edging the second 114-113.

Raj: I had Pacquiao winning the first fight and Marquez taking the second; with both being close decisions. Knockdowns have been an issue for Marquez when he faces Manny and if he goes down again he will be hard pressed to get the nod here.

Is the catchweight going to play a big part in this fight?

Ali: It will if JMM carries too much weight, like he did against Mayweather. Honestly, I think JMM should just ignore the 144 lb weight limit. That’s way too high for him. He shouldn’t even come it at 142. JMM should just pick a weight that’s completely comfortable for him, which I figure would be somewhere between 135-139. If JMM swells up all pudgy like he did against Floyd, Manny will eat him alive in a completely uncompetitive bout, because JMM would lose his speed and reflexes. Based on their recent history concerning fight night weights, I think they’ll be within a few pounds of each other anyway on the night of the fight, regardless of where they weigh in on the day before.

Igor: I am not sure. On paper it should help Marquez, because he has been fighting as a lightweight for the most part, but Manny and JMM are basically the same size and both needed to gain weight for this fight. Pacman recently said that he is very comfortable at this weight. As far as Marquez, we will have to see.

Jonathan: With the fight being at a catch weight of 144 pounds, you can bet that on the day of the fight, Pacquiao will weigh in around his normal fighting weight of about 150 pounds. Pacquiao has already gotten use to moving up in weight and has fought at 144 pounds or more for the last 2+ years. Marquez failed miserably the last time he moved up in weight as he was manhandled by Floyd Mayweather. Marquez is not even close to the hall of fame fighter if he is fighting above 140 pounds.

The extra pounds will be felt by Marquez in the latter rounds of the fight, as Pacquiao’s relentless, attacking style will wear Marquez out.

Scott: I really can’t see the catchweight being a big factor in this fight. Although I believe Pacquiao will be more comfortable at the weight of 144 pounds, Marquez isn’t completely unfamiliar with the challenges that come with fighting at that weight, and I believe he is more than capable of competing at that level. Although Marquez just had one other significant fight at this weight class, it was against Floyd Mayweather, so he can’t be judged too harshly. However, I have to give Manny the edge when it comes to this particular catch weight due to his experience fighting at this level. Pacquiao knows what it takes to be a champion in this weight class, and his knowledge of how his body will react on fight night might just be enough to give him the edge in the fight.

Moses: I believe so. Fighting over 140 pounds is just too much for Marquez who looked sluggish and slow in his welterweight fight with Mayweather. JMM best weight is probably lightweight.

Raj: I feel it will, as Marquez has altered his training due to the extra weight he needs to add on. He has brought in specialists to assist him in carrying his power and speed at the higher weight and this additional training could make him stronger in the ring as hes more muscular now than before but he may also be slower as a result. Therefore the catchweight will be playing a major part in how the fight goes
specifically for Marquez.

We know Marquez didn’t look good at welterweight when he fought Mayweather. If you were his team, what would you do differently for this fight?

Ali: Like I wrote in the previous question, ignore the weight limit. Otherwise, just forget about the Mayweather fight. Manny is much more aggressive than Floyd and available for JMM’s counters. Also, JMM and his team know Manny very well after 24 rounds of action. They should trust that knowledge base, and expect instincts to take over during the fight. One thing JMM needs to prepare for, is getting cracked harder than he ever has in his life. He should be prepared to hold on and/or dance, as opposed to letting his pride cause him to try to retaliate right away. Of course, they should also study tape to pick up on any changes in Manny’s technique, but otherwise just go in for “round 25″.

Igor: I think his team had a good idea of hiring a strength and conditioning coach. I am not so sure about the choice of the particular coach, but it was the right idea. What I would try to do would be to keep him as light as possible, sacrificing additional weight in favor of speed. Maybe even come to the weigh in at 140 pounds instead of contracted 144, because all the extra weight hindered Marquez in a fight with Mayweather.

Jonathan: I feel that Marquez’s team needs to tell him to get the Mayweather fight out of his head. Marquez has traditionally had problems with fighters who use movement effectively, and Mayweather is the best in the world at that. It was Mayweather’s significant advantages in reach and speed that made the difference in that fight, not his ability to overpower Marquez with extra weight. The fact the matter is that Mayweather would have been a terrible matchup for Marquez at any weight. He knows what to expect from Pacquiao and the speed advantage that Manny has had against bigger men like Mosley, Margarito, and De la Hoya won’t be nearly as pronounced when he steps in with Marquez.

Scott: Team Marquez needs to realize a few things about their fighter, and his previous fights with Pacquiao in order for Marquez to win it. First of all, his team needs to realize that Pacquiao WILL be much faster than Marquez. With this being said, Marquez needs to psychologically break down Pacquiao by drawing him into the slugging match we all want to see, and then use his counter-punching techniques effectively in order to wear Manny down and take away his speed factor. I believe that Pacquiao can be drawn into a slugging match when provoked, and Marquez must use these golden opportunities in order to land effective counter shots that will win him rounds. Another aspect of the fight plan that team Marquez needs to stress is body punching. The difference in speed between Marquez and Pacquiao is going to be the biggest difference between them, and if Marquez can walk down Pacquiao and land effective body shots, he will take away Pacquiao’s greatest weapon, and use his counter-punching style to finish him off. Counter-punching was the key to the first two fights with Pacquiao, and I highly doubt that team Marquez will de-emphasize that aspect this time around.

Moses: Come in lighter, around 140 lbs.

Raj: Change the way he conditions himself, which he has done. I think Juan has done a very smart thing by bringing in outside experts to help physically prepare him to fight effectively at the higher weight.

Do you feel Pacquiao will once again have a tough time due to Marquez’ counter-punching style?

Ali: It won’t be as tough of a time because JMM is slower nowadays. Also, as discussed above, Manny is so much stronger and more durable. I guy like Manny will always struggle against world-class counterpunchers(you reading Floyd???), but I don’t at all see JMM having the same success that he had in the previous two bouts.

Igor: Pacquiao’s style of fighting is tailor made for Marquez. However at this stage of their careers, JMM will not be able to handle the potent offense, speed and power of Manny Pacquiao.

Jonathan: I think it’s a little foolish to think that Pacquiao won’t have any problems against the classic counter punching style of Marquez. Both of their fights have been as close as you can get because Marquez has the style to give Manny a ton of problems. Marquez can brawl if he has to and will put on a boxing clinic when needed. Dinamita accomplishes things to hurt an opponent and a lot of things to steal close rounds. An aggressive opponent like Pacquiao is almost tailor made for Marquez as it allows him to showcase his fantastic counter-punching skills. I expect Marquez to land some of those shots on Manny to hold off that Pac Man barrage. However, I still don’t feel it will be enough to defeat him.

Scott: I do feel that Marquez has a style that can effectively hurt Pacquiao, and that the counter-punching aspect of his style is his greatest asset. Team Pacquiao needs to realize that in order to win this fight, Pacquiao needs to remain more mobile than his was in the first two fights with Marquez, and not be drawn into a brawl that will wear Manny down and make his vulnerable to counter-punches. If Pacquiao has learned his lesson, and puts more emphasis on speed this time around, he will have an easy night. However, if he allows Marquez to draw him into a brawl, he will find himself in a position where he is susceptible to the counter-punching style of Marquez.

Moses: As we all know, styles make fights, and Marquez’ highly intelligent counter-punching prowess will always give the Pac-Man problems.

Raj: I think Manny will have less trouble with Juans counter punching as Manny has made his right hand almost if not as effective as his left hand, giving him more weapons to handle Juan’s in-ring craftiness. Manny has become very explosive and Marquez could get bombed out if he attempts to take Mannys punches in hopes of returning with his own shots.

Pacquiao appears to be a much bigger favorite this time around; should he be?

Ali: If Manny had to drain himself to get down to somewhere in the 130′s, I’d say it should be an even money fight. As is, I think Manny should be the heavy betting favorite, for the reasons we’re discussing.

Igor: The odds appear to be a bit inflated. They are 10 to 1 in favor of Pacquiao right now, but there is a good reason for it. Pacquiao cleaned out the welterweight division in last several years, while Marquez competed and had some very tough fights at lightweight.

Jonathan: I think Pacquiao should be the heavy favorite but not at the odds they are giving him. At the moment, Pacquiao is a 10 to 1 favorite. At 10/1 odds, you would have to bet $1000 to make $100. While some will see it as an easy $100, let’s not forget that Marquez gave Pacquiao everything he could handle the first two times the fighters met. With those odds, a lot of people are going to be very tempted to put money on Marquez because the payout would be gigantic.

Scott: I believe he should be. Pacquiao has proven himself at welterweight many times over by now by beating bigger, stronger men with relative ease. As for Marquez, he has had one fight at welterweight, and lost a lopsided decision to Floyd Mayweather before retreating back to his natural division, lightweight. Pacquiao has, as I’ve already mentioned, become a better, more complete fighter with every passing year. Marquez still remains sharp in so far as his skills are concerned, but it does not appear from his recent fights that he has learned anything new. Another aspect of the fighters that makes Pacquiao a big favorite is age. Although being a 38 year old boxer is not as much of a factor as it used to be, there is still a six-year age difference between the two fighters, and many believe that the counter-punching skills that Maquez desperately needs in order to win this fight might have slowed the ageing fighter just enough to make him that much more vulnerable to Pacquiao’s superhuman-like speed.

Moses: He should; he is proven against much bigger men. He has carried his power well. Just look at Margarito and Cotto’s faces post-Pacquiao!

Raj: For sure, hes been pummelling guys much bigger than him in recent years; one can only imagine the punishment he may be able to lay on a fighter smaller than him like Marquez. It’s hard to picture the fighter who punished Margarito and demolished Cotto to not be able to overcome a natural lightweight fighter.

What must Marquez and Pacquiao do respectively, to win this fight?

Ali: Manny needs to just keep his anger and pride in check. I’m so glad that we likely won’t see the compassionate and glove touching “sportsman” we’ve seen in the past few fights. I’m frankly tired of that sh*t. Manny doesn’t really care for JMM, and wants to prove once and for all, that he’s the superior fighter between the two. I appreciate his desire to win emphatically, but he can’t let his emotions distract from his technique and game plan. If he just fights like he did against Cotto, I’d expect Manny to win via KO inside of 6 rounds.

Marquez is in a world of trouble, I feel. I can’t see him winning this fight at this stage of their respective careers. I think he should try to get inside of Manny’s head by talking trash at the weigh-in, then right before, and during the fight. He needs to goad Manny into making a mistake in anger. JMM should also attempt to rough Manny up, and fight a tad dirty, because Manny is capable of getting frustrated in the ring. Lastly, just perhaps he is to Manny what Norton and Frazier were to Ali. Perhaps he just has the style and chemistry to beat Manny, regardless of their respective career arcs. You could make the case that Norton beat Ali all three times. And Frazier was pretty washed up, when he gave Ali the fight of his life in Manila. JMM just may have the mojo to always cause Manny problems. That’s not something that can be easily explained in any type of non-abstract way.

Igor: Marquez must be careful and utilize his counter right hand as often as possible. Hopefully his punches will carry enough power to keep Pacquiao honest. As in the previous two fights, JMM is still a better technical boxer than Pacquiao, so he should box. Manny Pacquiao should launch a furious, fast-paced attack and see if his adversary will be able to keep up.

Jonathan: Marquez needs to focus on his defense big time if he is going to pull off the upset. There is that old saying that sometimes your best offense is a great defense. There is no boxer in the world that possesses quicker hands and more explosive punching power than Pacquiao. With that said, Pacquiao has the great ability to stop a fight with one punch. If Marquez can avoid Manny’s power punches, it will work in his favor in that Pacquiao might get a bit frustrated. Anything Marquez can do to get Pacquiao off his game should be considered a plus in his favor. Marquez must avoid a knockdown at any cost during the fight. It has cost him in both of his fights and very well could be the deciding factor in their trilogy.

Pacquiao needs to do what he did in the previous two fights and that is to enforce his power on Marquez to try to score an early knockdown. Pacquiao has not only carried his left-hand power over eight weight divisions but has made it stronger as well. If he can impose his will and power early on Marquez, he may destroy him mentally as well. If Marquez gets knocked down early in the fight, it may ruin him for the remainder of the fight.

Scott: For Pacquiao to win this fight, he must use his speed effectively to keep the stronger Marquez off balance. Pacquiao cannot afford to be drawn into a brawl that will give Marquez the chance to put his counter-punching skills to the test, as he was allowed to do in the two previous fights. Manny Pacquiao can win this fight with easy, but it’s up to him to stick to the game plan, and not let the crafty Mexican star get inside his head and challenge him to a phone booth style fight. Pacquiao must also do a better job at conserving his energy this time around, and not tire himself out within the first five round, much like he did in their first fight. The strike and retreat method should be enough to wear Marquez down, and possibly even knock him out.

As for Marquez, his approach needs to be more psychological in nature. Marquez needs to somehow draw the much faster Pacquiao into a toe-to-toe brawl that allows him to use his counter-punching skills both to the head and the body in order to wear Pacquiao down, and take away his legs. Marquez had an easier time in the last two fights with Pacquiao conserving energy, and in order for him to win this fight, he needs to take Pacquiao’s stamina away in order to make him more vulnerable to a powerful counter-punch that can change the course of the fight in a hurry. Marquez must walk down Pacquiao, and cut off the ring so that Pacquiao is not able to attack and retreat. If Marquez can stick to this game plan, and not simply “give up” because he cannot catch Pacquiao within the first few rounds, then I believe he has a chance to win this fight.

Moses: Marquez needs to fight a smart fight, not get over aggressive and slowly pick his spots. For Pacquiao he needs to attack early and prevent Marquez from getting into his groove.

Raj: Marquez needs to find a way to hit Manny and avoid any return fire. In the past two fights they exchanged quite a bit and the result was four knockdowns by Manny to Marquez. Pacquiao is stronger this time around so Juan has got to avoid those exchanges and make Manny miss all night. Pacquaio on the other hand needs to seek and destroy; he must chase Marquez down and give him no time or space to breathe. An all out war favours Manny here; he cant make this a boxing match and needs to rush the aging Marquez and blitz him with his laser quick flurries.

Prediction time…who wins and why?

Ali: Manny is simply a bigger, stronger, and more durable fighter. Just look at his legs now, compared to the last two fights. Combine that with improved technique, great speed, and more power, I don’t see this fight going past 5 or 6 rounds. A repeat of the Hatton fight wouldn’t surprise me at all. JMM is a great, first ballot, HOF legend. He’s the best Mexican fighter since Chavez. I have all of the respect in the world for him. But he’s now just a tad too slow, small, and old. His pride and fighting spirit will just expedite the inevitable.

Manny wins via 3rd round TKO.

Igor: Manny Pacquiao wins by a knock out in the middle rounds, between five and seven. Right now he is just too fast and too powerful for his opponent.

Jonathan: All the momentum is pointing toward Pacquiao and unless he chooses to fight a little wild, he should come away with the a decision victory. This is a much more complete Manny Pacquiao than Marquez has seen before and is not even on the same planet as Manny right now even though they have fought two very close fights. I wanted to be bold and go with a 4th round TKO for Manny but I will go with a decision victory.

Scott: And now for the moment of truth, drum roll please. The fans and the press were right to make Pacquiao a heavy favorite in this fight, because at the end of the night, Pacquiao is going home with a unanimous decision victory. For several of Manny Pacquiao’s recent fights, Manny has employed an effective “attack and retreat” strategy that has worked on bigger and stronger men than Juan Manuel Marquez. Team Pacquiao has no reason the fix what isn’t broken, and I believe they will use this same plan of attack in the upcoming fight. Marquez might be able to draw Pacquiao into a brawl, and if he does then he has a chance of breaking him down and defeating him. However, I’m not so sure that Manny is going to be willing to engage in a brawl that might make him look anything less than completely dominant, especially with a potential fight against Floyd Mayweather looming in the distance. I believe Pacquiao is going to play it safe this time around, possibly looking for the late knockout after he has worn down Marquez with combinations and fancy footwork. Pacquiao has made many improvements since he last fought Marquez in 2008, and those improvements will become more obvious with each passing round. Marquez will be looking to draw Pacquiao into a toe-toe fight, but this time around Manny won’t take the bait.

Moses: Pacquiao by UD with scores about 116-111.

Raj: Manny by KO or TKO, hes too strong and too fast for Marquez who may be a bit over his head in this one. Marquez is very gutsy and does not fold easily, however it is tough to picture him lasting the distance here without pulling a Shane Mosley and completely refusing to participate in the match. Juans heart, honour and courage will not let him coast to a decision loss therefore he will go down fighting within the scheduled distance as Manny seals the rivalry and their feud with a big KO win.

Source: http://3morerounds.com

Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Pacquiao owes Marquez for making him better; must pay debt by finishing rival

"It's one thing to be great, but another to even strive to push yourself to be even greater. Pacquiao and Marquez gave each other the reason to do so."

Manny Pacquiao's strength and conditioning coach Alex Ariza can continue patting himself on the back and taking all the credit he can get and dish out blasphemous figures of speech to discredit his boss' nemesis and opponent this weekend at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, but the long and the short of it is this: Juan Manuel Marquez is the second best thing that has happened to Pacquiao's professional boxing career, next to his trainer Freddie Roach.

Some say Ariza may even be the worst thing that has ever happened to Pacquiao's career. (I can only guess why, but I'll remember that statement when the time comes).

(Click here for my interview with Munoz before his fight vs. Leben as he talked about his training and his thoughts on Pacquiao vs. Marquez 3)

Rivalries between greats are what elevates any sport to the next level. Think about the Celtics and the Lakers; Bird vs. Magic, Yankees vs. Red Sox, Manchester United vs. Liverpool and right from boxing's archives, Ali versus Frazier (As of this writing, the great Joe Frazier was reported to have passed away. May his soul rest in peace).

Not only do fight fans love to see two great teams or athletes go up against each other and give it their all, rivalries between the best are like two opposing forces that conjure up a tornado leaving those who witness it in awe of it's sheer brilliance and impact.

Just like how Larry Bird and Magic Johnson pushed each other throughout their college and pro careers and made each other better and compete harder, the same can be said about Pacquiao and Marquez.

It was a perfect clash between two opposing styles and two equally determined competitors with work ethics second to none. After giving it both their all in their Fight of the Year of 2004 candidate that ended in a stalemate, and their controversial fight in March of 2008 which Pacquiao won via split-decision by the slimmest of margins, each has worked on improving the nicks in their game that was exposed by the other.

Not only have Pacquiao and Marquez been the cream of boxing's crop since their last clash, they have also drastically dominated their opponents while showing improvements on the facets they needed to- Pacquiao with his defense and counter-punching, Marquez with his aggression and finishing off fights. By themselves, Pacquiao and Marquez were two individually great fighters. After their classic wars in the ring, however, they elevated each other to "All-time Great" status.

It takes two exceptional fighters to make such a special rivalry happen. The difference between Pacquiao and Marquez's rivalry compared to other rivalries out there fueled by personal dislike and anger is the fact that these two men, despite what they say in the media, actually respect the greatness in each other.

Their quest is not to destroy the other person like how Barrera and Morales did against each other, their motivation is to prove who truly is the better fighter. It's one thing to be great, but another to even strive to push yourself to be even greater. Pacquiao and Marquez gave each other the reason to do so.

For Pacquiao, it was Marquez, more than anybody, who gave him reason to better himself. Matterfact', Marquez reminded him twice. So it is only fitting, now that Pacquiao has reached the top of boxing's pedestal, to give his nemesis the best tribute he can give him as a way of saying "thank you": Pacquiao should retire and finish off Marquez for good.

No more split decisions. No more draws. Finish the unfinished business. It's the only true way he can show his appreciation for how this rivalry has helped transform him into one of the greatest to ever do it.

Source: Examiner.com

Pacquiao's thought-provoking silence

HOT POTATO via WILD CARD GYM, Hollywood, Caliornia - Make no mistake! Manny Pacquiao and Juan Manuel Marquez will both punctuate November 12, 2011 in the history of boxing at the MGM Grand Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. And anyone who follows these both fighters' trek in the ring of madness would know it's going to be classic as ever. As Pacquiao finalizes his last session today and prepares to lead the way of his team to proverbial, impertinent Sin City, the anxiety level among the hardcore boxing fans raises to the level of schizophrenic haste: relative discussions, debates and infighting words ensue at almost every corner and forum of the boxing world in perpetual order.

Last week, Pacquiao insisted that "it's going to be a bonus if I win by knockout". But, since the last three days, silence as to prediction has been dominating the entire Team Pacquiao. No word implying of prediction could be heard at this time, not even from Pacquiao who used to suggest images of gruesome prospect upon Marquez come fight night. He's been speaking less and less as the fight date is nearing. And he has more moments of meditations where he becomes captive of his own thoughts. It's like one of strange monstrosity. Untold to many, the pound-for-pound king is apparently nervous, reflective and at times stares into the distance in the midst of many point blank, yet extremely dangerous. Perhaps he's visualizing of what will come to pass. It's like the same silence is setting up for a lightning strike at the heat of exchanges with Marquez.

HOT INSERT: Mayweather Argues With Shade 45 Radio Host Rude Jude About Ducking Pacquiao

Pacquiao's insurmoutable training, discipline, mindset and bearing all seem predictive. He has shown no regrets to get on the ring with Marquez the third time. He is ready for the kill.

HOT INSERT: Muhammad Ali Over Manny Pacquiao as the Greatest

Relevant Perspectives:

Pacquiao's confidante, Chavit Singson, former Security Adviser of former Philippine President Gloria Arroyo, says "It's difficult to predict this time. Marquez is a difficult fighter."

Marquez says: "I am motivated to knock Pacquiao's head off in order to leave no doubts."

Marquez insists he beats Pacquiao twice back in 2004 and 2008 respectively. On the basis of the scorecards and official decisions by the judges, the 2004 fight was a draw and the 2008 for Pacquiao winning by split decision. Marquez otherwise does not give a damn to the said decisions and rather wants to beat him again more convincingly.

Ignacio "Nacho" Beristain, who trains Marquez, says : "This is going to be the most difficult fight for Pacquiao in all of his life."

Conversely, Freddie Roach, who trains Pacquiao, asserts saying, "Marquez would be lucky to pass six rounds."

But, Angel Hernadez, the surprising import as the conditioning coach of Marquez who advocates his newfound pupil should not drink his urine as a nutrional supplement but "something else", predicts Marquez winning by knockout.

And worse, Alex Ariza, conditioning coach of Pacquiao, emboldens the scenario saying, "It's going to be Pacquiao by knockout within three rounds."

Boxing fans, meanwhile, view Pacquiao-Marquez fight in three categories as explored per random sampling: 65.5 % for Pacquiao winning by knockout, 17.5% for Marquez winning by knockout, 5% for Draw, 9% for Pacquiao winning by unanimous decision, 3% for no contest and 0 for Marquez winning by unanimous decision.

For Mexican promoter Fernando Beltran, "Marquez will win by knockout".

Top Rank Godfather Robert "Bob" Arum, nevertheless, believes "Pacquiao is going to be super explosive. And Pacquiao winning by knockout would just punctuate anytime in their twelve rounds of boxing."

"Pacquiao has the speed and power with his right and left hands," Arum adds.

Stay tuned for more!

Source: Examiner.com

Pacquiao set to light up Vegas

LAS VEGAS– With challenger Juan Manuel Marquez already in town, it is the champion Manny Pacquiao’s turn to arrive here as the countdown for Act III of their trilogy starts. Like Marquez, who blew into town Monday amid hundreds of his Mexican fans, the World Boxing Organization welterweight titleholder will be accorded a Grand Arrival ceremony at Porte Cochere at the front lobby of the MGM Grand where they will meet in a showdown that is most likely their last.

Pacquiao, the undisputed pound-for-pound best fighter in this era, will set foot here in a custom-built luxury bus along with chief trainer Freddie Roach and the rest of their team. The ceremony is at noon.

Both the Pacman and the Mexican “Dinamita” have broken their respective camps and their long-drawn out preparations for the much-awaited encounter set Saturday with the eight-division champion starting his in Baguio City before transferring to the Roach-owned Wild Card Boxing Gym in downtown Los Angeles.

The 38-year-old Marquez opened up camp in his hometown Mexico City before moving to California in a bid to dethrone the Filipino icon of his crown and justified his three-year claim that he won their first two fights despite a draw decision in 2004 and a split verdict in favor of Pacquiao four years later.

Both promised to come up with convincing results to erase the doubts created by their twin showdown that has been the subject of debate the past three years. The following day (Wednesday in Manila), the main event press conference will take place at 12:30 p.m. following a media luncheon at noon. The undercard news conference is scheculed Thursday at the media center, which opened Tuesday after Marquez’a arrival.

The official weigh-in is scheduled Friday November 11 at 2:30 p.m. Doors will be opened to the public at 1 p.m. Magna Media International which handles the fight’s media accreditation, also announced that distribution of the temporary credentials to media also started Tuesday at the main lobby of the hotel. The fight week media center will be transferred at the Studio A & B of the MGM Grand.

The credential desk will move to the Hollywood Theatre for the convenience of media men attending the press conference. Fight night credentials will be available at the “Old VIP Box Office” location on Saturday, continuing until 7:00 p.m.

Source: PhilBoxng.com

Juan Manuel Marquez Shrugs off Doubts, Focuses on Pacquiao

After two fights deemed classics by fight fans and writers around the world, Juan Manuel Marquez is still searching for that clear win over Manny Pacquiao. Though only the knockdowns scored by Pacquiao separate the two men, knowing he came close in scoring a draw the first time and losing a close decision the second is simply not enough for Marquez. So at age 38, four years after their last encounter (the first happened at 126 pounds, the last at 130), Marquez moves up to 144 pounds (a catchweight agreed upon by Pacquiao since Marquez is currently a lightweight) to give it one last go.

“I believe this is the best training camp he has had in his whole career and we are going to give Pacquiao a great fight,” said Marquez’s trainer Nacho Beristain. “Without question, we have prepared ourselves to win this fight again. They can say what they want. They are great trainers and he is a great fighter. If they feel they won the first two fights, so be it – we feel the same way and that’s the way you should go into a fight.”

“That’s why we are doing this third fight,” said Marquez. “The first two were very close and this fight should end all doubt. We are not the only ones saying we won the fights. There are a lot of fans and media out there saying the same thing- that we won those two fights.”

At this stage of their careers, both men’s abilities are clearly defined. Pacquiao has fought a slew of well-matched fights against bigger men past their primes in title-winning affairs, moving on from the last Marquez fight to 135, 140, 147 and finally, a 150 pound catchweight fight with Antonio Margarito. Along the way, as he faced these bigger men, he began to develop his right hand lead style and learned to effectively learned how to use his feet, jab, and right hook. Pacquiao has also proven to be able to take a solid punch at the higher weights.

Marquez went on to become the lightweight champion and defended the title in grueling affairs with Juan Diaz (the first time. A rematch was a shutout win for Marquez) and Michael Katsidis (Marquez would dominate the action but get dropped early on only to stop Katsidis late). Marquez moved up to welterweight to face Floyd Mayweather in a 144-pound catchweight fight. While Mayweather changed the weight the week of the fight to make it a full welterweight fight, the point was a moot. Two weight classes north of his optimum weight, Marquez looked flat, slow and simply ineffective. This time around, Beristain feels it will be different.

“I think Pacquiao has become a better technician as a boxer,” said Beristain. “I think Marquez has become more mature as a fighter and now fights at a higher level and has gotten better. At his age, sometime you wonder if he is focused for the fight but I know that he is – he’s always going to be focused and he’s always going to be ready for a fight. We are looking to give you guys a great fight and he’ll fight like he’s 24. I think Pacquiao’s punches are thrown technically better – he is not as wild as he used to be. He looks like he knows what he is doing and that is a direct impact of Freddie Roach. He is throwing a much better right hook.”

Marquez felt that moving up in weight hurt him but that the style of Mayweather had as much to do with the shutout loss as anything.

“I had problems moving up but I would rather fight Pacquiao three or four more times than fight Mayweather once,” said Marquez. “Mayweather is a defensive fighter – he doesn’t let you fight but we know Pacquiao comes to fight and he is a spectacular fighter. He is always going to give you a fight and that’s why I know it will be a war between us.”

There is no question that when Pacquiao and Marquez step into the ring on Saturday night at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada, fireworks will go off. How long it lasts is anyone’s guess. It says here that this is a mismatch at this weight and age and that Marquez will be knocked out cold in eight rounds.

However, there will be one question in the minds of everyone paying attention to the promotion: Why did Marquez employ the services of one Angel Hernandez AKA Angel Heredia? If you don’t know who he is, Heredia was the key witness in the BALCO case as well as the 2003 case against track-and-field coach Trevor Graham, who trained runners Marion Jones and Tim Montgomery among others. Graham anonymously sent a syringe containing an illegal substance developed by BALCO to the United States Anti-Doping Agency. The man Graham had been working with to allegedly get PEDs like EPO, HGH (Human Growth Hormone) and testosterone was Heredia, who would eventually turn state’s evidence on both Graham and BALCO founder Victor Conte.

It is interesting to note, however, that while the case began in 2003 and Heredia gave testimony all through that time, he may have still been dealing illegal substances.

As revealed in an arbitration document from the USADA, Angel “Memo” Heredia testified in a case against Olympic sprinter and coach Raymond Stewart (once coached by Glenn Mills, current coach of Jamaica’s Usain Bolt) in 2010 that he supplied drugs to Stewart and his athletes for a decade.

http://www.usada.org/uploads/6-25-10%20Arbitrator%20Award%20110.pdf

“The arbitrator is comfortably satisfied that Raymond Stewart regularly dealt with ‘Memo,’ an admitted drug supplier to the track and field world in order to secure drugs which were prohibited by WADA, for use by athletes that he coached and trained,” reads the USADA arbitration document.

“The relationship between these men spanned ten years while Stewart held himself out to the world as a coach of track and field at elite levels and all the while he knew he was regularly communicating with a known drug dealer trafficking in performance enhancing drugs,” the document also reads. That period, according to the document, began sometime around 1996.

One question that comes to mind is why was Heredia allegedly dealing PEDs while serving as a key witness in major performance-enhancing drug cases? When did Heredia become an informant? He later told USADA he was dealing PEDs as late as 2006. This was around the same period he was testifying against Graham and Stewart. The BALCO case was in 2003 and according to this article, http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/the-chemist-of-mexico-comes-clean/story-e6frg7mo-1111116309112, the lead prosecutor in the BALCO case, Jeff Novitsky, did not get hold of Heredia until March of 2005. In this regard, someone’s got to provide some answers.

Another question would be, why use Heredia at all? Ignorance of his past was one excuse given.

“I just know that when I met him, his background was with elite athletes,” said Marquez. “We discussed what I needed to do. I didn’t find out anything about this stuff that has been written until the last few days. It was big news to me but it is a shame because of all the work I have done and preparation has been thrown into the trash can by this guy Conte and [Alex] Ariza by saying these things. I worked very hard but I’m not going to stop training for the fight. Whatever testing they want to do- blood or Olympic- I am ready to do it. We’ll do it, no problem, as long as he does it too.”

While Victor Conte, who now works with several top fighters, did time in prison for his involvement in BALCO, he never testified against anyone else, instead owning up to his crime. Heredia became a key witness in several cases. In a documentary on German TV, Heredia demonstrated for the cameras how easy it was to procure EPO (a blood doping agent) in Mexico City and also how to use it. He did this by injecting it into his own stomach. The documentary came out in 2009 and can be seen via the following links:

A video from Germany of Angel Heredia documentary where he injects EPO into his stomach: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s0GbnVdWaIU&feature=player_embedded

Part one of a German documentary on doping in sports: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KN4g4liR4Pw&feature=related

Part two, featuring Angel Heredia:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JjiWoEOSpCI&feature=related

Part three:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JjiWoEOSpCI&feature=related

Part four:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cyAyl2_n_pI&feature=related

The documentary and the information provided by Heredia in this transcript of the documentary interview here, http://www.spiegel.de/spiegel/0,1518,571031,00.html, makes the following comment by Top Rank promoter Bob Arum seem woefully uninformed at best about the potential problem of performance-enhancing drugs in boxing.

“Many of you are really behind the times,” said Arum in an attempt to squash all suspicion of Heredia on a recent conference call. “Conte and Hernandez were implicated in the use of steroids in the so-called BALCO case. The two of them are the least to be involved in steroids since they have learned their lesson. Secondly, people who understand getting athletes ready know now that you don’t use steroids, not because [athletes] are good guys but because naturally, supplements, used correctly, have the same effect of steroids without the bad part- without the rage and the future health concerns. So the conditioners who know what they are doing wouldn’t touch steroids because they are not as effective as the natural substances and the sophisticated training methods now used. You are talking about things that existed five or ten years ago that are not currently being used.”

Now does this mean Marquez looked for an illegal edge in this fight? No. In fact, Marquez himself said he would be willing to do any sort of testing the Pacquiao camp wanted. Team Pacquiao said they had no problem with Marquez working with Heredia. Recently, Arum was quoted as saying he was open to Pacquiao using USADA testing for a possible Floyd Mayweather fight.

So where does that leave us? With a fight on HBO PPV between two men who know each other as well as any two fighters can. Will it be a war? Possibly. Will Marquez win? Certainly Beristain believes the new condition his fighter is in will help.

“I have the most respect for the work [Heredia] has done for us,” said Beristain. “When Juan Manuel comes to the gym, he has the power and energy – a guy that I know I can work with and will be ready. That’s why I think we will win the fight. I have the utmost respect for what he has done and how Juan has responded to his work.”

With the Nevada State Athletic Commission being far outdated when compared to USADA year-round testing that includes blood and urine evaluation, if Heredia was up to anything at all, we would never know anyway. All we have is the word of a man who changed his name and refused to be interviewed about his past by a Maxboxing.com reporter.

Does this taint the fight? To most viewers, most likely not. Pacquiao is a celebrity on a superstar level. Marquez is a near-living legend fighter beloved by all of Mexico. Their respective trainers are thought of as gods by the boxing world and are both in the Hall of Fame. In the end, it will be a fight like any other.

It says here that what the fight will represent is a call for better testing in boxing. That way, what some deem as unfair criticism of a coach or trainer and their methods will be cleared by the best drug testing the world has to offer: year round, in competition, out of competition, and in-between, random blood and urine testing. Nothing tailor-made to a training camp when most athletes who use PEDs generally do their dirty business in the off-season anyway. We need a separate body that governs this part of our sport and that does not take money directly from the parties involved. The sport has enough problems without adding more conflicts of interest.

You can email Gabriel at maxgmontoya@gmail.com, follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/gabriel_montoya and catch him on each Monday’s episode of “The Next Round” with Steve Kim. You can also tune in to hear him and co-host David Duenez live on the BlogTalk radio show Leave-It-In-The-Ring.com, Thursdays at 5-8 PM PST. Gabriel is a full member of the Boxing Writers Association of America.

Source: maxboxing.com
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