By Matthew Hurley: Juan Manuel Marquez, 48-3-1 with 35 KOs has already begun preparations for his long anticipated rematch on March 15th at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas with Manny Pacquiao, 45-3-2 with 35 KOs. The two fighters first met back in 2004 when then WBA and IBF featherweight champion Marquez eked out a draw against the Filipino icon after hitting the canvas three times in the first round. That disastrous frame however would prove to be Marquez’s ‘Red Badge of Courage’ as the proud fighter battled back and boxed effectively over the following eleven stanzas. Now Marquez and Pacquiao are prepared to engage in a bill dubbed ‘Unfinished Business’ and the fighter nicknamed ‘Dinamita’ is thirsting for revenge.
“This is such a crucial fight for me, my family, the Mexican people and all my fans everywhere,” Marquez told Reuters. “I’m going to use a mixture of aggression, counter-punching and lateral movement. But above all, (use) my intelligence as a boxer to defeat Manny.”
Marquez then went on to address Pacquiao’s reputation as a ‘Mexican killer’ after four conclusive defeats over Mexican greats, and future hall of famers, Erik Morales and Marco Antonio Barrera.
“Manny is very strong,” he admits, “but he is not technical. He doesn’t like it when you go looking for the fight. He’s called the terminator of Mexican fighters but with me, no.”
Marquez will be defending his WBC super featherweight title when the two meet again and was willing to take the smaller cut of the purse in order to get Pacquiao to agree to the fight. His business sense represents a complete one hundred and eighty degree turn from back in 2004 after the first bout when he overestimated his worth and priced himself out of an immediate rematch. His career stagnated for a while after that, reaching its nadir in a controversial decision loss in Indonesia to Chris John. Since then he has bounced back with wins over Barrera and Rocky Juarez and added a more aggressive attack to his boxing acumen. All that remains for a fighter right on the cusp of hall of fame status is a win over rival Manny Pacquiao.
“I’m telling you again that I’m going to demonstrate who is better and I’ll win this one. Then I’ll be happy to give Manny a rematch, but only if he accepts the smaller purse.”
Marquez – Paquiao, ‘Unfinished Business’, will be broadcast on HBO pay per view.