By Luis Sandoval

While the last two episodes of Pacquiao-Marquez 24/7 have been enjoyable, it appears things may be slowing down a bit in terms of what angles can be covered for both fighters. There was a bit more focus on the things around the fighters in the third episode. One of the more interesting parts is we get to hear from Marquez’s strength and conditioning coach Angel Hernandez (or is it Heredia? Or Memo?), regarding his checkered past that has recently been brought to light.

Things open up back in Mexico City at the Plaza de las Estrellas where Juan Manuel Marquez will join other Mexican legends on their walk of fame. Marquez is being inducted today and not only is he proud but also inspired to continue to prove he’s a great fighter. Once he is back at the Romanza gym however, it’s back to training hard and getting ready for his fight. 

Marquez’s preparation is drastically different than before as he uses weights to build both speed and power.  While his training regimen has changed, one ritual Marquez still carries over is spending time in a hyperbaric oxygen chamber.  He’s been doing it for 4 years and even goes as far as to say he wouldn’t be able to fight if he didn’t have the clean oxygen pumped into his lungs.

In Hollywood at the Wild Card Gym, Manny trains vigorously but the focus is not on his preparation. Today his best friend and assistant trainer Buboy Fernandez is getting his first tattoo at Manny’s own Merchandise & Tattoo shop located in the same shopping center as the Wild Card gym. Getting the same meteor tattoo that Pacquiao also has on his arm is the finishing touches to a friendship that started long before Manny was successful and famous.

Marquez partakes in one of his last sparring sessions but we learn that before Nacho Beristain, there was Rafael Rojas who is the one who began training Marquez as an amateur. Now 89 years old, Rojas remembers working with the younger Marquez before turning him over to Beristain. Nacho, much like Freddie Roach, is training more than one fighter as we see Alfredo Angulo prepare for his fight against James Kirkland.

We learn Pacquiao’s generosity extends beyond his entourage as long time sparring partner David Rodela received some help to buy a home when Manny provided him with a check for a down payment. He repays Manny in the only way he can; trying his best to prepare Pacquiao for his fights. All 3 of Pacquiao’s main sparring partners represent a strength in Marquez’s style. Rey Beltran is the counter puncher. Jamie Kavanagh the attacker. And David Rodela the resilience that Marquez has shown in his last 2 fights. Collectively they are Juan Manuel Marquez as Manny takes turns tackling each style individually.

Over the last week,  Angel Hernandez’s past involving supplying PEDs to numerous athletes and being a Federal witness in the investigation has been a hot topic. He does a poor job of explaining his reasoning for using a different name now and insists his past is not his future. Marquez to his credit says if there is any doubt of what they are doing to prepare, he is more than willing to provide any tests to prove he is clean.

Alex Ariza, who ironically has been questioned in the past due to Manny’s quick rise in weight, says he could care less about Hernandez’s history with PEDs. He goes as far as to say God himself wouldn’t be able to help Marquez in getting a victory over Pacquiao.

Roach and Ariza both say they see a different Manny who seems to have a fire under him. Manny gives us a little insight on why he may be training a bit harder for this fight.

“Marquez went to the Philippines many times and is claiming he won the fight and he got robbed” said Pacquiao. “So I just want to show that he’s wrong. So this is the most important fight in my career.“

This is clearly the weakest of the three 24/7 episodes so far, as it seems HBO has exhausted showing us the fighters preparations for each other and focused on the things happening around them.  The thing is this fight sells itself and while it’s great to see what’s happening with both fighters, not all of it is entertaining.

It was good to see HBO not gloss over the fact that Angel Hernandez’s credibility has been brought into play. It was interesting that we actually got to hear from Hernandez, although he did himself no favors by explaining his name change. Let’s see if this series can finish strong. Even the best 24/7 series’ tend to have a drop in the entertainment department. I’m really hoping HBO gives us a 5th episode like they did for Mayweather-Ortiz. Even if episode 4 falls short, I believe the 5th portion, fused together with the actual fight, will make up for all of it.

Grade: 2.5-3/5

You can follow Luis Sandoval on Twitter @truewest007 or email any questions to luis.sandoval80@yahoo.com   You can also listen to Boxingscene’s official audio show The Boxing Lab every Tuesday from 6-8PM PST with hosts Ernest Gabion, Luis Sandoval, and Ryan Burton.