By Keith Idec
NEW YORK — Nobody thought twice when Freddie Roach predicted Manny Pacquiao will knock out Juan Manuel Marquez in their third fight Nov. 12 in Las Vegas.
Pacquiao dropped Marquez three times in the first round of their first fight seven years ago in Las Vegas. The Filipino southpaw settled for a draw that night because Marquez amazingly recuperated and won the majority of the following 11 rounds.
Almost four years later, Pacquiao floored his Mexican nemesis once more in the third round en route to a split-decision win in Las Vegas.
Scoring four knockdowns in 24 rounds clearly indicates Pacquiao could knock out Marquez. That’s why Roach’s remarks didn’t surprised anyone.
The same can’t be said for Marquez’s claim that he’s capable of stopping Pacquiao. Though Pacquiao (53-3-2, 38 KOs) has been knocked out twice in his 16-year pro career, he hasn’t lost by knockout since Thailand’s Medgoen “3-K Battery” Singsurat stopped him in the third round of their WBC flyweight title fight.
That was nearly 12 years and eight weight classes ago for Pacquiao. Since then, Pacquiao has withstood plenty of punishing punches from significantly bigger boxers than Marquez, but Marquez remembers buzzing Pacquiao in their first two fights.
“I believe that I hurt him enough the first two times to know that I can get him,” Marquez said after a press conference at Chelsea Piers to promote their HBO Pay-Per-View main event. “The opportunity has to be there, and if the opportunity comes I’m going for it. I really would like to knock him out.”
Marquez (53-5-1, 39 KOs) feels that he might have to fight more aggressively against Pacquiao in their third bout because a knockout win would eliminate any potential scoring controversy. Marquez reiterated Tuesday that he feels as though he has beaten Pacquiao twice, despite that his record states that he’s 0-1-1 against him.
“I think the judges have to do their job,” Marquez said. “They have to see the fight that was actually in the ring. That’s all I’m asking for. You go into every fight expecting that I’ll do my job, and I want them to do their job. I expect them to do a great job, to watch the actual fight in the ring.”
But, Marquez concluded, “You’ve got to think about a knockout in a fight like this.”
Keith Idec covers boxing for The Record and Herald News, of Woodland Park, NJ., and BoxingScene.com.