By Miguel Rivera
Four division beltholder Juan Manuel 'Dinamita' Marquez has no regrets that he rejected the weight limit being presented by Miguel Angel Cotto for a potential fall fight.
On Wednesday, the vice president of business operations for Miguel Cotto Promotions, Bryan Perez, confirmed that Marquez was no longer an option because of a disagreement over weight.
Marquez, with a record of 56-7-1, 40KO's and 42-years-old, was refusing to fight Cotto at anything more than 147-pounds. Cotto wanted 150-pounds, but a source stated that he was willing to go down to 149 - which Marquez rejected.
Cotto (40-5, 33KOs) is going to fight at 154 pounds and reportedly will have a guaranteed minimum purse of $15 million.
"The fight [we wanted] was with Marquez, but he made some public statements regarding the terms for the weight. That was the fight Miguel wanted, but it is not going to happen. The position of Marquez was clear and we respect it. There was too much posturing and this time [the discussions] failed. Hopefully it can happen later on," Perez told ESPN Deportes.
Marquez has been out of the ring since May of 2014, when he won a twelve round decision over Mike Alvarado.
He admits that retirement is getting very close for him.
"I am more inclined to end a long career, which has been a career of great satisfaction. It's been almost 23 years and I am satisfied," Marquez told ESPN Deportes. "We must see if what they offer us, and also when I do my performance in training, in preparation - it is no longer the same."
"I have no regrets [over rejecting Cotto's terms], because we tried to make the fight but in the end he did not accept 147 pounds and wanted 150. For me, fighting at 150 pounds was to giving up too much and it was a big benefit for them. Him going down to 147, maybe it was the same."
"It was a good fight, but over time I realized what the advantages were for them and why take the risk. I am satisfied and grateful, why mess things up by losing a fight that would be important."
