Marquez on Neutralizing Manny, Rebounding from Floyd

By Ryan Maquiñana

Mexican star Juan Manuel Marquez and his trainer, Ignacio “Nacho” Beristain, fielded several strategic questions ahead of their third fight with WBO welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao of the Philippines on Nov. 12 in Las Vegas.

Beristain addressed a rare moment of accord between both fighters, when on HBO’s “Face Off” program, Pacquiao and Marquez agreed that gaining position with one’s feet was a major key to winning exchanges on the inside.

“Obviously [Pacquiao’s trainer] Freddie Roach has also looked at the same film that we have, and he’s noted that we’ve always won the combat zone as I like to call it,” Beristain said, his words translated from Spanish.  “It’s important that we do it again. 

“We know it’s not going to be easy.  It’s going to be tough to do it again, but that’s why we work so hard.  You have to be smart enough to know how to do it and when to do it, and that’s something Juan is capable of doing.”

Marquez spoke about neutralizing Pacquiao’s lethal right hook, which is much improved from their two previous meetings in 2004 and 2008, which resulted in a controversial draw and one-point decision for the Filipino fighter, respectively.

“Obviously when we fought the first couple of times his left hand was always the big one, the one you have to worry about, the one we try to nullify,” Marquez said, his words also translated from Spanish.  “We see that he has a better right hand now, and I think you just go up in the ring with the mentality that you just be ready for both, be focused on what you need to do, and don’t lose track of that he can knock you out with both hands.”

Marquez also touched on bouncing back from the last time he had a fight of this magnitude, a lopsided unanimous decision loss to Floyd Mayweather two years ago.

“You know that fight with Mayweather, he was a defensive fighter,” Marquez said. “He’s got long arms, [and he’s] a difficult guy to fight.  He doesn’t really exchange, and you have to take the fight for what it was.  But this one, we’re able to win some fights.  We’re also able to get back to the fight we always wanted to do. 

“I think the fans wanted to see it.  I think the press wanted to see this third fight.  I think fights are styles.  I think our styles just match and make great fights, because we both want to fight.  We both want to win, and I think I’m ready.  It’s a big fight.  It’s coming up pretty soon, and I’m looking forward to giving the fans a great, great fight.”

Oddsmakers have pegged Pacquiao a 9-to-1 favorite, but Marquez insisted that such prognostication would not blunt his resolve.

“It doesn’t do anything for me,” Marquez said.  “People can bet what they want.  People can put the odds how they want it.  Everyone has an opinion on the fight.  If they like the 9-to-1 odds, that’s fine with me.  It has nothing to do with the fight.”

Ryan Maquiñana is the boxing correspondent at Comcast SportsNet Bay Area, a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America, and Ring Magazine’s Ratings Advisory Panel.  E-mail him at rmaquinana@gmail.com, check out his blog at www.maqdown.com or follow him on Twitter: @RMaq28.