By Chris Robinson

Later tonight Juan Manuel Marquez will defend his WBA and WBO lightweight titles against rugged brawler Michael Katsidis at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. The contest marks Marquez’s 58th fight as he is in the midst of his 18th year as a professional. Along the way he has awed us with his deadly efficiency and thrilled us with his penchant for action.

At 37 years of age Marquez is far from finished as a fighter, as evidenced by the clear odds that favor him this weekend of his younger for from Australia. His trainer Ignacio ‘Nacho’ Beristain is the man responsible for his textbook style inside of the ring and the 67-year old isn’t shocked that his charge is still going strong after all these years.

“I’m not surprised because of his will to continue,” Beristain told me during Marquez’s grand arrival to Vegas earlier this week. “He’s always shown great heart and passion for the sport. This is what he loves to do and he will continue to do it until he’s done.”

Elaborating further on Marquez, Beristain pointed to his personal growth as a person,  advancement as an athlete and pride that he carries for his fans when asked what he was most proud of. It’s obvious that Marquez is very close to his trainer’s heart and the one thing each man would love most would be a third fight with Manny Pacquiao, widely considered the world’s premier talent in the sport.

Marquez fought Pacquiao to a draw in May of 2004 as he survived three first round knockdowns before rallying to turn the tide of the fight. Four years later the two men met again at the Mandalay Bay and the fight was both scintillating and excruciatingly close, with Pacquiao picking up a split decision that was aided by his third round knockdown of the Mexico City fighter. While Marquez has shown serious grief following the disputed loss by calling Pacquiao out on several occasions, Beristain is far more civilized when giving his take.

“We really respect Pacquiao,” Beristain claimed. “We understand that they favored Pacquiao in that fight. We still train as hard as we can but Juan still carries a little rock in his foot. He’s not bitter but he still carries that little ache in his career. It’s something that we have to move on to and someday maybe they will get a third fight.”

Pacquiao is coming off of a very impressive win a few weeks back in which he savagely controlled an onrushing Antonio Margarito for twelve rounds at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas. With the victory the Filipino superstar claimed the vacant WBC junior middleweight championship of the world and while his performance was very complete, Beristain seemed more taken back by his late-career blossoming as a fighter as opposed to that specific fight.

“Margarito was heavy,” Beristain pointed out. “As far as Pacquiao, I commend him. I commend Freddie Roach. He’s made this man grow as a fighter. He’s improved with his punches and I respect both of them as a fighter and as a trainer.”

While there was early concern that Pacquiao’s duties as a congressman in the province of Sarangani in the Philippines would soon draw him away from the sport, it does appear that he will continue fighting for at least a few more showcases. While there have been a string of names that have been mentioned for Pacquiao’s next fight, Beristain doesn’t see any that would bring as much interest or history as a third fight with his man.

“Juan Manuel and Pacquiao would be ideal because it’s what the fans want to see,” Beristain noted. “People want to see that type of fight. Shane Mosley, I respect him much. He’s a great fighter but now that’s he’s at his older age I don’t think he could move as fast as he did during his younger stages.”

On the Marquez-Katsidis undercard we will witness undefeated WBC welterweight champion Andre Berto put his title on the line against hard puncher Freddy Hernandez. Berto’s name has been thrown into the Pacquiao sweepstakes and while his pure athleticism, power punching attack and youth will likely get him past Hernandez, Beristain doesn’t seem to see the star appeal in the Haitian-American.

“As far as Andre Berto, he’s really not a fighter on Pacquiao’s level,” he continued. “The only reason that would make any money or attract and fans would be because of Pacquiao.”

Last weekend Sergio Martinez delivered one of the year’s finest knockouts when he starched Paul Williams in the second round with a single left hand in their rematch in Atlantic City to defend his WBC middleweight belt. The 35-year old southpaw from Argentina has a beautiful, unorthodox style in the ring and while some people have shown interest in him facing Manny, Beristain isn’t going for the bait.

“He’s an excellent fighter, especially considering that he’s fighting at an older age,” Beristain said with respect. “I don’t think it would be a realistic possibility for Pacquiao. Pacquiao is at 144 and that’s his comfortable weight.”

In September of last year Marquez suffered a horribly one-sided loss to Floyd Mayweather Jr. in which he was dropped in the second round and outclassed the rest of the way. Mayweather has been the one fighter people have truly clamored for Pacquiao to face but his recent legal woes have seemed to put a damper on that possibility. Beristain has obvious respect for Floyd and can’t speak on anything past his skills as a fighter.

“I believe that a fight between Mayweather and Pacquiao would be a very agile fight because Pacquiao needs someone like Mayweather or Juan to break him down. It would be a great fight. As far as the personal issues with Mayweather, it happens to everyone and I can’t comment on that. I still respect him as a great fighter.”

Chris Robinson is based out of Las Vegas, Nevada. An archive of his work can be found here, and he can be reached at Trimond@aol.com