By Chris Robinson
During a recent interview with HBO analyst Larry Merchant, we discussed the aftermath of Manny Pacquiao's recent victory over Shane Mosley and took a look at the Filipino star's future plans. Top Rank promoter Bob Arum fully has the intention of pairing up his star fighter with Juan Manuel Marquez for a third go round yet that scenario is a bit complicated, to say the least.
Marquez's recent contract with Golden Boy Promotions ran out but the company does have the right to match any offer that is made for the 37-year old lightweight champion until February of next year. So while Arum is eyeing a 12th date for Pacquiao-Marquez III in Las Vegas, Golden Boy CEO Richard Schaefer has made it clear that his side will be evaluating the situation to see what their next move is.
Our friend Lem Satterfield at BoxingScene.com has been on the beat regarding this story and spoke to Schaefer on Tuesday. While the news that Pacquiao-Marquez III would be held at a catch-weight of 144-pounds eliminates any ideas Schaefer had of bringing WBC junior welterweight champion Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez into the equation, he did hint that he could possibly be looking at another one of Golden Boy's star clients, newly-crowned WBC welterweight champion Victor Ortiz, in to tussle with Marquez.
I asked Merchant what he thought about those developments as well as the recent tug-of-war of Marquez.
"Well, it's surprises me a little bit that they believe that they can generate enough revenue in that fight to match the offer for Pacquiao," Merchant admitted. "But, maybe Ortiz is willing to take less money, which would still be more money than he's ever made before. I still don't know the equation but maybe it's a bidding contest. A game of chicken, who knows? It's business."
Marquez-Ortiz would likely take place in September in Las Vegas and is the classic youth vs. experience matchup that we see so often in the sport. Merchant doesn't see it as a blockbuster event but one that intrigues him.
"If they match it and the fight happens, it would be a pretty good fight that would do some good numbers. Not a million and maybe not half a million pay per views, but it would be a big fight for Mexican and Mexican-American fans and for the hardcore boxing fans," he continued.
I always questioned Larry as to whether he thought Golden Boy would try to get Marquez to sign some sort of extension that would allow them to retain his rights into 2012 and he was unsure.
"I don't know those details," Merchant admitted. "That assumes he would have to sign an extension and I don't know if that would happen. But, if Marquez thinks he has a real good chance to beat the guy he'll get two big paydays out of it. I think Golden Boy thinks that this is a big fight for Ortiz who is a naturally bigger guy and is a good deal younger. It would solidify Ortiz's place as not only the number one welterweight at the moment behind Pacquiao, not counting Mayweather, but also perhaps solidifying Ortiz as a serious attraction."
Giving his final thoughts, Merchant seemed to hint that all this drama is just as much about the two promotional companies, who have been in a bitter cold war with one another these days, as much as the fighters involved.
"There's a lot of things in it for Golden Boy and if they can actually make the fight and make it pay, it looks like it could do several hundred-thousand pay-per views. We'll see if Top Rank comes back with another offer. This is where the rubber meets the road in terms of the feud or competitions between the two promoters."
