By Miguel Rivera
Hall of Fame trainer Nacho Beristain is not going to engage WBO junior welterweight champion Ruslan Provodnikov (23-2, 16KOs), who claims four division champ Juan Manuel Marquez (55-7-1, 40KOs) is afraid to face him. Both boxers lost decision to WBO welterweight champion Timothy Bradley in 2013.
Marquez is going to fight in May, likely in Mexico, and then wants to return in the fall to face the winner of April's rematch between Manny Pacquiao and Bradley.
Nacho says Provodnikov is not a pay-per-view draw and can't sell a lot of tickets, making the fight impossible because the promoters involved are unable to come close to Marquez's asking price.
"[Provodnikov] is just looking for a way to latch on to someone to make a few dollars, because currently he can't sell. He's in the right in doing so, because at one time we did the same thing...going around and challenging [everyone], but if some promoter is interested they are going to have to pay Juan very well," Nacho said.