
Juan Manuel Marquez: I'm Just as Motivated as Pacquiao
Juan Manuel Marquez couldn’t care less if Manny Pacquiao is bothered by Marquez claiming he won their first two fights.

Juan Manuel Marquez couldn’t care less if Manny Pacquiao is bothered by Marquez claiming he won their first two fights.

During a media conference call on Wednesday afternoon to promote his November 12 fight with familiar foe Manny Pacquiao, former three-division world champion Juan Manuel Marquez addressed the issue of hiring controversial strength and conditioning coach Angel Hernandez.

In the last installment of HBO’s “24/7” series, Juan Manuel Marquez revealed a chiseled physique, which he partially credited to the addition of strength and conditioning coach Angel Hernandez.

We’ve come to expect Manny Pacquiao stopping short of ever saying anything bad about anybody.

Rather than opting to walk sideways on the issue, Hall of Fame promoter Bob Arum decided to tackle questions surrounding the addition to Juan Manuel Marquez’ training camp, former steroid distributor Angel Hernandez (nee Angel “Memo” Heredia).

By Jake Donovan - If only Manny Pacquiao could demand that Juan Manuel Marquez take the test before stepping into the ring with the best. For now, judgment needs to be reserved. However, the revelation of convicted steroid dealer-turned-government cooperator Angel Heredia – now known as Angel Hernandez – joining Juan Manuel Marquez’ camp in preparation for the Mexican’s third crack at an official win over Pacquaio can’t possibly fly under the radar. News first caught the attention of many in the industry after scanning the Twitter page of BALCO co-founder Victor Conte, who of course is no stranger to doping scandals. Conte revealed through tweets that the man identified as “Angel Hernandez” in Episode 2 of 24/7 Pacquiao/Marquez is in fact Heredia, who testified in 2008 against former Olympic coach Trevor Graham as a cooperating witness. Heredia became the government’s star witness three years prior when he was linked to money laundering and drug trafficking. His credibility was called into question, but all of his information proved to check out, leading to the discovery of PED use by several notable athletes and Olympic medalists, including Marion Jones and Maurice Greene. Then 33 years old, Heredia agreed to testify even before knowing what he would get in return. Prosecutors had assisted him with his Visa (Heredia is a Mexican citizen), but never outright promised full immunity in exchange for his court testimony. When all was said and done, Heredia never served a day in prison for his role in a scandal that rocked the sports world. He was sparsely heard from since that trial, and certainly an unknown entity in the boxing world.

Pound for pound king Manny Pacquiao’s strength and conditioning coach Alex Ariza believes WBO/WBA lightweight champion Juan Manuel Marquez will go for an early knockout in the third fight of their eagerly awaited trilogy at the MGM Grand Garden Arena on November 12.

Mexico City - With an impressive display of physical strength and condition, and foot work, Juan Manuel Marquez offered a public workout at the Romanza gym in Mexico City. He was supervised by the legendary coach and member of Hall of Fame, Ignacio Beristain. Marquez (53-5-1, 39 KOs) will face WBO welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao (53-3-2, 38 KOs) on November 12th at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Marquez sparred for ten rounds, three with Alex Dilmanghani, three with Ramses Agathon and the final four with Mario Zaragoza.

On Sunday night I caught up with renown trainer Emanuel Steward, as we discussed his upcoming endeavor working with featherweight marvel Yuriorkis Gamboa. The Cuban standout may be in line for a crack at WBA lightweight champion Brandon Rios next summer and you could sense Steward’s cautious enthusiasm when assessing the danger of such a contest.

Manny Pacquiao's fight blog for his upcoming trilogy showdown with Juan Manuel Marquez, scheduled for November 12th at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. HBO Pay-Per-View will distribute the event.