Whether
you think it was a robbery (a term that seems to be way overused this weekend)
or a close Manny Pacquiao win (which is the minority opinion), this much is
clear: what Ken Norton was to the great Muhammad Ali, Juan Manuel Marquez is to
the iconic Filipino pugilist. That was shown again this past weekend at the MGM
Grand in Las
Vegas, where Marquez once again not only neutralized Pacquiao for long
stretches of the fight but he befuddled him with his timing and precision. In
the end, Marquez was seen to be the second best man in the ring (again).
This
fight was made and engineered in large part to accentuate and expose Pacquiao's
advantages in size (a 144-pound catchweight) and the advanced age of Marquez
(now 38). What was counted on was an old Marquez. Instead, Pacquiao faced the
Marquez of old.
The
bottom line is this: Marquez was better at being Marquez than Pacquiao was at
being Pacquiao.
It
was all at once a satisfying yet frustrating night for the Mexican stylist.
“I'm
happy about my performance tonight,” he told the assembled media through his
promoter, Fernando Beltran,” and honestly, I don't know what I need to do to
change the mind of the judges.”
Unlike
the first two encounters, Marquez’s backside never touched the canvas and he
controlled the tempo and the pace of the fight for much of the evening. While
there were some heated exchanges that had the sell-out crowd at the MGM Grand
Garden Arena on its feet, Marquez was able to pick his spots and land some
sharp counterpunches that visibly affected the “Pac-Man.” Pacquiao, on the
other hand, certainly had his moments. In many ways, he looked like the largely
one-dimensional fighter of the past, frustrated by his Mexican rival’s tactical
boxing. For some reason, Pacquiao kept moving toward his left, his footwork often
getting tangled in his haste to flurry on Marquez, who answered every Pacquiao
rally with a volley of his own.
After
making Pacquiao look very human, it still wasn't enough to win the fight (at
least in the eyes of judges Dave Moretti and Glenn Trowbridge). Ironically, of
this trilogy, this is the strongest argument Marquez could make that he was
jobbed. “I think I won this fight more clearly,” he stated. “I don't know what
happened, what I need to do for the judges to give me the fight. I don't know
what happened.”
Well,
what ‘happened’ is that Pacquiao isn't just a fighter but a brand- a brand that
is so important to not only the health and vitality of the boxing business but
the business of Las Vegas. In short, he's too big to fail, too big to lose a
decision in a tightly contested fight. Short of scoring a knockout, it's hard
to imagine Marquez ever getting his hands raised in a fight that goes to the
cards against Pacquiao. This is but one example of how the politics of boxing
work. While he could beat the man in front of him, Marquez wasn't going to beat
the forces backing him.
Marquez
reiterated, “Everybody knows what happened. I think I won this fight again.
Again, I repeat: what do I need to do for the judges to give me the fight? I
don't know but I feel very happy for my actions. I won this fight again.” His
trainer, Nacho Beristain, commented, “I'm very frustrated and I think it's a
joke that decisions are like this. I felt very disappointed. I'm frustrated and
the winner was Juan Manuel, not Manny Pacquiao.”
If
they fought 100 times, this is the type of fight you'd get every single time.
Pacquiao just didn't stumble upon an “off-night.” Every time he faces Marquez,
you will get an “off-night.” “Marquez” in Spanish must mean “Kryptonite” and
the supposed advantage in size never really materialized. “This fight, I felt
so good at this weight,” said Marquez, who hired the controversial Angel
Heredia/Hernandez to help him bulk up for this bout. “I felt [Pacquiao] was
stronger in the past two fights, not in this one. I don't really see him very
strong at this weight and I felt sensational. I prepared myself for four months
for this fight.”
It
wasn't just size or strength that gave Pacquiao fits. Marquez’s style was
successful in slowing down this whirlwind and making him pause more than once
as he gathered himself to attack. According to Marquez, this time around, he
had to shuffle the deck. “I change a lot in my style to fight [Pacquiao] this
time and I was adjusting my style every single round. I was trying to fight him
differently.” Marquez added, “I think you need to fight with intelligence and
we fought very intelligently this fight. Also, the styles make fights. I think
my style is complicated for his style.”
To
say the least.
The
record books say he is 0-2-1 versus Pacquiao but he believes differently. And
the proud Mexican who made t-shirts that read, “I Beat Pacquiao Twice,” may now
update that to say, “I Beat Pacquiao Thrice”
“I was
thinking of making it,” said Marquez, laughing at the thought.
