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It was a successful Forum
homecoming for future Hall-of-Famer Juan Manuel Marquez as he defeated the
rugged Mike Alvarado in front of 12,090 mostly Mexican partisans who cheered
his every move. He's come a long way from being third banana to the likes of
countrymen Erik Morales and Marco Antonio Barrera and being branded as just
a safe, cautious counterpuncher. Alvarado was game but simply outgunned by the
master from Mexico City, who was simply a bit quicker off the draw and more
accurate.
“I said it was going to be a
tough fight and I said it was going to be a difficult fight. I wanted to give the
public here a gift, a gift that dignifies the history of this event and the
history of the Forum,” said Marquez as he improved his mark to 56-7-1 (40)
while having to actually come off the canvas in the ninth round after flooring
Alvarado in the previous frame. Whenever Alvarado rallied, Marquez always had
just a bit more in response. He was quick with his combinations, landed digging
left hooks to the body and a laser-like right hand in the eighth nearly sent “Mile
High” skidding out of the ring.
“We wanted to make this fight a
gift to the fans,” said Marquez, who has long ago shed the label of
being a “boring” boxer. Alvarado is a good, solid fighter but Marquez is a
class above. “Yes, I did expect this fight. I always said that Mike Alvarado is
a strong man and fast and worthy and strong and I did expect this fight.”
And age is just a number for
Marquez.
“Like I have said before,
age doesn't matter,” said the 40-year-old.
The victory brought about
immediate questions about a fifth chapter with his archrival Manny Pacquiao. In
the post-fight aftermath, Marquez stated, “This was a great fight.
Finally in that fourth [Pacquiao] fight, we obtained justice. This fight
is for all of the Mexicans that have supported me in that fourth fight and this
fight was for them.” So is that a yay or a nay on Pacquiao-Marquez V?” We’ll
relax. I don't know at the moment but any decision we make will be good for me,
good for my family and good for the Mexican fans.”
Pacquiao is slated to go again
in mid-November in Macao, China (where it's doubtful Marquez would be willing
to go). You get the sense that in the manner which he won their last fight (with
the vicious shot heard ‘round the boxing world) back in December of 2012, he
feels that, regardless of what the record books say, he has forever gained the
upper hand in this rivalry, putting a capper on it he simply won’t be able to
top. The man who will try and put together is their mutual promoter Bob Arum of
Top Rank Promotions, who told the ringside press, “It's up to [Marquez]; it
really is. Manny wants the fight. I think there's a lot of money in the fight,
so we'll see.”
The only problem is despite
the historic nature of this series - and even with the thrilling back-and-forth
nature of their last meeting - there is still a sizable contingent of fans who
are feeling a bit of fatigue. There is a chance the pay-per-view numbers could
decline (as they have recently for Pacquiao fights in general).
“And I say, ‘So what?’” was Arum's retort. He explained, “The U.S. is not the
only market. This time, in November, we've already got everything going for
pay-per-view in China. We have Zou Shiming fighting for a title, Manny, a big
card and Sunday morning is an ideal time for pay-per-view in China.” Yes, the
bottom line will often (if not always) trump the interest of the boxing fans.
But ask yourself this: What would be so bad about another fight between these
two men who have given us such great memories? When they square off, memorable
things happen. It will go into the annals of boxing as one of the greatest
pairings of all-time.
A quick Twitter poll (which obviously
isn't exactly the Gallup) shows that most fans have had enough.
But did people complain back
in the day about Sugar Ray Robinson and Jake LaMotta swapping leather six
times?
Probably not but those two
also fought in an era when boxers were much more active (Robinson finished with
a career record of 173-19-6 (108) while LaMotta had a mark of 83-19-4 (30) by
the time he hung ‘em up). The reality is they fought in a time when
fighters seemed to have much more complete résumés. At the same time, as this
rivalry developed, these match-ups became a bit more spaced out in frequency.
They first met up in October
2nd of 1942, a 10-round verdict for Robinson at Madison
Square Garden. The rematch took place on February 5th, 1943 when LaMotta
handed the great “Sugar” his first pro defeat at Olympia Stadium in Detroit.
Between the two fights, Robinson engaged in four fights, LaMotta five. They met
again just three weeks (yes, three weeks with Robinson actually engaging in a
10-round tune-up against California Jackie Wilson in-between) later when
Robinson scored revenge on the “Bronx Bull.” The duo squared off again for the
fourth time on February 23rd, 1945. This after a period in which
Robinson had a dozen bouts and LaMotta had 16 contests (including four against
Fritzie Zivic and three go-‘rounds with Ossie Harris - talk about
repetitiveness…). As they fought for the fifth time on September 26th,
1945 at Comiskey Park in Chicago, Robinson had three fights while LaMotta had
seven in the interim. Then before their final chapter on February 14th,
1951, the “Valentine’s Day Massacre” that ended this series, Robinson had a
whopping 64 fights between their fifth and sixth meetings while
his counterpart had 31.
So yeah, while we certainly
got plenty of Robinson-LaMotta in that span, there was also a multitude of
other dance partners available. Contrast to Pacquiao and Marquez, who first met
on May 8th, 2004 (their thrilling 12-round draw), the rematch took
place nearly four years later on March 15th, 2008. Pacquiao was
involved in nine fights beforehand, Marquez seven. Their third meeting was on
November 12th, 2011. Pacquiao was coming off a monster eight-fight
run that saw him defeat the likes of Oscar De la Hoya, Ricky Hatton, Miguel
Cotto, Antonio Margarito and Shane Mosley among others. Marquez boxed six times,
facing Juan Diaz, Floyd Mayweather and Michael Katsidis. Their last hook-up was
December 8th, 2012. They have each had two fights since.
There is that possibility
that Pacquiao and Marquez - if another fight is consummated between the two -
will face each other three times within six fights over three years. Yeah, when
you put it like that, it does seem like too much of a good thing. Sure,
you could argue that Arturo Gatti and Micky Ward fought three times over a 13-month
stretch but those guys were much more limited than these two and therefore
didn't have the options Pacquiao and Marquez possess. The frequency of these
bouts has been a by-product of boxing’s lingering “Cold War” between
promotional powerhouses Top Rank and Golden Boy Promotions that has limited
their options.
But with De la Hoya tweeting
away promises of ending this stand-off, you have renewed hopes that the Ruslan
Provodnikov, Danny Garcia, Adrien Broner, Lucas Matthysse, Marcos Maidana and
Shawn Porter can get in that mix and also get a chance to make some history.
Let's see who will emerge from this new generation or if the old guard can hold
them off for a bit. As Larry Merchant says, “Fights make fights.”
Pacquiao-Marquez V wouldn't
be the worst thing in the world but neither would moving on from it.
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Photos by © K9 Photos |
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FORUM
Alongside Marquez, the Fabulous
Forum also shined as it once again hosted the “Sweet Science” and it’s safe to
say the night was a rousing success on all accounts.
“The thing that really thrills me is it's a great fight to come back to the
Forum with because, believe me, so many years ago there were so many
nights at the Forum where we had fights like this,” said Arum, who plans to be
back as often as possible to this building on Manchester Boulevard. “We're
definitely coming back here. We were going to come back here July 19th with the
[Julio Cesar] Chavez Jr. fight [versus Gennady Golovkin] but hopefully we can
restart conversations with Julio and with the father present and hopefully we
do it on Mexican Independence Day [weekend].”
I have to say, walking
around this facility, I was impressed by just how clean and new it looked. The
concourses had a modernized look to them and there were other modifications
to this place that were very noticeable. Also because the Forum does not
have luxury suites, the sightlines are remarkable good. Regardless, it's great
to have boxing back here. As Marquez was being intro’ed by Michael Buffer, it
was as loud and electric as any crowd I can recall in this city and smelling
the bacon wrapped hot dogs sold outside by independent vendors, it just seemed
right.
This is the best new/old
venue in the game.
EMAIL
On Sunday morning I got this
email from a D. Pottinger, who wrote:
“I understand
the fact that HBO cannot continually talk about the circumstantial evidence
suggesting Marquez and PED use but if you are going to spend much of the fight
talking about his ability to fight at this age and look great, don't you have
to mention the acne all over his back and chest?
Personally,
I find it difficult to keep pretending this isn't what it looks like.
Great
podcast, by the way. Thanks.
D, thanks for your
submission. Look, I don't believe in selective prosecution regarding to the
issues of PEDs in sports/boxing whether it's Barry Bonds, Manny Pacquiao and
now, Juan Manuel Marquez. It's not fair or just but I hear your point. But the
bottom line is this is a systemic failing from boxing’s powers that be who are
basically allowing this to take place almost unhindered. I just hope it doesn't
take a ring fatality for this to finally be addressed properly.
And truth be told, am I
suspicious of Marquez? Well, in my opinion, I think all fighters who are not
going through a modernized, year-round, stringent drug-testing protocol are
suspicious nowadays. As for Marquez specifically, well, I think you'd have to
be deaf, mute, blind, hopelessly naive and/or a Marquez fanatic to at least
not have a raised eyebrow. But again, this issue is about much more than
just him.
FINAL FLURRIES
Before that late KO, Viktor
Postol-Selcuk Aydin was among the worst fights HBO has ever had. Why was it on
that particular card?...Andy Ruiz has a lot of ability. You just hope he can
one day get in better physical condition...I think it's safe to say that Jose
Ramirez is already a legitimate draw in Fresno. The numbers he's doing for
UniMas shows are amazing...Joel Diaz is a decent young fighter but I worry
about his durability...Do the Pacers really have a shot at the Heat? Can they
really win four games over seven versus Miami?...How ‘bout that California
Chrome?...By the way, the parking rates at the LAX Marriott are insane...The
segment on the working conditions in Qatar by ESPN's Jeremy Schapp is must-see-TV...
I can be reached
at k9kim@yahoo.com and I tweet at www.twitter.com/stevemaxboxing.
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