Again, Pacquiao to square with Marquez

By: Rijel R. Reyes

After three fights of sensational boxing that all etched close and controversial decisions; once again, Manny Pacquiao and Juan Manuel Marquez will hunt for either man’s avowal of who’s the other man’s waterloo as both future hall-of-famers intend to end their long-rooted rivalry in December 8, 2012 at MGM Grand Garden in Las Vegas.

“I want to erase the doubt of the last three fights… I want to knock him out,” Pacquiao told Associated Press in a public interview in Beverly Hills, California.

The 8-division world champion and congressman from Saranggani, Philippines want to get rid of the common nuisance that Marquez should be the winner in all their encounters.

And the same energy came from Marquez.

“He will have a tough fight on December 8^th,” Marquez told Fight Hype about the anticipated fourth clash.

The last three meetings were showered by roars of the crowd for its non-stop action and rare dull moments; featuring knockdowns, storms of combinations and decent display of boxing techniques.

Todd DuBoeff said in a press conference, ''People ask me whether it's going to be hard to sell a fourth fight. Did you see the first 36 rounds? There wasn't a dull moment.''

So with longtime HBO analyst Larry Merchant, in his interview with examiner.com, Merchant said “They fought three good fights. Good and close. There’s an old saying that ‘too much of a good thing is a good thing’. Even though we think we’ve seen that fight before, those are damn good fights.”

Clashed in 125, 130 and 144 pounds; now, the fourth and might be the final fight between Pacquiao and Marquez is set at straight welterweight at 147 pounds.

Pacquiao and Marquez first brawled in 2004 ending in a controversial draw. In 2008, Pacquiao escaped with a split-decision in a fascinating 12 rounds of non-stop action. And the last fight, in 2011, ended in a controversial majority decision with Pacquiao benefited by the second win.