Pacquiao-Marquez an electric battle to the end

We waited four long years and it finally happened. The rematch was well worth the wait. In 2004, Juan Manuel Marquez survived three knockdowns in the first-round to box his way to a draw with Manny Pacquiao.

On Saturday at the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, Pacquiao (47-3, 35 KOs) won a close split decision over Marquez (48-5, 35 KOs) to win the WBC super featherweight title. The scores were 115-112 Marquez, 115-112 Pacquiao and 114-113 for Pacquiao.

The rematch lived up to the hype and had just as much drama as the first meeting. Marquez came out boxing for the first two rounds and stunned Pacquiao at the end of the second.

In the third, Pacquiao unloaded with a hard left that would send Marquez down. At that point the war began, with both combatants trading some heavy leather as Pacquiao went for the finish. The drama continued to unravel for the next few rounds as Marquez obliged Pacquiao by standing his ground to trade power punches.

A clash of heads in the seventh opened up a cut outside the right eye of Marquez. The tide would change once again in the eighth, as an inside right hand opened up a bad cut on the right eyelid of Pacquiao. The cut bothered Pacquiao and impaired his vision. Marquez would take advantage by unloading with combinations and right hands to the head to once again shift the momentum of the fight. Both were battered, bleeding and bruised by the 10th.

The fight was on the table going into the 12th and final round. Marquez began to connect with numerous combinations on a tired Pacquiao, who was unable return fire with his counters. The crowd stood up as they continued to trade in the closing moments of the fight. At the end of the day, the knockdown in the third won the fight for Pacquiao. Marquez feels he was robbed of a win.

"I won the fight. It was the wrong decision. One knockdown is not an entire fight," Marquez said.
According to the plan for the last few months, Pacquiao is set to fight WBC lightweight champion David Diaz, who won a non-title bout on the undercard, this summer. Diaz is not going to be a pushover for Pacquiao. He's a big, strong lightweight. He lacks one-punch knockout power, but he uses his big frame to physically impose his will on opponents.

He possesses a sneaky defense and picks off a lot of the punches that opponents throw in his direction. He showed in his winning effort with Jose Armando Santa Cruz that he's able to change the direction of a fight with a single punch.

The year-end opponent, should Pacquiao get by Diaz, is up in the air. One mega-name that everyone involved has mentioned is Ricky Hatton. HBO, Top Rank and Hatton's handlers want the fight.

A fight with Hatton would require another jump in weight to the junior-welterweight limit of 140 pounds. Hatton would also need to beat his comeback opponent on May 24, Juan Lazcano. There are many in the sport who feel that Hatton, although he's only five pounds north, is too big and too strong for Pacquiao, who weighed 106 pounds for his ring debut in 1995.
Manny Pacquiao could be eyeing Ricky Hatton after Pacquiao's next fight. (Isaac Brekken / Associated Press)

Another name mentioned has been newly crowned WBO/IBF/WBA lightweight champ Nate Campbell. If Pacquiao beats Diaz, a bout with Campbell would be for the undisputed lightweight title. If Campbell shows up in the same fashion he did in his big upset win over Juan Diaz last weekend in Cancun, Pacquiao will have his hands full.

With Pacquiao moving up in weight, Marquez would become the top fighter in the super featherweight division. He will probably find himself in a fight for the vacant WBC title that Pacquiao will leave behind. source

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