By John F. McKenna (McJack): Almost everyone would have to concede that the 4th fight between eight division champion Manny Pacquiao (54-4-2, 38 KO’s) and WBO lightweight champion Juan Manuel Marquez (54-6-1, 39 KO’s) will be a difficult fight for both boxers. Having already fought three times there is not a lot to choose from as to which boxer has the upper hand.

Most pundits and boxing fans are of the opinion that Marquez won the Trilogy fight last November, even though according Compu Box Pacquiao landed more punches. But the shots that Marquez landed were more authoritative and on that night in November “Dinamita” stole the show with his ring generalship. Even many of Pacquiao’s most ardent supporters were forced to concede that Marquez out boxed their hero.

The controversy surrounding the Trilogy fight set the stage for yet another Pacquiao – Marquez fight. It was helped along by the fact that Floyd Mayweather Jr. failed to step up to the challenge of facing his greatest fear, that of fighting Manny Pacquiao inside the squared circle. With Mayweather out of the picture and Miguel Cotto also opting not to fight “Pacman” there was nowhere else for Top Rank CEO Bob Arum to go for a big money fight. World Boxing Organization (WBO) welterweight champion Timothy Bradley was rejected as an opponent for Manny because of his inability to draw fans.

Arum was forced to settle for a 4th fight with the Mexican icon as his only option. Another match with Marquez will be a difficult and dangerous option for Pacquiao. Again the betting odds will favor Manny, but not nearly as heavily as he was in the 3rd fight.

Despite all the hype coming out of both camps in the lead up to the big fight regarding the changes in styles it is likely that both fighters will quickly revert to form in the heat of battle. Fighters who have been at it for as long as Pacquiao and Marquez have do not all of a sudden change their styles in the latter stages of their career.

This writer has read reams of articles bemoaning the fact that Pacquiao at nearly 34 years old has slowed down some. Obviously a fighter at 34 is not the same fighter he was when he was 25. The writers of these articles however conveniently leave out of the equation that Marquez at 39 is a full five years older than Pacquiao and more prone to suddenly get old in the middle of a fight.