By Allan Fox: Manny Pacquiao came back to the Philippines on Wednesday after his 6th round destruction at the hands of Juan Manuel Marquez last Saturday night in Las Vegas, Nevada. Pacquiao held a quick press conference and said “We will rise again,” according to abs-cbnnews.com. Pacquiao wants to avenge his loss to Marquez, and his promoter Bob Arum said that Marquez is also very interested in facing Pacquiao in a 5th fight next year.
It’s still unclear when Pacquiao and Marquez will be fighting again, as Arum wants them both to rest up and enjoy the Christmas and New Year’s holiday before he speaks with them about the rematch particulars.
A lot of people from the Philippines want Pacquiao to retire as they feel he’s no longer in his prime and he could end up getting hurt if he keeps fighting.
A knockout can happen to anyone in the sport no matter what age, but it’s not just the 6th round knockout that has boxing fans concerned about Pacquiao. It’s how he looked in getting knocked down in the 3rd round, and how his reaction time seemed to be slower than in his best years. Pacquiao looked to be in good shape but he didn’t move as well as he used to, and he wasn’t able to get out of the way of Marquez’s shots in the fight like he had in other fights. Marquez was always able to find Pacquiao in their three prior fights, but in this one it seemed easier for him to connect.
Pacquiao would be better off not trying to create any expectations from fans by saying he’s going to come back and beat Marquez. It’s better if he plays it low key because there will be less pressure on him that way, and if no one has huge expectations then it won’t be as bad if he gets beaten again.
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