Hearn working on Kell Brook vs. Juan Manuel Marquez for the summer

By Boxing News - 02/19/2015 - Comments

marquez45By Scott Gilfoid: Eddie Hearn, the promoter for IBF welterweight champion Kell Brook (33-0, 22 KOs), is looking to put a fight together between Brook and the soon to be 42-year-old Juan Manuel Marquez (56-7-1, 40 KOs) for the summer in the UK. However, Marquez is coming off of a knee injury and a long layoff after he hurt his knee in his last fight against Mike Alvarado a year ago in May 2014.

Marquez has been rehabbing the knee, and he’s only now started training again. It’s unclear whether his knee is 100 percent or not. You’d hate to see Marquez take the fight with Brook at less than 100 percent.

It wouldn’t fair to Marquez, Brook or the many boxing fans that watch the fight thinking that they’re seeing a prime Marquez. Even if Marquez didn’t have a knee problem, he’s still way up in there in age at 42, and he’s way out of his original weight class of featherweight.

The obvious idea of getting Marquez for Brook is to give the British fighter a well-known scalp to add to his collection. If the 28-year-old Brook can beat Marquez and add his pelt to his collection, it’ll in theory increase Brook’s popularity both in the UK and the United States.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZfzUqJ0phmk

Casual boxing fans with just scant knowledge of the sport might not be aware that Marquez is 42 and not the same fighter that he once was 10-15 years ago. They also won’t know that Marquez is coming off of knee injury and a long layoff from the ring.

Brook has a fight next month against Jo Jo Dan (34-2, 18 KOs) on March 28th at the Motorpoint Arena, in Sheffield, Yorkshire, United Kingdom. This is probably just a formality for Brook, as Dan has no power and he’s already been beaten twice by Selcuk Aydin.

The real question about this fight is why in the heck did the International Boxing Federation rank Jo Jo Dan at No.1 in their rankings when he’s never beaten anyone of quality during his career. I don’t understand at all how or why the IBF has Dan ranked above the likes of Diego Chaves, Tim Bradley, Amir Khan, and Devon Alexander.

I see the IBF’s rankings as being completely upside down with Dan being someone who I feel should be ranked #15, at best in the division. I actually don’t see Jo Jo Dan as a top tier welterweight, which makes the IBF’s rankings for him seem all the stranger.

“We are in talks. It’s a fight that I would love to make – not just as a promoter but as a huge boxing fan,” Hearn said via Skysports.com. “Juan Manuel Marquez is one of my favourite fighters of all time. I believe a Marquez-Brook fight at Bramall Lane is a massive fight this summer. We’ve had a few chats with their camp and things are moving along in the right direction, but Marquez I believe is the frontrunner right now.”

Rather than seeing Brook fight an old Marquez with him coming off of a knee injury, I’d rather see Brook fight someone young and dangerous like Keith Thurman. I think that would be a good fight and a true test for Brook. I don’t see Hearn ever making that fight though, because he’s seemed cool to the idea of putting Brook in with Thurman for some reason.



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