By Dan Ambrose: 38-year-old former three division world champion Juan Manuel Marquez (53-6-1, 39 KO’s) has some big things planned ahead of him once he gets little known #1 WBO light welterweight contender Cesar Rene Cuenca (42-0, 1 KO’s) out of the way in their April 14th fight for the interim World Boxing Organization light welterweight crown at the New Mexico City Arena, Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico.

A victory for Marquez is a forgone conclusion in that fight due to Cuenca, 32, lacking the experience and the talent to win the fight. Marquez will move on after destroying Cuenca and will fight either undefeated light welterweight contender Mercito Gesta (24-0-1, 12 KO’s) or former WBA World light welterweight champion Brandon Rios in a fight that will take place on July 14th at either the Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas or at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas.

You would have to think of this as being a fight where Marquez does Top Rank president Bob Arum a favor by taking one of his fighters Rios or Gesta in order for Marquez to get a fourth fight against Manny Pacquiao. Although that’s not what’s being said, it sure looks like like that, because why else would Marquez waste his time fighting someone like Gesta, who the casual boxing fan has never even heard of in the United States. That’s a huge step backwards for Marquez, as is his fight against the unknown Cuenca.

There’s no point in Marquez taking that fight unless it means that he gets a fourth fight against Pacquiao. But Marquez has to beat Cuenca and Gesta or Rios in order for him to get to the Pacquiao fight. I doubt Arum will let Marquez fight Pacquiao again if he gets picked off by the likes of Gesta or Rios, but then again Joshua Clottey was coming off a loss when he fought Pacquiao, so it might not make any difference if Marquez gets beaten before he gets to Pacquiao.