How Pacquiao vs. Marquez 5 will put huge pressure on Mayweather

By Mohamed H - 12/21/2012 - Comments

floyd42By Mohamed Horomtallah: It seems that everybody has pretty much buried Manny Pacquiao after his 6th round knock out against Marquez. They say that he’s done and can no longer be the fighter he once was. They back that argument by bringing up the fact that Pacquiao  has now lost 2 fights in a row and didn’t convince in the 3rd Marquez fight. I beg to disagree.

Things should always be placed in their context and in this particular instance, one needs to analyze Paquiao’s last 3 fights and the events surrounding them.

Pacquiao was not thrilled to fight Marquez for a third time last year. Mayweather was all that he had in mind but since that could not be made, he gave in to his promoter’s argument that the Marquez fight was the next best thing in terms of money. Pacquiao is not his own boss and his boss only cares about the money he can get from a fight.

Therefore Pacquiao went into that fight not motivated, feeling that he’s eating the same dish over and over again and to top it all, he had personal problems. It’s fair to say that Marquez faced a less than motivated and unfocused Pacquiao the third time around, thus the performance in that fight.

Next came Bradley, undefeated but not the exciting fight that will bring out the best in you. Despite that, Pacquiao clearly won the fight without ever bringing his “A” game. With the Mayweather fight still not getting close to being made, Pacquiao was just an elite fighter doing the minimum to take care of business.

When the offer for the fourth Marquez fight came, Pacquiao didn’t have much of a choice because it was the only (doable) fight out there for him and he took it rather reluctantly. One must understand this : the fourth fight was Marquez fight, meaning he needed the fight to prove he can beat Pacquiao who, on the other hand, was not as motivated as Marquez because his focus was Mayweather. Sure Pacquiao and his trainer tried to get the motivation they could by making a knock out of Marquez their main goal.

Yet again, Pacquiao did not dedicate himself 100% to his training camp not to mention all the extra stuff he had going on in his personal life. No focus, not enough dedication may have contributed to his 6th round knock out. I say this without taking anything away from Marquez, the great Mexican warrior.

Nothing but respect when it comes to Marquez but I do not think his perfect knock out of Pacquiao will affect him mentally or make him loose his confidence. It is one thing to get knocked out cold by one perfect shot (lucky or not) when you were in control of the fight and it’s quiet another to get knocked out after being beaten up and completely dominated.

Anyone who saw the fight cannot deny the fact that Marquez was completely dominated in the 6th round and was ready to go with a broken nose and some difficulty breathing. He was in for a long night.

The knock out that Pacquiao suffered may a blessing in disguise because it will free him down the road. It will free him from the lack of focus and motivation. It will free him from the lack of dedication. Yes, Pacquiao’s knock out will set him free and he will be more, far more dangerous next he faces Marquez.

Pacquiao knows in his mind why he lost that fight. He also knows that to win the rematch in a spectacular and dominant fashion, he needs to do what he did AND just be careful enough not to walk into some big shot. I believe that Pacquiao is very much capable of making the adjustment, especially now that he has everything to gain.

Pacquiao rematch with Marquez will allow him to kill two birds with one stone : show the world that the Marquez knock out was due to carelessness and be the first in line, the mandatory for a Mayweather fight.

Mayweather has only four fights left and since it is more than likely that Pacquiao will accept a 60/40 split along with the drug tests, Mayweather will have no choice but to face him.

The outcome of that fight is anyone’s guess! Will Pacquiao put so much pressure on Mayweather to overwhelm him without being countered or will the pound for pound king nullify him and teach him a lesson in sweet science? One thing is sure, a spectacular win for Pacquiao in his Marquez rematch will put a great deal of pressure on Mayweather.



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