WGTB Talks

Juan Manuel Marquez’s path to a rematch with Manny Pacquiao stretched from Indonesia to the side of a Mexican volcano, stopping at two-bit fights and disappointing decisions before winding back to Las Vegas.

Nearly four years later, Marquez still wouldn’t change a thing about his strange odyssey. After all, not many easy roads run out of the toughest barrios in Mexico City.

Marquez (48-3-1, 35 KOs) and Pacquiao (45-3-2, 34 KOs) fought to an acclaimed draw in May 2004, and two of boxing’s most gifted combatants are back together Saturday night at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in a match for Marquez’s WBC 130-pound title.

Anthony Mundine is still the WBA super middleweight champion. He retained his title with a unanimous decision over Australian Nader Hamdan. It was his second title defense since overcoming an eye infection that caused him to lose sight temporarily in his left eye.

“Once again the critics who said it was a mismatch, you all saw a great fight,” he said. “I thought it was going to go 12 rounds. He prepared like never before and he wasn’t coming in with the mind-set of being stopped.”

Manny Pacquiao, on Friday succeeded brilliantly with the World Boxing Council’s 30-day weighing and medical tests, in pursuit of its March 15 Showdown WBC super-lightweight champion Juan Manuel Marquez.

The WBC requires that the fighters of 130 pounds of super-light weight class must not weigh more than 140 pounds per month, planned before their fight.

Pacquiao has tests at the clinic of Dr. Gluckman, San Pedro, California, after Philboxing.com ‘Los Angeles correspondent Ed De la Vega.

Pacquiao was accompanied by his younger brother Bobby, the action is to see, two days before his trial of strength with Marquez.

In addition, the group has been the coach of the Philippine Pacquiao Boboy Fernandez, boxer Ernel Fontanilla and relations between men and Winchell Campos, “said De la Vega.

Pacquiao is scheduled for Saturday against sparring partners Latin sparmates.

The Wild Card Gym in Hollywood, where the Filipino ring trains hero is off-limits to non-essential personnel, and particularly kibitzers boxing fans.