Philippine economy

Pacquiao harbors no bitterness over Marquez knockout

Rappler.com

This is AI generated summarization, which may have errors. For context, always refer to the full article.

Pacquiao harbors no bitterness over Marquez knockout
Manny Pacquiao says Juan Manuel Marquez 'deserves credit' for his 2012 knockout win in their fourth fight

MANILA, Philippines – Manny Pacquiao has long wanted a fifth fight against Juan Manuel Marquez, but won’t begrudge his Mexican rival his day in the sun even if he doesn’t get his chance at revenge. 

Pacquiao (57-6-3, 38 knockouts), who is preparing for what he says will be the last fight of his career on April 9 against Timothy Bradley, was knocked out in 6 rounds in his fourth meeting against Marquez in 2012, following a draw and two close points wins. 

“Let him enjoy what he did to me,” Pacquiao was quoted by Keith Idec of BoxingScene during a recent media tour stop in New York. “He deserves credit.”

Pacquiao and Marquez will be inextricably connected in boxing history, with their first fight in 2004 – a draw which saw Pacquiao floor Marquez 3 times before Marquez fought back to a draw – serving as a launching pad which elevated both fighters to star status. 

Their next two fights, both won by Pacquiao, were hotly debated before Marquez gained the ultimate revenge with a one-punch knockout which rendered Pacquiao unconscious. 

Marquez admits to turning down a significant amount of money for a fifth fight with Pacquiao, telling eleconomista.com.mx in 2014 that he’d rather preserve the legacy of his empathic win than chase another payday. 

“I’ve been offered a lot of money to fight Pacquiao, but the honor, prestige, respect for a country, that comes first for me. And, why a fifth fight? We’ve already won.” 

(READ: Pacquiao still feels he beat Mayweather)

Pacquiao’s trainer Freddie Roach told Idec that he thinks the fifth fight hasn’t happened because of that same reason.

“He likes the way that last one ended, I think, too much,” said Roach.

Pacquiao’s fight with Bradley will be their third meeting, with Bradley holding a disputed decision win over Pacquiao in their first fight before Pacquiao avenged the loss in 2014 with a unanimous decision win.

Pacquiao, 37, will be fighting for the first time since losing a decision to Floyd Mayweather Jr in May of 2015. – Rappler.com

 

Add a comment

Sort by

There are no comments yet. Add your comment to start the conversation.

Summarize this article with AI

How does this make you feel?

Loading
Download the Rappler App!