5 Keys to the Manny Pacquiao vs. Juan Manuel Marquez III Fight
In my book, the most fascinating aspect of the Pacquiao vs. Marquez rubber match is that it offers the opportunity to find out just how good Manny Pacquiao is at this stage of his career. While Pacquiao’s welterweight campaign has been a brilliant one, it must be said that every single one of his recent opponents has been visibly flawed in some way, and therefore most of his supposed gains remain partially speculative. Nothing is certain until it has been tested, and given their track record, Marquez has a good shot at giving Pacquiao a stern test.
Here are five things to watch for to determine just how much truth there is to Pacquiao’s improvements.
What is the Real Size Difference?
Much has been made of the fact that Manny Pacquiao is fighting as a welterweight and Juan Manuel Marquez is a lightweight. However true that is in a statutory sense, the scales tell a different story. Pacman is undersized at welterweight, while Dinamita is a solid lightweight and has been probing the super lightweight division for the last couple of years. The hype says that Pacquiao is now just so much bigger than Marquez that the Mexican is doomed, but if there is any truth to that matter, it should be on public display at today’s weigh-in. The size difference plays into countless issues about Pacquiao’s current ability relative to Marquez, and is therefore a critical element to watch.
Dynamite Power
Another aspect of the size issue, and one that might have a bearing regardless of whether the size difference is five lbs. or 15 lbs., is Pacquiao’s ability to take a punch. One of boxing’s axioms is that moving up in weight rarely translates into a real increase in punching power, but it does sometimes improve a guy’s durability. It is hard to say that Pacquiao has gotten tougher at welterweight, because he hasn’t taken that much punishment there. It’s an open question if Pacman will be fazed by Dinamita’s power after spending a few years at welterweight.
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Has Manny Pacquiao Slowed Down?
That Marquez has slowed down a bit is a given, but what about Pacquiao? It is clear that he retains blistering hand speed, and has had the edge in hand speed over everyone he has fought at welterweight, but that doesn’t mean he is as fast as he was when he was younger and smaller. The conventional wisdom is that if Marquez has slowed down, he won’t be able to pick off counters on Pacquiao as well, and combined with the improvements in Pacquiao’s defensive technique that ought to do Marquez in. However, if Pacquiao is just a hair slower as well, that entire line of thinking falls apart. Either way, we should know the answer to this question in the first couple of rounds.
Pacquiao’s Defense
According to conventional wisdom, Freddie Roach has turned Manny Pacquiao from a raw swarmer into a refined boxer-puncher. Certainly the evolution in Pacquiao’s style has been plain to see, but just as obvious is the fact that Pacman’s defense is still firmly rooted in his offense. Furthermore, it is ridiculous to say that Pacquiao’s defensive prowess has been tested in any of his fights at welterweight, since his opponents usually give up trying to win after the opening stanzas. If Marquez still has the stuff to time and counter Pacquiao, we’re going to find out just how much better his defense really is.
Pacpower
As previously mentioned, one of the rules in boxing is that a man rarely picks up power simply by adding weight. The peanut gallery says Pacquiao is much more powerful than he used to be, but is that true? If Pacquiao has become more powerful, then logic dictates he ought to be able to knock out Marquez with a single well-placed punch, since he was already capable of denting Marquez’s chin. Once again, we ought to see if there is any truth to this line of thinking in the first few rounds.
