WHY MARQUEZ LOST AGAIN?
By Rob Cruz
PhilBoxing.com
Mon, 14 Nov 2011
Manny Pacquiao vs Juan Marquez 3 ended with controversy to many who watched as witnessed by the fans who attended the fight. The fans dissatisfaction was very prominent when the outcome of the fight was announced which handed Pacquiao a majority decision.
My first impression when I saw the third encounter last night was Juan Marquez landed more clean punches that connected. He won more rounds and ?should have? won the fight. However, the prediction I made was the fight was going 12 rounds with a decision going to Pacquiao because he has evolved into a pressure fighter who can box beyond the brawl.
Having reviewed the third fight over and over again, I needed to convince myself why Manny Pacquiao won and why Juan Marquez was denied of a fair victory. These two boxers who are national pride to their countries had everything at stake for this fight. Manny Pacquiao needed to convince the he won the 2 previous fights hands down and Juan Marquez was looking for redemption by winning the third fight because he also feels that he won the first 2 fights after waiting for so long.
Styles make fights and Pacquiao and Marquez was built to punch and counter each other. Both fighters are able to hit one another effectively and keep the fight close down the middle. Judging this fight is not an easy task, let alone the opinion of many fans, boxing scribes and analyst have differences of opinion with the outcome of the fight.
Where did it go wrong for Juan Marquez and how did this fight slip away from him?
Punch statistics show that Pacquiao has 17 more power punches with the score of 117 to 110. Some of the power punches landed by Pacquiao was while he was in motion compared to Marquez?s slower but clearer execution of punches which was clearly visible. A marginal difference of 17 power punches going to Pacquiao.
Pacquiao threw a lot more jabs totaling 304 with 59 connected while Marquez threw 182 jabs with 38 connected. A marginal difference of 21 jabs going to Pacquiao.
Pacquiao threw 578 punches and connected with 178 with a 30% connect rate. Marquez threw 436 punches and connected with 138 with a 32% connect rate. The difference is Pacquiao threw 142 more punches and connected with 40 more punches overall which is enough to give Pacquiao the edge.
When fighting as a challenger in a title fight, leaving the fight to the scorecards can be a fatal mistake especially when you are not pressing the action. In Juan Marquez?s case, as a natural counter puncher, he was reluctant to press the action on Pacquiao which does not score points if the Judges favor the fighter who presses the action. Although Marquez showed the ability to counter Pacquiao effectively, Marquez needed to convince the judges that he can impose his will and press the offense on Pacquiao. Marquez did not demonstrate that enough.
What sticks out like a sore thumb is Manny Pacquiao?s ring generalship. His footwork is one of, if not the best in the business. When he wants to let his legs go, Pacquiao is all over the ring and comes at his opponent like the cartoon character the Tasmanian Devil, Pacquiao can come at his opponent straight and be from one side to another even before your eyes blink and launch an attack . His legs are turbocharged and furthermore Pacquiao telegraphs his power punches while he is on the hop. Pacquiao masterfully demonstrated his footwork and used it to press the action on Marquez which was another major difference in the fight. Pacquiao landed some punches that was hard to see because he was floating in transition, those were very difficult punches to execute and land and they did land on Marquez. Juan Marquez's footwork is inferior to the way Manny Pacquiao can cover the ring at his will.
Manny Pacquiao has evolved from a brawler who gets entangled into slugfest with his heavy and lightning quick hands into boxer that can slip, counter, show patience and follow fight plans. Pacquiao is able to chip away at his opponent round by round especially into the closing championship rounds where it counts most. He has done that to Joshua Clottey Miguel Cotto, Oscar De la Hoya, Antonio Margarito, Shane Mosley and Juan Marquez as of late. This is where Juan Marquez failed to capitalize and this is what makes Pacquiao hard to beat if the fight is left to the scorecards.
Even though Juan Marquez gave one of his best performance of his career but chalked up another loss to Manny Pacquaio, where does Juan Marquez stand and what is next for him? Another high profile fight will be profitable and Bob Arum and Top Rank they know that there will be a demand for a Pacquiao vs. Marquez 4 for it?s entertainment value especially to Mexicans and Filipinos boxing fans even after 36 rounds.
But how will Juan Marquez ever win against Manny Pacquiao in another fight if he doesn?t evolve into a boxer that can press action, throw more punches and execute fancy footwork and at 38 years old how likely could that be?
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Rob Cruz.
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