Marquez Dominant In Unanimous Decision Victory Over Diaz

Added on Aug 02, 2010 by Jack Thurman in

Boxing

Juan Manuel Marquez may not have looked like the overwhelming victor in his rematch with Juan Diaz thanks to a badly swollen eye but the judges’ scorecards told a completely different tale. In a rematch of their February 2009 fight, Marquez positioned himself for a possible rematch with Manny Pacquiao by earning a unanimous decision victory over his younger opponent by scores of 116-112, 118-110, and 117-111. This was Marquez’s first return to the ring since his lopsided loss to ‘pound for pound’ claimant Floyd Mayweather, Jr. last September.

The boxing betting odds for the fight overwhelmingly favored the victorious Marquez, who had been installed as a -450 favorite. Takeback on Juan Diaz was +325. The Over/Under round prop was set at 9.5 rounds, with the ‘Over’ a -210 winner. The biggest beneficiary of the night was boxing fans, who enjoyed a very spirited rematch of last year’s ‘fight of the year’ between the two men.

Marquez controlled this bout throughout, using his slick punching skills and solid defense to pick apart Diaz. Diaz was a game opponent and returned fire throughout, but his shots were simply not as precise as his more experienced opponent. The classy Diaz was gracious in defeat and praised his opponent:

“I fought the best fight I could. We were trading punches. We fought in, we fought out. I didn’t stand in front of him. I wanted to get in there and then get out, but it was hard, and I got hit with a couple of good shots. … I did the best I could. I followed the game plan, worked off my jab, but he’s a great fighter. He was the better man.”

Marquez continued to improve his status among fight fans, and now ranks among the best Mexican fighters of his generation along with Erik Morales, Marco Antonio Barrera and Oscar De La Hoya. He also commended the effort of his opponent:

“The first one was difficult, and so was this one. He’s a very good boxer. Like every true Mexican warrior, we both fought with all of our hearts and left it all in the ring.”

Marquez’s primary focus, however, is a third fight against Manny Pacquiao. He gave ‘Pac-Man’ fits in their first two meetings which resulted in a draw in 2004 and a split-decision loss for Marquez in 2008. He again lobbied for the fight in his post bout comments:

“It’s good for all fight fans. The Mexicans, the Filipinos, everyone wants to see it. That’s the most important fight to me now. I’ll be ready for November, and hopefully Pacquiao will take the fight.”

At present, however, Pacquiao’s most likely next opponent is Antonio Margarito. The two men are both promoted by Top Rank, and that means a far less contentious negotiation. Margarito and Pacquiao are tentatively slated to face off in November, with the venue yet to be determined.