By Mark Vester
WBA/WBO lightweight champion Juan Manuel Marquez, and manager/trainer Nacho Berestain have spoken out in the Mexican press about their position on fighting Floyd Mayweather Jr. After Marquez stopped Juan Diaz last Saturday in Texas, he called for a fight with Mayweather, who is technically retired and inactive since December 2007.
Berestain says their pursuit of Mayweather is real and not a ploy to lure Manny Pacquiao into a third fight. They don't deny their desire to fight the Filipino for a third time but they want a fight with Mayweather in September.
One of the main sticking points by Berestain is the weight. He says under no circumstances do they plan to fight Mayweather at the welterweight limit of 147-pounds. Nacho says a twelve-pound advantage is too much for Marquez. They are willing to meet Mayweather at a catch-weight of 143-144-pounds. Most insiders don't expect Mayweather to un-retire for Marquez. Richard Schaefer, CEO for Golden Boy Promotions, who promote Marquez, believes the fight can be made. He already reached out to Mayweather's adviser Al Haymon and their conversations have gone well.
That doesn't mean Floyd will actually return for Marquez.
He wanted a guarantee of $20 million to fight Shane Mosley. Even if he dropped his demand to an area between $10 to 15 million for Marquez, that is still a lot of money to make back and a lot of risk for Golden Boy. Maybe too much risk. Marquez is not a proven ticket seller or pay-per-view star. Mayweather, unless he has De La Hoya/Hatton on the other end, has done an average of 350-400 on pay-per-view. Considering the economic times, it would be very tough to get a million pay-per-view buys.
Send News Tips and Comments To Mark Vester @ boxingvester@gmail.com
