Casamayor-Marquez: Will Two Great Boxers Make a Great Fight? By Doug Fischer (July 16, 2008) If you ask any knowledgeable fight fan if Joel Casamayor and Juan Manuel Marquez are among the most skilled and accomplished boxers of the past 15 years that fan would undoubtedly answer in the affirmative. If you were to ask the same fan if the two master boxers will combine to make an entertaining fight he would probably answer: “I doubt it”. Great boxers generally don’t make for great fights when matched together. For recent examples see Oscar De La Hoya-Floyd Mayweather or Bernard Hopkins’s last three fights (vs. Joe Calzaghe, Winky Wright and Antonio Tarver). Usually, the boxer needs a slugger to bring out the “fight” in a boxing match. De La Hoya needed the macho-minded Fernando Vargas and Ricardo Mayorga to press him and produce fights that lived up to the hype of those pay-per-view events. Hopkins needed wild power-punching Antwun Echols to make for two dramatic encounters. Casamayor’s last bout was a ‘Fight of the Year’ candidate but that’s because he was in the ring with an ultra-aggressive young hunter in Michael Katsidis. One of the most compelling major fights of the year was the long-awaited rematch between Marquez and Manny Pacquiao, whose blend of speed, power and risk-taking tactics brought the best out of the Mexican technician. However, the good folks at Golden Boy Promotions believe that Casamayor and Marquez will be an exception to the “boxer + boxer = boring fight” rule. They’re so sure of it they’ve matched them together and made it a pay-per-view event that will take place at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on Sept. 13 (Mexican Independence Day weekend). Will the meeting of a ring savvy stick-and-move man and a counter-punching technician be worth ponying up the suggested retail price of $44.95 for the HBO PPV-distributed show? Casamayor, whose Ring Magazine lightweight championship will up for grabs, thinks so. “Marquez is not your typical Mexican fighter,” the crafty Cuban told a table full of boxing writers at Tuesday’s press conference announcing the fight at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel in downtown Los Angeles. “He doesn’t always come forward and throw punches. He’s more cautious, more technical, but I think he’ll have to come and fight me because I’m the champ. “If he wants to win the lightweight title, if he wants to beat me, he’s got to fight me, not box me. I don’t think he can beat me by boxing. “If Marquez doesn’t beat me, he doesn’t get [a third fight with] Pacquiao. That’s what he really wants. That’s why he took this fight. So this is a must-win fight for him, and for him to have a chance he’s got to go to war. If he doesn’t bring it then I’ll take the fight to him, because I want Pacquiao, too.” Although Marquez has unfinished business with Pacquiao, and Casamayor desires a 135-pound showdown with the Filipino Icon because it would be the biggest and most lucrative fight of his 12-year pro career, both veteran craftsmen have a deep respect for one another and look forward to their own showdown. “I’m going to fight one of the best fighters in the world Sept. 13th,” said Casamayor, who holds a 36-3-1 (22) record. “I’m excited about fighting Marquez. “Ever since I came here from Cuba I’ve wanted to fight a great Mexican champ. I wanted to fight Marco Antonio Barrera. I wanted to fight Erik Morales, but those fights never happened. I don’t think they wanted to fight me. So I got to give [Marquez] credit, because he’s the only great Mexican fighter that wanted to face me. He’s also the only pound-for-pound boxer who is willing to fight me. Pacquiao won’t fight me.” Marquez, who has been installed as the favorite (it’s -340 for the former featherweight and 130-pound titlist; +280 for Casamayor) in the opening odds from the MGM Grand’s Sports Book, says he’s always had his sights on Casamayor. “I was aware of Casamayor back when I was a featherweight,” said Marquez, who holds a 48-4-1 (35) record. “I was interested in fighting him but I was always a division below him. When I was a featherweight, he was a super featherweight. When I moved up to super featherweight he moved up to lightweight. “After my rematch with Pacquiao, I decided that I would move to lightweight, and yes, [Casamayor] was in my future plans because he is the recognized champion, but I didn’t think I would get a chance to fight him this quickly. “But when the fight was offered, I accepted it immediately because I only want to be in big fights and this fight will be special. Everyone knows how difficult and dangerous Casamayor is. I know how good he is, how tricky and skilled he is, but he’s not invincible. I have my skill and I trust in my training, what I do in the gym. I’m confident that I will win on a very important weekend for Mexicans.” De La Hoya, Golden Boy’s president who presided over Tuesday’s press conference, said fighters of Mexican descent bite down a little harder on their mouthpieces and dig a little deeper when they fight on a Mexican Independence Day weekend. “Mexican fighters want to prove they are worthy of being champions, worthy of being part of the Mexican tradition and fighting for their people when they fight at this time of the year,” said De La Hoya, who fought his 1998 rematch with Mexican hero Julio Cesar Chavez, his 1999 superfight with Felix Trinidad, and his 2002 grudgematch with Vargas on Mexican Independence Day weekends. Hardcore fight fans who are considering buying the Sept. 13th pay-per-view event or attending the fight card in Las Vegas are hoping Casamayor-Marquez is more like De La Hoya-Vargas than De La Hoya-Trinidad. “You’re all going to be surprised come Sept. 13th,” said Casamayor’s fiery co-manager Louis DeCubas Jr. “You’re going to see a war. You’re not going to see a boxing match; you’re going to see a real street fight.” TICKETS Tickets for Casamayor-Marquez are on sale now and may be purchased at any MGM Grand box office outlet and all Las Vegas Ticketmaster locations, or at www.mgmgrand.com and www.ticketmaster.com. Tickets, which are priced at $300, $200, $125 and $75, are limited to eight per person. For Questions or Comments E-Mail Doug Fischer at dougie@maxboxing.com Discuss this Topic - Go to the forums