Marquez Stops Diaz in Thrilling Bout

By Lee Payton

In a battle that will be talked about for some time, the great Juan Manuel Marquez left no doubt who the best lightweight in the world is by stopping Juan Diaz at 2:40 of the 9th round.

The challenger's youthful energy won him the first half, but it was the Champion's class and heart that decided things in the end. If you didn't think he had done enough to warrant a Hall Of Fame induction before, this performance left you with no choice.

Photo © Ray Kasprowicz

Diaz pushed a hard pace upon the older fighter's legs from the first bell, often finding the target with snappy shots that forced Marquez to the ropes. Of course, Marquez tried to match the bursts of punches headed his way with his own sharp counter attacks, but he did seem a little uncomfortable under the intense early heat.

By the 6th round, both men were feeling the effects of the intense combat, and it was the more experienced fighter who found the extra gear. He matched the Baby Bull's overwhelming output, and stood up the explosions that came his way, as he found the range with a dazzling array of counters thrown in combination to the head and body.

The hometown kid's sturdy foundation cracked for the first time, in the 8th. After suffering a cut above the right eye earlier in the round, a sneaky left hook caught him on the jaw and made his back leg lift awkwardly off the canvas. The consummate professional, Marquez didn't try to force the finish. He knew the damage he had just caused wasn't going anywhere.

Diaz showed his own championship heart in trying to fight through a charging opponent and a bad eye, but his grit and enthusiasm weren't enough on this night. He was toppled onto his head by a combination of power shots out of a clinch, and was put down again by another precise assault, that was set up by some smart work to the body. The finishing touches dropped the courageous youngster like he'd been shot and the ref waved the fight off without a count.

While I'm not surprised Marquez was victorious, the way he did it was a bit of a shock. Most thought this fight had 12 rounds written all over it.

Two questions Juan Manuel Marquez has forced us to ask:

Is he better than Morales and Barrera?

Is he the real pound-for-pound king of boxing?

In the co-feature, Indonesian title holder, Chris John, retained his belt with a draw over an inspired Rocky Juarez. It was a very good, professional contest that pitted John's quickness and activity against Juarez' pressure and power.

While his skills were handy, it might have been John's toughness that allowed him to walk away with his belt against a hard charging Juarez who came on very strong down the stretch. And even though Juarez failed to win that elusive strap, he fought with the type of emotion that has been missing during some of his past efforts.

The draw verdict was perhaps a little generous to Juarez, the hometown fighter, although it was a closely contested battle and the decision, at least to these eyes was hardly outrageous.

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Man on Fire

by Jeff Pryor

Juan Manuel Marquez is a man who is on fire inside. Long labeled a clinical technician who refused to go to war, and who fought without the passion so beloved by his Mexican homeland, Marquez now fights not just to win, but to show that he is a warrior deserving of his countries adulation.

Photos © Ray Kasprowicz

With such ambitions it becomes apparent that Marquez has resigned himself to facing more than one foe when entering the ring. This weekend he will battle at least four men in the squared circle; Juan Diaz the best young Lightweight in the world, Marco Antonio Barrera and Erik Morales the two contemporaries he has been in constant, if indirect, competition with for virtually his entire career, and Manny Pacquiao, The Moby Dick to Marquez's Captain Ahab, the white whale that pulls Marquez inexorably through weight classes in pursuit of his obsession to prove once and for all that he can beat the Filipino sensation.

This fire that now crackles within Marquez was slow to ignite, and his is a flame that burns slow, gaining in heat the longer it smolders. In many ways his career trajectory mirrors that of both Bernard Hopkins and Joe Calzaghe. All three were under appreciated for much of their careers. For various reasons each was passed over or missed opportunities that may have made their careers take off sooner. While Calzaghe and Marquez both began their late career pushes at roughly the same time, Calzaghe has since decided he's proven all he wished to and retired, while Marquez continues to face the best opposition of his career and strive for a greater legacy.

In this way his tale is more closely aligned with Hopkins'. Each man lost their first fight. Each lost their first major title bout, Hopkins to Roy Jones Jr. and Marquez to Freddie Norwood. The similarities continue in that, since then, each has suffered 3 blemishes on their record; Taylor I & II and Calzaghe for Hopkins, Pacquiao I & II and Chris John for Marquez. Setting aside official decisions, it could be argued that neither man has lost since those losses to Jones and Norwood years ago.

It is also likely no coincidence that these two aging warriors are perhaps the two best technically skilled boxers in the world. While Marquez cuts a textbook silhouette and Hopkins' is that of an old school Philly slickster, neither were particularly admired for their athleticism and it is quite apparent that their longevity is due to hard work, diligence and the deftness of their craft.

Though his mastery of the art of boxing was admired by many, Marquez realized after his controversial points loss to Chris John in Indonesia that something had to give. It is to his great credit and to our greater satisfaction that Juan Manuel realized shortly there after that to accomplish what he wished in the sport he had dedicated the greater part of his life to, he would have to sacrifice even more of himself.

So it was that in his next bout against tough, but unheralded, Terdsak Jandaeng that Marquez began to fight with urgency, offense and spirit. He came out with a swollen eye, but an impressive and entertaining performance that marked the birth of a new era for "Dinamita" as a fan friendlier and determined prize fighter worthy of our attention.

Likewise in his next fight against a similar tough, but largely unknown opponent Jimrex Jaca, Marquez laid out his foe in the 9th round, peering through a face streaked with gore from a grisly cut on his forehead. Aside from showing us blood, he revealed to us that he was willing to push the peddle even when he was ahead and deliver everything he had to offer even if it meant giving up a little of himself to bring the pain to his opponent.

He was rewarded for his new riskier approach with a string of bouts to equal anyone's agenda of the last several years, Marco Antonio Barrera, Rocky Juarez, Manny Pacquiao, and Joel Casamayor. His fight with Barrera paled only in comparison to the incomparable Marquez-Vasquez trilogy that began that year. He went on to deliver a punishing decision against Juarez. And then the long awaited rematch with Pacquiao, again surpassed within the year only by his brothers third appointment with Vasquez.

Having been denied a third go around with his own nemesis, Marquez instead followed Pacquiao up to 135lbs. and was content to one up the "Pacman" by not choosing a lesser title holder like David Diaz with which to test the waters with, but by going after one of the two men who could claim to be the top dog at Lightweight, Joel Casamayor (Nate Campbell being the other). He proceeded to knock out the future hall of fame fighter, the first man ever to do so, in spectacular fashion. It must be said that Casamayor, at age 37 is past his best, though he was just off a stirring victory over the all Michael Katsidis.

At any rate, Marquez impressively stamped an exclamation point on his appearance on the scene at lightweight and had done all he could to position himself for another big money bout with Pacquiao. However, after his surprising victory over Oscar De La Hoya, Pacquiao is chasing money up the weight divisions himself right now, and his promoter, Bob Arum seems loathe to put Manny back into the fire with Marquez, when bigger money is there to be snatched.

Though his white whale has eluded Marquez once again, it would appear he is left in a position which is rather enviable. With Nate Campbell's trouble in making the 135 pound limit a few weeks ago, and his annex to a higher weight class, Marquez now finds himself unquestionably atop the lightweight division. Enter Juan Diaz, the man Nate Campbell trod over to gain his perch as top of the division last year.

Diaz brings a non-stop attack that can rattle off ten or twelve punch combos with regularity. Though he lacks big power, his chief weapon appears to be a mental battering ram in which his foes succumb to his relentless onslaught, unable to cope with the multi-punch barrages and more importantly the strain of knowing that they must make all there punches land, just to keep up. He has broken the will of champions like Acelino Freitas and Julio Diaz. The one man who has had success against Diaz was Nate Campbell, who's willpower never faltered, and who never wilted under the attack like each foe of Diaz's that came before him.

It would be fair to say that a fighter who could be knocked down three times in the first round of a fight against the most dynamic fighter in the world, who would rally back and pull out a draw, has considerable willpower, and that's just what Marquez impressively did against Pacquio in their first go around. If you believe as I do, that the secret to Diaz's success is willpower, the question that must be answered when Marquez and Diaz square off is what will be required of Diaz in order to break the will of Marquez. Can he deliver greater turmoil to Marquez, than he experienced in the opening round with Pacquio?...

I doubt it.

While Juan Diaz's throw-everything-but-the-kitchen-sink approach has worked well against sluggers, brawlers and bangers like Katsidis, Julio Diaz and Freitas, he has never fought anyone with the boxing ability and counter punch precision of Marquez. That said, Juan Diaz is exactly the type of youthful, energetic opponent that could make any 35 year old who has lost just a step or two, look old overnight.

If he should lose to Diaz, it would be the final stumble in his chase after Pacquiao. There is a fair chance it would end his hope of catching the Barrera or Morales type of esteem that he is after too. It is indeed a must win for Marquez if he is to make up for lost time.

If Marquez can defeat the "Baby Bull" and solidify his place as the best of the best at Lightweight, there will be little left to do at 135 and he will be left to chase that white whale again and hope to face off with the winner of Pacquio-Hatton. Baring that, perhaps the time would be nigh to revenge his loss to Chris John at a weight between the two, or perhaps face Nate Campbell at 140 in hopes that Pacquiao eventually is forced to look rearward and see the pursuing foe that deserves another shot.

Like Hopkins' late career win over Pavlik, Marquez can still add immensely to his legacy with a win against his young foe, at an age when most Prize Fighters are fading away. Like Hopkins' too, Marquez would likely delight in proving to fans and naysayers alike that he has been undervalued throughout his career.

After all the years of being on the losing end of the comparison to his Mexican contemporaries, Eric Morales and Marco Antonio Barrera, in the past several years Juan Manuel Marquez has been taking large strides in his quest to catch up to them. Adding a respected young champion like Juan Diaz to his win column would further close the gap between the trio, and it may take no more than another substantive win or two to cinch the three of them together in a Mexican standoff of boxing legacies.

The fire that burns in Marquez has taken him this far, propelling his late career surge in a burst of blazing ambition. Is there enough fuel left to ignite him past the fireplug that is Juan Diaz? Old "Dinamita" can be hard to predict, but if I were advising Diaz I would have one suggestion.

Handle with care...

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HBO Preview: Juan Manuel Marquez vs Juan Diaz

This Saturday night, Juan Manuel Marquez defends the Lightweight Championship against plucky challenger, Juan Diaz. Since the fight was official, fans of both have been going back and forth on the outcome of this terrific match-up. The champion is favoured, but most think he's in for a taxing affair.

What's At Stake

For Marquez: The World's Lightweight Title. With Nate Campbell losing his belts at the scale, and moving up to the 140 pound division, there is no doubt who the lightweight champ is.

What is in doubt is Marquez' legacy. With his hall of fame credentials still in question, a victory over a respected young fighter like Diaz may put him over the edge. Some insist that he is overrated because he never actually won an official decision over Pacquiao. Those people will also remind you that Casamayor and Barrera had seen better days. Maybe he really is just a bad style match-up for the best in the world. Or maybe fighting Manny even, over 24 rounds, means he belongs at the top of the heap. We'll find out which side is right on Saturday.

For Diaz: This is a huge opportunity to wipe away the memory of what Campbell did to him. Really, with a win here, that fight becomes meaningless for anything other than the experience. As well as being able to pack the house with devoted fans, he'll be considered "the man" by all. If he pulls it off, his situation looks great next to Nate's, so a measure of revenge can be gained. Personally, I just want to see how the young man performs at boxing's highest level.

The Styles

Marquez is an offensive counter puncher. He stands in a classic, efficient stance that is the foundation for perhaps the most fundamentally perfect arsenal in boxing. His discipline in the ring is rivaled only by dedication he has shown to training throughout his many years as a professional fighter. What makes taking him especially scary, is his passion for winning. He's never been shy about trying to hurt the guy in front of him.

He's recognized as a quick, sharp puncher, who has stung everyone he's ever fought at one point or anther, though he's not thought of as a banger. Some think of him as a great defender, but I'm not sure that is the case. I see him setting up his attack, more than anything. Either way, he is definitely getting hit more these days.

Diaz is a hustling pressure fighter who keeps his chin tucked and his hands high. He's shown a belief in his jab, which allows him to get inside and do his best work. When you add his fighting heart and willingness to walk through fire, you've got a handy fighter, and a stern test for a 35 year old man.

Diaz' best attribute may be his combination punching. He is capable of bombarding opponents with salvos that make them more concerned with survival than winning. When winging shots up and down with a head of steam, he's a very difficult guy to deter.

What To Expect

First off, I think Diaz will be successful with his jab, and that says a lot, because that punch is the one that sets up his offense, and also goes far in dictating his comfort level. I've noticed that the Marquez brothers both eat quite a few jabs because of the way they set up, so I think it's a shot that the challenger can count on.

If he gets sucked into a jabbing contest though, he might be in trouble, because the champ depends on standing his ground and countering with short, stabbing blows. I think that's one area that could decide the fight. Marquez has the tighter technique, so I think he'll get there first with the harder punches. The fact that Diaz is always coming behind a high guard could mean he'll get beat to the punch quite often.

At his best, Juan Diaz wears guys down with his accelerated pace. I think his ability to win depends on breaking the older man down over 12 rounds. The only problem there is, Juan Manuel Marquez doesn't bend. In the past we've seen many examples of fun fighters throwing 100 punches a round, only to have that output brought down to something much more manageable by proven old pros.

I figure this pretty much HAS to be a close fight. Read more!