Pacquiao vs. Marquez: How They Stack Up Against the Great Trilogies of All Time

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Manny Pacquiao is as close to filling the role left by Muhammad Ali as any fighter since Ali's retirement.

I wondered along the way if he'd be able to live up to that kind of promise.

Despite being a huge fan, I always kind of doubted it. He never seemed sufficiently dynamic enough.

Where's the controversy (steroids being the closest thing)? Where's his marketability supposed to come from in terms of selling fights behind the scenes?

As theater, Manny just doesn't bring much drama to the table as a personality. He came from poverty, rose up, earned everything he has and is tremendously thankful and generous for his wealth and achievements.

That might've sold well 50 years ago, but with today's news cycle it seems hopelessly thin.

And if you've been around Manny Pacquiao at all, he gives off an intensely one-note kind of flavor—he's incredibly content just being Manny.

I've been in the gym with him a few times while he trained. I've never seen someone hit a heavy bag the way Manny can, but you're even more distracted by how happy he still seems doing it after all these years.

Before his fight with Antonio Margarito, I watched him interact with the press and fans behind the scenes. He's always the same guy. He's always smiling and people are always smiling back.

It was hard not to shake thinking about him gone and how so many people will miss what he brings to their lives.

But there's still a little left for Manny to do.

The Marquez trilogy is important. Arguably, Manny's lost both their previous fights leading up to this one. The rubber match could allow for something definitive.

Marquez has more than earned the shot to claim a clear victory against Pacquiao himself in this likely final battle between the two.

What will be on everybody's mind is how we should've had a trilogy between Pacquiao and Mayweather by now. We need at least one fight between these two before it turns into an abysmal rehash of Roy Jones Jr.'s hopelessly late battle against Bernard Hopkins (the worst fight I have ever attended in my life).

But maybe something will happen between Marquez and Pacquiao that will distract us for a moment from Mayweather.

And perhaps Pacquiao and Marquez will achieve something with their obviously intense rivalry that will make their trilogy one for the ages.

Here are some other boxing trilogies this one might stack up with.

Antonio Tarver vs. Roy Jones Jr.

Roy Jones Jr.'s trilogy against Antonio Tarver redefined his career forever.

You couldn't ever see him the same way again. There were losses and brutal knockdowns that followed after this fight, but none shocked us more than Tarver's victory in their second fight.

One punch irrevocably damaged a life and legacy beyond repair.

Suddenly, Jones Jr. came down to earth.

People overlook the first fight between Jones and Tarver, given the flashiness of both the knockdown and the opening salvo by Tarver to open the fight: "What's your excuse going to be tonight, Roy?"

Nobody ever opened a fight with a better line than that. Not in a film. Not in a book. Not anywhere.

Then, Tarver served up something even more incredible. A straight left that Jones Jr.'s career never recovered from.

Marco Antonio Barrera vs. Erik Morales

You had a trilogy matching two opponents with superb skill and determination who absolutely couldn't stand one another.

They hated each other then, they hate each other now.

Going into their first fight, Barrera's career was in recovery. Jones Jr. had his number. Morales had defended his world title eight times after winning it off Zaragoza.

Morales had also just come off a sensational fight against Wayne McCullough and was the favorite going in against Barrera.

At the end of their first grueling fight, Morales tasted victory while many claimed Barrera had done enough to defeat him.

They met again two years later, when Barrera changed his approach and won a controversial decision by points.

The rubber match between Barrera and Morales was their best fight and a classic for all time. The hatred shared between them was in full bloom.

Epic trilogy.

Floyd Patterson vs. Ingemar Johansson

For your average boxing fan, two fighters who can punch down a barn while having a weak chin amp up the drama of a fight like nothing else.

Three fights were fought between Johansson and Floyd. Three fights were fought that amounted to 14 rounds in the ring.

Johansson floored Floyd seven times in the third round of their first fight. "Ingo's Bingo" right hand had never looked more devastating.

Patterson took over in the rematch, his leaping left hook connecting with Johansson in the fifth and then again to end the fight.

Suddenly, Floyd Patterson was the first heavyweight champion who'd regained his title.

Johansson got some measure of revenge in their third fight, dropping Floyd twice in the first and hurting him badly midway through the fight.

However, Patterson connected with a right hand that Johansson ultimately was unable to recover from in order to beat the count.

Emile Griffith vs. Benny "Kid" Paret

Few spectacles in sports explored the tragic risks of men fighting for their life quite like Paret and Griffith's trilogy.

Their first two fights were split.

Griffith had knocked out Paret in the 13th to win the title after being behind on points. Six months later, Paret regained his title with an iffy split decision victory.

Going into their third fight, Paret hurled a homophobic slur toward Griffith, who was widely rumored to be gay at the time.

It wasn't a wise decision on Paret's part. Griffith was mad.

After being dropped in the sixth, Griffith proceeded to punish Paret against the ropes in the 12th. Paret was helplessly entangled, while Griffith unloaded a barrage of blows.

The referee stood by and watched as the life was beaten out of a man.

Paret died from the trauma he sustained in that corner. Boxing was taken off the air for nearly a decade in response.

Sugar Ray Leonard vs. Roberto Duran

This is a trilogy that should not have been. The first two fights established incredible drama we're unlikely to see again for some time.

The third fight was small potatoes. Two guys looking for a check.

Leonard, coming off a title win against Wilfred Benitez seven months earlier, collided with Duran.

Duran put on a performance for the ages and defeated Leonard (the end-fight celebrations of Duran are one of the most epic series of vile gestures ever caught on film).

Leonard had never seen anything like Duran. The results led to a magical night.

In the rematch, Leonard was able to turn the tables and take Duran out of his game with taunts. Leonard changed his game plan entirely and proceeded to relentlessly mock Duran.

With the eighth round nearly completed, Duran abandoned the fight and turned his back.

Humberto "Chiquita" Gonzalez vs. Michael Carbajal

This trilogy is rightly beloved nearly exclusively for their first fight.

Carbajal, the IBF junior flyweight champ, was dropped twice by Gonzalez before incredibly managing to stop Gonzalez in the seventh.

Some epic moments took place in that fight.

Gonzalez never fought the same way in the ensuing two fights. Far too cautious and therefore they weren't all that exciting to watch.

In 2006, both fighters were rightly installed in the International Boxing Hall of Fame together.

Evander Holyfield vs. Riddick Bowe

In Bowe and Holyfield's first fight, both fighters were undefeated.

Holyfield had entered the heavyweight division after a glorious career as a cruiserweight and defeated Buster Douglas to win the undisputed title in the third round by knockout.

But Holyfield hadn't looked all that convincing as a heavyweight after shaky defenses against Bert Cooper (he was nearly knocked out), George Foreman and Larry Holmes.

Bowe outweighed Holyfield by 30 pounds as the two stepped into the ring.

Bowe was hailed by none other than Eddie Futch as one of the most talented fighters he'd ever seen. But Bowe was also derided for his laziness.

Whatever criticism these two fighters had battled going into their first fight was put to rest as the bell rang.

Their 10th round is perhaps the finest example of boxing ever fought in the heavyweight division.

I've never seen one that could take the cake over what Bowe and Holyfield achieved in those three minutes.

Bowe won the crown in the first fight. Holyfield narrowly won it back in the rematch.

In the rubber match, Evander dropped Bowe in the sixth round but was unable to finish him. Finally, in the eighth, Holyfield basically collapsed and the fight was handed over to Bowe.

Neither of these fighters was ever quite the same. Especially Bowe.

Arturo Gatti vs. Micky Ward

I watched the first fight in an airport as my name was being called over the loudspeaker. My plane was leaving without me.

But how could I leave Gatti hanging?

It was the only fight I've ever seen where I cried. Gatti showed all guts standing up to the punishment Ward was dishing out.

It's hard to explain the real magic of Gatti. Few fighters achieve a connection with an audience where what is fought for in the ring, somehow, helps everyone else carry the load of what they're fighting for in their own lives.

It's a Hamlet effect—his battles are our own. Gatti was the kind of fighter Achilles would have envied.

And Ward had such heart and guts, too.

What can you say? These two were made for each other. They shared 36 rounds of spilling blood and discovered something in their chemistry that was undeniably rare.

Who saw it coming? Not me. But there it was.