Juan Diaz and Juan Manuel Marquez Provide Welcome Return To Reality

In the era of the so-called "superfight," the Diaz vs Marquez rematch provides a welcome return to the days when the best guys in the division would simply get on with fighting each other as many times as was deemed necessary.

There is so much pressure on the biggest names in the sport to jump weight divisions in search of the most prestigious fight that matchups like this seem to be in danger of getting overlooked.

It is worth remembering that before Manny Pacquiao started hopping around between 135 and 150 pounds, he spent the best part of five years campaigning at featherweight and super featherweight. During this period, he repeatedly faced the likes of Marco Antonio Barrera, Erik Morales, and Juan Manuel Marquez, often with spectacular results.

His subsequent efforts at higher weights may have made the headlines, but the highly competitive Fight of the Year contenders that Pacquiao seemed to have a penchant for getting involved with are now a thing of the past.

He might sell more pay-per-views today, but actually provided more entertainment back in the days when his name could be mentioned in a sentence without the now obligatory "pound-for-pound" precursor.

Pacquiao wasn't always the winner, but boxing fans usually were as the Pacman was involved in at least four Fight of the Year contenders in this period.

Marquez and Diaz did something that Pacquiao has never managed to do in their first meeting: They won Fight of the Year. Since then, both fighters have endured mixed fortunes.

Marquez looked impressive in defeating Joel Casamayor, but was dismantled by the always impeccable Floyd Mayweather. Diaz got the benefit of a generous decision against Paulie Malignaggi the first time, but Malignaggi was rightly named the winner in the rematch. 

In the circles that Pacquiao is now mixing in, a fight like this could never get made because both fighters are coming off a loss. Diaz vs Marquez II is a victory for common sense. Regardless of recent results, it's a tried and tested recipe for both action and entertainment.

There is also arguably more at stake now than there was the first time they fought.

Diaz's stock is falling fast and he desperately needs a win to revitalize his ailing career. Despite having arguably beaten him twice, Marquez seems destined to forever live in Pacqiuao's shadow and needs another convincing win if his demands for a third fight with the Filipino are to remain realistic.

Amidst all the hype over a potential meeting between Mayweather and Pacquiao, this fight is taking us back to reality. Boxing matches like these frequently surpass expectations precisely because expectations tend to be a little more realistic.

Diaz vs Marquez II might not be the stuff that 24/7 is made of, but it has all the necessary ingredients to be a fantastic fight.