Pacquiao vs. Marquez and 10 Two-Fight Rivalries We Wish Would Have Had a Third

After two intense and closely-contested battles inside the ring, Manny Pacquiao and Juan Manuel Marquez will meet for the third time on Nov. 12 to put a conclusion to their rivalry.

It has been almost four years since they last met in 2008, and eight years after their first meeting in 2004. The first ended in a draw while the second ended with Pacquiao winning a split-decision.

Not every boxer gets a third chance against their biggest rival, and it takes two evenly-matched bouts beforehand to convince fans that a third is needed.

The following 10 rivalries were all fought over two bouts, but a third never came about, leaving many questions unanswered.

These are 10 two-fight rivalries we wish would have had a third.

No. 10: Evander Holyfield and Mike Tyson

Even after 15 years since Evander Holyfield first defeated Mike Tyson, the former cruiserweight and former heavyweight champion continues to fight.

Holyfield became the second man to stop Tyson when he knocked him out in the fight of the year in 1996.

Their rematch occurred less than a year later, and it would go down as one of the dirtiest fights ever after Tyson was disqualified for biting Holyfield's ear.

Rumors of a third bout with Tyson were still relevant long after the youngest heavyweight champion retired in 2005.

No. 9: Floyd Patterson and Jerry Quarry

After 22 rounds and four knockdowns, Floyd Patterson and Jerry Quarry battled to two very controversial decisions.

Their first fight ended in a majority draw after both boxers suffered knockdowns over 10 rounds.

A rematch was scheduled four months later in 1967, and Quarry ended up taking home a majority decision after dropping Patterson twice with his vicious right hand.

Patterson ended strong and was able to fight back to almost win the fight.

Patterson would go on to only lose to two more boxers in Muhammad Ali and Jimmy Ellis before retiring in 1972.

Quarry continued to fight until 1977. He also made short comebacks in 1983 and 1992.

No. 8: Ricardo Lopez vs. Rosendo Alvarez

Ricardo Lopez will not only go down as one of the greatest minimumweight boxers ever, but also as one of the best Mexican fighters.

Some even rank him above Julio Cesar Chavez when ranking the greatest Latino boxers of all time, mostly in part due to his 51-0-1 record.

In two fierce battles with Rosendo Alvarez, Lopez found himself battling harder than ever to retain his undefeated record.

The first fight between the two ended in a technical draw after a headbutt caused gashes on Alvarez's eyes. One judge had Alvarez winning by five points after eight rounds. Lopez was also knocked down for the first time in his career in the second round.

The rematch came eight months later and is arguably the best minimumweight fight ever to take place inside the ring. It saw neither guy getting dropped, but it did see lots of blood, all of which came from four cuts around Lopez's eyes.

Lopez would earn a split-decision win, and the third match would never come to fruition.

No. 7: Jorge Paez vs. Louie Espinoza

Former featherweight champion Jorge Paez won his IBF featherweight title one year before defending it against Louie Espinoza in a high-paced and action-packed bout that resulted in a draw after 12 rounds.

Paez would go on to defend his title three more times before having an eventual rematch with Espinoza one year later in 1990.

Once again, Paez found himself going to the scorecards with his Mexican rival, but he would win a split decision.

Paez's continued success didn't follow him into the super featherweight division, as he was beaten by Tony Lopez five months later.

Espinoza would stay in the featherweight division, but was brutally knocked out by Jose Luis Martinez for the first time in his career.

No. 6: Bobby Chacon vs. Cornelius Boza Edwards

Over two legendary battles, Bobby Chacon and Cornelius Boza Edwards went 1-1 against each other in two of the most memorable super featherweight bouts in the sport.

Their 1981 bout saw Edwards stopping his opponent after Chacon didn't come out for the 14th round. Chacon was leading on all three scorecards, including one by eight points.

After Chacon won the super featherweight title from Rafael Limon in 1982's fight of the year, he rematched Boza Edwards and got off the canvas to floor his Ugandan opponent in the final round to win a decision.

Neither one would fight much longer, succumbing to the damage done over their extensive careers.

Chacon would be stopped by Ray Mancini in his next fight. Edwards would fight for a title twice more but lose a decision to Hector Camacho and get knocked out by Jose Luis Ramirez.

No. 5: Stevie Johnston vs. Cesar Bazan

Former WBC lightweight champion Stevie Johnston put his undefeated record on the line against Cesar Bazan in 1998, but his "0" would have to go after losing a 12-round decision to his Mexican opponent, who would go on to successfully defend his title twice against Mauro Lucero and Hiroyki Sakamoto.

After a fight with Demetrio Ceballos, Johnston rematched Bazan in a much more one-sided bout, but one that ended in a split-decision.

Luckily, Johnston walked away with the victory and his title.

Both continued to fight in the lightweight division, but a young and up-and-coming Jose Luis Castillo defeated both, including a Bazan knockout in 2001.

No. 4: Rocky Lockridge vs. Eusebio Pedroza

Eusebio Pedroza solidified his position as one of Panama's best boxers after defending his WBA world featherweight title 19 times successfully over seven years.

Two of those victories came against Rocky Lockridge, who was a former super featherweight champion.

Pedroza's first encounter with Lockridge came at a time when Lockridge was undefeated at 16-0.

It was a grueling 15-round bout that saw Lockridge taking most of the early rounds but with Pedroza coming back to end the fight strong. It resulted in a disputed split-decision victory for Pedroza.

Controversy was made after Lockridge's manager Lou Duva accused Pedroza's manager of putting something other than water into his mouth in between rounds.

They both fought three years later, and Pedroza left with another close unanimous-decision win after 15 rounds.

Pedroza only fought 10 more times, including his first title loss to Barry McGuigan in 1985.

No. 3: Diego Corrales vs. Jose Luis Castillo

Diego Corrales and Jose Luis Castillo didn't have much left after two battles in 2005, but their legendary battles will always be remembered by boxing fans.

The first saw Corrales defending his WBO lightweight title for the first time and getting dropped twice in Round 10 to come back and knock out Castillo in the same round.

A sooner-than-expected rematch happened five months later, and after Castillo came in overweight, Corrales got knocked out by his much stronger opponent.

The third fight was scheduled to happen in 2006 but was cancelled at the weigh-ins after Castillo once again came in overweight.

Corrales' life would be taken on the second-year anniversary of his first battle with Castillo after a motorcycle accident.

No. 2: Antonio Tarver vs. Glen Johnson

Technical wars are sometimes the perfect balance between what fight fans are looking for, and Antonio Tarver and Glen Johnson fought for light heavyweight supremacy in two fan-friendly fights that saw both winning one of the fights.

After knocking out Roy Jones Jr., Johnson was set up to meet with another man who knocked out Jones in Tarver, who was the IBO light heavyweight champion.

Johnson walked away with the split-decision after 12 brilliant rounds, and like many of Tarver's opponents, accepted a rematch soon after.

Tarver proved he is one of the best at avenging losses when he out-pointed Johnson in the rematch the following year.

A third meeting was never finalized between the two, and although Tarver would go down as the best light heavyweight of the decade, things could have been different if Johnson had met with him for a third time.

No. 1: Oscar De La Hoya vs. Shane Mosley

Oscar De La Hoya came up short both times versus Shane Mosley, but there are those who argue he won both—especially the second one.

The 2000 bout featured De La Hoya meeting up with an undefeated opponent in Mosley, who was 34-0 going into the fight.

De La Hoya's only loss previous to the fight was to Felix Trinidad, and it was his chance to prove fans wrong.

Mosley would leave with a split-decision win, but it was one of the best fights of the year and called for a rematch.

It would eventually happen, but not until 2003, when both had moved up to the light middleweight division.

De La Hoya outboxed and out-landed Mosley over 12 rounds but lost a 115-113 unanimous decision. It was one of the most controversial decisions of the decade.

It was so bad that De La Hoya requested an investigation on the decision.