Manny Pacquiao vs. Juan Manuel Marquez: 25 Things You Need To Know

On Saturday night, Manny Pacquiao will meet Juan Manuel Marquez for the third time in seven years. After two controversial fights, the two pugilists hope to finally find out who’s the real champion. This fight is talked about in every country. It’s everywhere. At Times Square, the giant poster of the fight can’t be missed.

If you want to read every article about this fight, you must stay up for the next 72 hours. If you don’t have all this time, here are the 25 things you need to know about this fight.

No.25: Juan Manuel Marquez Has a Hall of Fame Coach Who Already Failed

Manny Pacquiao is trained by Freddie Roach and everyone knows it. However, few people are aware that Marquez is coached by a terrific trainer as well.

Indeed, Ignacio Beristain will be in the corner of the Mexican native. Beristain trained some of the most talented Mexican fighters. Will he be able to find the solution to win against Pacquiao?

In 2008, Beristain was training Oscar De La Hoya. We all remember how Pac-Man dominated him in the ring in December. However, the situation is different on Saturday.

De La Hoya wasn’t used to Beristain and trained with him for a short period of time. In boxing, that’s rarely good. However, Marquez teamed up with him for years.

No. 24: Oscar De La Hoya Believes in a Pacquiao Win

Oscar De La Hoya believes that Pacquiao is on a whole different level than Marquez. He thinks that Pacquiao’s opposition has been tougher in his career. Finally, De La Hoya states that the weight difference will be a huge edge for Pacquiao.

We all remember how Pacquiao badly beat Oscar De La Hoya three years ago. Since then, De La Hoya retired and admitted drug-abuse problems.

However, does De La Hoya remember what was going on before his 2008 fight? Most experts had envisioned an easy win for the Golden Boy. Oscar De La Hoya was much bigger and Pacquiao wasn’t used to his weight category.

Still, the Filipino boxer outboxed him all the way. He landed 195 power punches, while De La Hoya barely crossed the 50 mark.

Oscar doesn’t believe that Marquez can compete with Pacquiao. If Pacquiao was able to do it against him before, why couldn’t Marquez compete with his fierce opponent now?

No. 23: Juan Manuel Marquez and Manny Pacquiao Will Be Almost 20 Pounds Heavier

In May 2004, the fight was scheduled at 125 pounds. A few years later, in 2008, the Filipino champion and Mexican fighter met at 129 pounds.

However, on Saturday, the two fighters will fight at 144 pounds, which is 19 pounds heavier than their first fight.

No. 22: Juan Manuel Marquez Doesn’t Have History on His Side

Juan Manuel Marquez fought only once as a welterweight. It was back in 2009, 26 months ago, and he got knocked down and brutally dominated in 12 rounds by Floyd Mayweather Jr.

On the other side, Manny Pacquiao hasn’t fought under 140 pounds for over three years. His last six fights were all in a heavier weight division.

A year ago, Marquez was still fighting at 135 pounds. Can he adjust at his new weight and be efficient? It will be his second test and he failed the first one miserably.

No. 21: Juan Manuel Marquez Opted To Bulk Up

Juan Manuel Marquez decided to bulk up for his third and final fight with Pac-Man. When Dinamita will enter the ring, expect to see him stronger and bigger.

Definitely, Marquez will be slower in the ring because of the new weight gain. However, his counterpunches will have more impact on Pacquiao.

No. 20: Juan Manuel Marquez Is Getting Older

Juan Manuel Marquez turned 38 on August 23. He isn’t getting any younger. On the other hand, Pac-Man is still in his prime at 32 years old.

Unless Marquez drinks the magic potion of Bernard Hopkins, age will affect him in the ring. His hand will lack some speed and his reflexes might not be the same anymore. This is the main reason why bulking up was a wise decision by his team.

No. 19: Juan Manuel Marquez Will Be Lighter Than Manny Pacquiao on Fight Night

Manny Pacquiao will still be the heavier man in the ring on Saturday night and it’s not a big surprise.

Pac-Man should weight around 145 pounds when he steps in the ring. Looking for revenge, Dinamita could be around 140 pounds.

No. 18: Manny Pacquiao and Juan Manuel Marquez Will Make Bank

Manny Pacquiao will receive a guaranteed $20 million purse for this fight. In the end, he will probably make more.

The Filipino boxing icon is getting four times more money than his opponent. Indeed, Marquez will get a guaranteed $5 million purse for their upcoming fight.

Still, for the Mexican fighter, it will be the biggest purse of his career. He received $3.2 million for his scheduled fight with Floyd Mayweather in 2009.

Did Marquez take this fight because he believes in his chances or for the money? For a 38-year-old fighter, it is hard to say no to $5 million.

No. 17: The Referee Will Be Tony Weeks

On Saturday, Tony Weeks is set to be the third man in the ring for the main event. Who is Tony Weeks? He has history with both fighters.

He was the referee in charge for the Floyd Mayweather vs. Juan Manuel Marquez fight in 2009. One year earlier, he was also in the ring when Manny Pacquiao stopped Oscar De La Hoya.

A factor that could have helped Weeks to get chosen is his knowledge of Spanish. Weeks will be able to communicate easily with Marquez and his corner, which is a big plus.

No. 16: Three New Judges Are Elected for the Final Chapter

Manny Pacquiao and Juan Manuel Marquez will have three new judges for this fight: Robert Joyle, Dave Moretti and Glenn Trowbridge. None of them were involved in the previous two fights between them.

Moretti already judged the two fighters, but was never involved in a controversial decision with them. Surprisingly, he has judged four of Pac-Man's five latest fights. In three of these fights, Pacquiao was winning by eight points or more on his scorecard.

Moretti was also ringside for the duel between Floyd Mayweather and the Mexican champion. Again, his card had a clear winner with Mayweather winning most of the rounds.

No. 15: The Biggest PPV Event for a Pacquiao Fight

Manny Pacquiao drew a lot of interest in the past years, and it is still true for the upcoming fight. The expectations are set to break the 1.4 million PPV hits registered when Pacquiao fought Shane Mosley.

It will definitely be a highly televised event. It is available on HBO pay-per-view and will start at 9 p.m. ET.

Note: If you can't watch it, I'll be describing it live on Twitter at TakeoSports.

No. 14: Manny Pacquiao Is Set as a Favourite by Las Vegas

Manny Pacquiao is a clear favourite when you have a quick look at the Las Vegas odds. In most sports books and casinos, Pacquiao is set as a 10-to-1 favourite. It means that you need to bet $1,000 to win $100.

On the other hand, Juan Manuel Marquez is the underdog with a +650 odds. Therefore, if you bet $100 on him, you will receive $650 if he wins.

No. 13: The Fight Will Happen at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas

Pac-Man and Dinamita are both used to fight at the MGM Grand situated in Las Vegas. Four of the past six fights of the Filipino boxing icon have occurred in this casino.

As for Marquez, he fought there for three of his past six fights. The MGM Grand is a usual location for Floyd Mayweather as well; it has been the home of his past five fights.

Now, I wonder where a fight between Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather would be located. How about the MGM Grand?

No. 12: Tale of the Tape

The Mexican champion enters this fight with 53 wins in 59 fights. He won 39 times by way of knockout.

Interestingly, Marquez has one more KO win than Pacquiao. Actually, Pacquiao has the same number of wins (53), but one fewer knockout win (38).

Marquez is slightly taller. At 5'7", he has a half-inch advantage over Pacquiao. However, both fighters have the same reach with 67 inches.

No. 11: Angelo Dundee Is the Only One Believing in Marquez

Few people think that Marquez can upset the Filipino champion. Actually, it’s quite interesting to use the term “upset." Marquez basically won the first two fights, so it shouldn’t be such an upset if Dinamita wins, right? Actually it would be, according to the boxing world members.

Still, Angelo Dundee, the former boxing cornerman of Muhammad Ali, Sugar Ray Leonard and George Foreman, believes that Marquez will win this fight.

He argues that Marquez will always be a problem for Pacquiao. However, can we trust him? He is also the one who stated that Victor Ortiz would beat Mayweather, and we know how that fight ended.

Still, Marquez has his team and a 91-year-old man believing in him.

No. 10: Everyone Else Opts for a Manny Pacquiao Win

If you think that Manny Pacquiao will win, you’re not the only one. Emmanuel Steward, Marco Antonio Barrera, Oscar De La Hoya and almost every human being on this earth believes that Pacquiao will win.

Cruise around the web and you’ll witness it for yourself. Every boxing site predicts a Manny Pacquiao win. Is it a sure winner? Not so fast—there are 10 good reasons why Marquez could be a threat to Pacquiao.

No. 9: The Semifinal of This Fight Will Feature Timothy Bradley

Timothy Bradley, undefeated after 27 fights, will face Joel Casamayor in a WBO light welterweight title fight.

Bradley usually fights at 140 pounds and went up to 146.5 pounds for his fight vs. Luis Carlos Abregu. Look at him closely on Saturday night, because he could be the next opponent of Manny Pacquiao.

No. 8: Three Undefeated Boxers, but None in the Main Event

This card will feature many undefeated boxers. RING No. 8-rated pound-for-pound Timothy Bradley (27-0) will be featured in the semifinal.

Junior welterweight Mike Alvarado (31-0) and junior lightweight Luis Cruz (19-0) will be featured in the two other televised fights.

Surprisingly, the main event will feature two fighters with a combined eight losses.

No. 7: Juan Manuel Marquez and His Team Have New Shirts

In the past week, we have seen Marquez and his supporters wearing different shirts. One of them says “We Were Robbed” while the other says “We Won Twice."

Manny Pacquiao said that these shirts were extra motivation for him. Will Marquez wear this shirt when he will enter on the ring Saturday night?

No. 6: Manny Pacquiao’s Team Predicts a Knockout

Freddie Roach, Pacquiao’s trainer, and Alex Ariza, the strength and conditioning coach, are predicting a win before the sixth round.

Marquez will probably go down in this fight, but will he keep getting back up as he always does?

No. 5: Manny Pacquiao Called Marquez a “Genius” for Tactics

Manny Pacquiao thinks that Marquez plays the nice-guy role as a tactic. Pac-Man openly claimed that Marquez tries to catch him off guard by playing it nice. What is the conspiracy theory from Pac-Man?

By playing it nice, Marquez tries to influence Pacquiao to go easy on him. The Filipino even admitted that Marquez is the smartest boxer who has faced him recently. Will they fall in love?

No. 4: Juan Manuel Marquez Didn’t Drink Pee for This Fight

Juan Manuel Marquez finally stopped drinking his own urine. A new doctor and strength coach convinced him that drinking his own pee wasn’t such a great idea.

No urine solution for his fight vs. Pac-Man. I am a bit surprised that it took a new doctor and strength coach to convince him of it. How long was his wife waiting to kiss him after each urine shooter? I’m shocked that she didn’t say anything for all these years!

No. 3: Tickets Are Expensive

If you want to watch the fight in Las Vegas, you better win some money at the tables. The least expensive tickets are $93. While it might seem inexpensive, those tickets are actually for you to sit at the Mandalay Bay Arena to watch the fight on the screen.

The fight is at the MGM Grand and no tickets are sold below $1,000.

No. 2: No One Has Ever Stopped Juan Manuel Marquez

Can Manny Pacquiao be the first one to achieve it? In 59 fights, no one has ever stopped Dinamita.

Marquez went for 432 rounds in 59 fights, while Pacquiao has almost 100 fewer rounds of boxing. Marquez knows how to recuperate after a knockdown and he has done it four times vs. Pac-Man.

No. 1: Manny Pacquiao and Juan Manuel Marquez Will Deliver a Great Show

After the Ortiz vs. Mayweather fiasco and the Hopkins vs. Dawson one, expect a great fight on Saturday night. For the reputation of boxing as a sport, this event needs to be successful and I’m sure that the boxing authorities will make sure that it is.

It is the most anticipated boxing event of the year. We had two great fights in 2004 and 2008 with these two pugilists. Marquez isn’t just coming to take his paycheck; he will give Pacquiao all the trouble he can.

It is worth investing the HBO pay-per-view fee. If you can’t, then follow me on Twitter and I’ll describe it live on Saturday night.

Note: If you want to follow the fight live on Saturday night, follow me on Twitter at TakeoSports.