Manny Pacquiao vs. Juan Manuel Marquez: Breaking Down the Fight

The day has finally come. The rubber match between Manny Pacquiao and Juan Manuel Marquez is upon us and we will see if Pacquiao can lay all the controversy from their first two fights to rest with a convincing victory tonight.

We will see if Pacquiao lives up to his talk of knocking out Marquez, or if Marquez finally gets a win in a trilogy of fights where he could have won at least one of the previous two that didn't go in his favor.

Before the action starts tonight live form the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, NV, I thought it would be as good as time as any to breakdown the welterweight title bout.

Ending the Controversy

No matter if Manny Pacquiao or Juan Manuel Marquez wins the fight, whoever takes home the "W" in the ring tonight must win convincingly in order to the end the controversy that has followed the past two bouts between the two fighters.

The more convincing the better, with a knockout victory for either Pacquiao or Marquez would be ideal to lay the controversial nature of the past two fights to rest and give us the real winner in the three-fight series.

Marquez Keys to Victory

Juan Manuel Marquez must use his counter punching style ti the fullest tonight against Manny Pacquiao to give himself the best shot at winning the fight.

If Marquez can make Pacquiao Pay for missed punches time-and-time again, then Pac Man will be less aggressive, giving Marquez the pace in the fight he wants.

Marquez landing his signature left hook with accuracy and power gives him the best chance at a possible knockout of Pacquiao, something that could be tough seeing how Pacquiao's chin has been pretty solid over his past few fights.

Marquez must get inside to get any real significant work in, but he cant stay inside too long each time he mounts an attack. He must get in launch a 4-7 punch attack, get out and repeat.

Also, establishing a jab to help control Pacquiao and preventing him from being too aggressive will be a key to Marquez not taking too much damage from Pac Man.

Keys to a Pacquiao Victory

Manny Pacquiao must dictate the action in the ring and do so by being the more aggressive fighter in the ring tonight against Juan Manuel Marquez.

Look for Pacquiao to be unusually active in the early rounds, as he fights better when he is seemingly ahead in the score cards.

Pacquiao must go to the body in those early rounds, setting up a fatigued and less attentive Marquez for a possible late round knockout.

Not letting Marquez get too comfortable getting inside will also benefit Pacquiao from Marquez's uncanny ability to counter punch.

Using effective footwork will help keep Marquez from plating his feet to land a power blow that could hurt Pacquiao and will stave off a possible knockout loss himself.

What a Loss Means to Each Fighter

A loss would be pretty detrimental to both fighters careers in the ring

Juan Manuel Marquez

If Juan Manuel Marquez losses, then retirement could be a real possibility for the 38-year-old fighter.

Marquez would lose the one fight that kept everyone interested in just what he was doing before landing that third bout with Pacquiao.

Sure Marquez could keep fighting, but there would be a tremendous amount of fanfare that would be lost if Marquez isn't victorious, making Marquez's drawing power just above the average fighter in the world of boxing.

Manny Pacquiao

A loss would put a serious roadblock up for the freight train that is Manny Pacquiao's career in-and-out of the ring.

A loss would hurt the numerous endorsements Pacquiao has been signing over the past several years, and it would be hard to think that he would land any new deals with a loss tonight.

A loss would also make the possibility of Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather meeting in the ring that much more unlikely, as Mayweather would never let Pacquiao forget he lost and that his own record is an unblemished 42-0.

Pacquiao's political career could be damaged as well, as a loss could lose him some support in the Philippines and could hurt his chances of furthering his young political career.

Prediciton

I think the third fight between Manny Pacquiao and Juan Manuel Marquez will be different than the first two, with Pacquiao looking convincingly better throughout the fight.

Marquez will find it tough to get any real offense going in the fight and will not be as effective with the counter punching that has given Pacquiao troubles in the past.

I think Pacquiao will wear Marquez down early on in the fight fight and go in for the kill in the latter rounds.

Prediction: Manny Pacquiao KO over Juan Manuel Marquez in Round 8.