Pacquiao vs. Marquez: Why a 4th Bout Would Be a Huge Mistake

Manny Pacquiao has everything to lose by fighting Juan Manuel Marquez again. He could lose his welterweight title, and perhaps more importantly with regards to his legacy, he could diminish the magnitude of a potential bout with Floyd Mayweather, Jr.

Now is the time for them to fight.

But according to Golden Boy (who represents Mayweather) CEO Richard Schaefer, Mayweather is ready for the mega fight, but Top Rank and Pacquiao's camp aren't interested just yet. From USA TODAY:

"After the Marquez fight, I felt, because I know Bob [Arum] can have these (expletive) attacks, I felt it would make sense to have an independent mediator, someone who is respected by both parties," Schaefer said by phone Wednesday.

"We asked Judge [Daniel] Weinstein, the retired judge who has mediated many issues between us."

"I was informed by Judge Weinstein that Top Rank is currently pursuing a rematch with Marquez and is not interested in immediate talks to set the Mayweather-Pacquiao fight.

"[Arum] made comments to other media sites that a Mayweather-Pacquiao fight would still be around in November. My response to that is, 'So is the Marquez fight.' "

This would be the fight of the century.

It would be Ali-Frazier. It would be the Rumble in the Jungle. People who aren't even boxing fans would tune in to see it.

And while another Pacquiao-Marquez fight would be competitive and draw viewers, it wouldn't be the fight that boxing fans really, really want to see right now.

Another Pacquiao-Marquez fight would be like getting a few CD's for Christmas when you really wanted an iPod.

As HBO's Larry Merchant told Chris Robinson of Boxing Scene, he believes Mayweather would be a slightly bigger favorite to defeat Pacquiao than he was before Pacquiao's recent fight against Marquez.

So why risk downgrading the hype around a potential Mayweather bout by another ho-hum showing against Marquez? Or worse, sucking all of the luster out of the mega-fight with Mayweather with a loss to Marquez?

It's not worth the risk. It's time for the Fight of The Century.