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In a rematch of their closely contested bout in May, Marco Antonio Barrera and Rocky Juarez renew hostilities for the WBC Super Featherweight Championship this Saturday at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada on a Golden Boy Promotion with HBO televising the card as a live action PPV broadcast.
In a professional career spanning an amazing 17 years, the 32 year old Barrera will attempt to this put the record straight against the plucky Juarez. In their last fight in May, Barrera, 62-4 (42), was a hot favourite to dispose of his unproven opponent but found himself in a give and take bout which saw him suffer nose damage.
The impression I got watching the first bout on TV was that Barrera, although showing the first signs of ageing, (who wouldn’t after being a pro since the age of 15?) fought smartly, catching the judge’s eyes with strong finishes to each round.
Juarez, 25-2 (18), on the other hand, shocked the world with his display in May. Although respected in the trade, he had fought no one up to that point with the pedigree and caliber of a Barrera.
Barrera knows his back is against the wall in this one. People will look at the previous bout and think that this could be the end for Barrera. After fighting Juarez to a standstill last time and escaping with his title in the narrowest of decisions, (don’t forget, the fight was deemed a draw until it was found that the scorecards had been miscounted) people will be asking if Marco has the appetite for such a war yet again.
Barrera has admitted that he is coming to the tail end of his career and that statement makes me think that he will be well up for this one. Plus when he has something to prove, he usually succeeds, such as when he outclassed Naseem Hamed in 2001 and defeated Erik Morales twice.
Juarez, on the other hand, must be coming into the fight with more confidence and the feeling that he will have more answers this time for Barrera’s smartness.
Again, this is a fight I see going the distance and I suspect that it is Barrera who can pull the big performance out when needed.
As well as Juarez performed in the first bout, I just think Barrera is the more rounded fighter and the great Mexican can prevail in another tough, close fight.
