Juan Manuel Marquez vs Erik Morales Is Dead

[fan johnny]

I'd rather see Marquez - Khan than Marquez - Morales or Marquez - Berto, but I think Amir is just too big and too fast for him at this point.

Not so dead! Marquez vs Khan will never happen. They'd could never agree on a purse split.

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By Jhonny Gonzalez


WBA/WBO lightweight champion Juan Manuel Marquez has cleared the air about a possible fight with Erik Morales on April 9 in Las Vegas. This past Thursday, Marquez met with his promoters, Golden Boy Promotions, but the money presented to face Morales was not what he expected. They also offered championships fights against WBC welterweight champion Andre Berto and WBA junior welterweight champ Amir Khan. Golden Boy will present Marquez with a new offer to face Morales on Tuesday.


"The offer they made to fight with Morales was not what I expected, but I'm not ruling out the fight. They said they were not sure how the fight would sell. I expect a new offer on Tuesday. I was offered a fight with Morales (51-6, 35 KO's), with [Amir] Khan (24-1, 17 KO) at 140 pounds and Berto (27-0, 21 KOs) at welterweight for the title of the World Boxing Council. I will talk with [manager/trainer] Nacho [Beristain] to see what is best," Marquez told Sal Rodriguez.


If Golden Boy offers Marquez the correct amount of money, he will accept the fight with Morales on Tuesday.


"I think I deserve a good purse, and we will continue to negotiate, and on Tuesday I hope to report my next fight," Marquez said.

Marquez is looking for immediate gratification with regards to the monetary reward, that is understandable. But he should look further ahead. A win against Khan or Berto will put him in the forefront of the line against Pacquiao, and there will be no excuse for Manny to pass him over after those wins. It will also increase JMM's stock for his next fight. If he still goes ahead with the Morales fight, then he hasn't shown that he is deserving to face Manny in the next bout.

The Problem Marquez has is that Nacho is his adviser. Marquez is a champion boxer and a future hall of famer, but doesn't have the magic to make him a big ticket seller. He feels he deserves the bigger slice and that is the way it should work, but the reality is it don't always work that way.