Juan Manuel Marquez's Blog, Part III

After waiting a long time to get Manny Pacquiao back in the ring for a third fight, it finally happened last November in Las Vegas, the same place the first two were held and where I felt my victories in those fights had been taken away by the judges.

I knew I needed to do sometime different for this third fight because it was going to be at a weight class above where I usually fight (the weight limit was 144 lbs) and where he was doing so well against bigger opponents. I wanted to keep my speed and defensive abilities, but I needed to pick up some power.

I trained very differently for this fight from the previous two. I used a strength and conditioning trainer for the first time, and limited my time in the gym as far as sparring and the usual boxing work. I felt that I needed to bulk up and condition myself the right way, so not to lose my other strengths and advantages as a technical boxer.

We worked really hard in camp for this third fight. In the ring the fight was the easiest one of three. It was my best performance as professional. I dictated the rhythm of the fight and won all the exchanges between us throughout the fight. Manny had become a more predictable fighter.  He has improved as a boxer and he is quite formidable at the weight that he now fights, but he was not as fast or explosive as he was in our previous two fights.

I felt I won nine of the 12 rounds and easily won the fight.  He never came close to hurting me and once again my boxing skills were too much for him. But once again the three judges took away my victory. And there is nothing I can do about them.
 
It seems that Manny has only one opponent every time we fight -- me -- while I have four – Manny and the three judges.

Episode #3 of the all-access reality series “24/7 Pacquiao/Marquez 4” premieres Saturday, Dec. 1 at 9:30 p.m. ET/PT on HBO.  Episodes #1 & #2 can be seen on HBO ON DEMAND® and HBO GO® in addition to multiple replays on the network.  The four-part series premieres on three consecutive Saturday nights before the finale airs the night before the welterweight championship showdown in Las Vegas.

Pacquiao vs. Marquez 4 takes place Saturday, December 8 from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas and will be produced and distributed live by HBO Pay-Per-View beginning at 9:00 p.m. ET/ 6:00 p.m. PT.