Si Marquez lang wala nang iba!

HOLLYWOOD - Isang magandang la­ban na lang ang natitira para kay Manny Pacquiao, at ito ay hindi kay Floyd May­wea­ther.

Sinabi ni chief trainer Freddie Roach na ito ay si Juan Manuel Marquez na po­­sibleng makasagupa ni Pacquiao sa Nob­yembre.

Ayon kay Roach, maraming dahilan kung bakit si Marquez, magiging 38-anyos sa Agosto, ang mas magandang kalaban ni Pacquiao kumpara sa iba.

Maliban kay Marquez, ang iba pang nasa listahan ay sina Timothy Bradley at Zab Juddah.

“Marquez is on the table. Bradley is on the table. And Zab Juddah. But the only sensible fight out of the three is Marquez, in my opinion,” sabi ni Roach. “They have history.”

Matapos makalusot ng draw noong Mayo ng 2004, natalo naman si Marquez kay Pacquiao via split decision noong 20­08.

“He's supposed to have Manny's numbers, which might be true, but I think Manny has really progressed a long way since they fought a long time ago,” sabi pa ni Roach sa Mexican.

“I just want to like this fight just to shut him up and settle the score,” ani Roach.

Si Marquez ang reigning WBA at WBO champion sa lightweight division (135 lbs), ha­bang si Pacquiao naman ang reigning WBO welterweight champion (147 lbs).

Isang catchweight sa 143 hanggang 145 lbs ang posibleng pagkasunduan ng da­lawang kampo para matuloy ang laban.

“I think it will be a competitive fight. I think that fight would sell. Marquez I think is the best challenge for us out there,” dagdag pa ni Roach.

Hindi naman naniniwala si Roach kay Mayweather.

“He's just playing games. Now here he comes and fighting (Victor) Ortiz. If he fights Ortiz, that's a sign he wants to get used to fighting southpaws so that might be a step toward the right direction, hopefully,” pagtatapos ni Roach.

Samantala, nakatakdang umuwi si Pac­quiao sa Sabado kung saan isang hero’s welcome ang sasalubong sa kanya sa Sarangani.