A day after knocking out Jorge Solis at the Alamodome in San Antonio, the Filipino slugger said he’s now ready to face Marquez, the reigning World Boxing Council super-featherweight champion, in September.
"Oo, handa akong labanan si Marquez (Yes, I’m ready to face Marquez)," Pacquiao said over the phone Sunday as he was in his Los Angeles apartment preparing for a 12-hour flight to Manila with his wife Jinkee and more than a dozen friends.
Before flying to Manila, Pacquiao was expected to drop by at the Wild Card Gym in Hollywood where he trained for three weeks heading to the fight. It’s been his practice to thanks those who helped him train before leaving LA.
Pacquiao flew from San Antonio to LA the morning after the fight. Hours after his eight-round victory over the previously undefeated Solis, he held a small party inside his Radisson Hotel suite where a Mass was officiated by Fr. Marlon Beof, OAR.
Pacquiao’s fans of different races packed the main lobby of the Radisson Hotel after the fight and mobbed Pacquiao as he emerged from his stretch limousine. Despite his condition, he spent more than 30 minutes with his fans for some picture taking and autograph signing.
Pacquiao barely had any sleep when he and his entourage left the hotel for the airport at around 5 a.m.
Top Rank’s Ricardo Jimenez bid Filipino sportswriters goodbye by saying: "We’ll see you Sept. 15. Marquez."
Pacquiao said he will not back off from a fight with Marquez, whom he knocked down thrice in the first round of their 2004 showdown in Las Vegas. The fight ended in a controversial draw that had fans longing for a rematch.
Even WBC president Jose Sulaiman said Marquez, who took the title away from Marco Antonio Barrera last month in Las Vegas, should face Pacquiao next.
The fight might just take place in September.
"September daw? Payag ako diyan (Is it September. That’s fine with me)," Pacquiao told The STAR in a long-distance conversation.
In fact, he’s ready to face anyone, whether it’s Barrera for another rematch or the rising Humberto Soto who’s scheduled to face the other Pacquiao, Bobby, at the Madison Square Garden in New York on June 9.
Soto watched the Pacquiao-Solis fight at the Alamodome and hurled a challenge to the left-handed slugger. "After Bobby, I want Manny," he said.
"Kahit sino sa kanila (Anyone among them). Kahit sino sa 130 pounds (Anybody at 130 pounds)," said Pacquio.
But before Pacquiao gets to face Marquez, Top Rank and Golden Boy should first settle their differences. The two promotional outfits are locked in a legal battle for the rights over the Filipino champion.
Marquez is under Golden Boy like Barrera although there are reports that the latter is no longer with the outfit owned by Oscar dela Hoya. Soto is with Top Rank, along with Pacquiao.
Top Rank owner Bob Arum want Pacquiao to face Barrera later this year and at the same time pit Soto against Marquez.
It seems that more people want to see a Pacquiao-Marquez showdown this year  in Vegas.