Marquez beats Diaz again
Juan Manuel Marquez erased memories of his defeat by Floyd Mayweather Jr with a unanimous points defeat of Juan Diaz at the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino, Las Vegas to retain his WBO lightweight title.
There was no repeat of the fireworks which saw saw Diaz knocked out in the ninth when the two met last year in a bout named fight of the year.
But Marquez, back at a more comfortable weight after his Mayweather disappointment, just had enough quality to hold off Diaz.
The last time these two met, Diaz was well on top in the early stages, but this time it was far more even with the first two rounds seemingly shared.
Diaz appeared to be conserving energy, wary of a repeat of the knockout he suffered last year, but it also rendered him less effective and allowed Marquez to dictate for large periods.
Marquez stamped his authority on the fight in the fourth round as Diaz struggled to find an answer to his power. A big combination in round six had Diaz rattled and the Texan appeared to be doing little more than hanging in there.
He came storming back in the last three rounds against his older opponent, but it was too little too late.
"The first one was difficult, it was a war for both," Marquez said on Sky Sports 1. "This was more technical but I managed to come out on top. He's a great fighter. He knows some technique. But the technique was in our favour."
Marquez has been linked with a fight against Amir Khan, who watched on from ringside, but the Mexican instead targeted a third fight with Manny Pacquiao following Sunday's win.
"The trilogy is what we want," he said. "It's the best thing for boxing, for the fans."
Date published :
01 Aug 2010 - 09:30:55
