Mayweather returns to fight Juan Manuel Marquez

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- According to ESPN, Floyd Mayweather Jr., the welterweight champ and pound-for-pound king until retiring last June, will officially end his retirement on Saturday at an afternoon news to announce a fight with lightweight champion Juan Manuel Marquez, multiple sources told ESPN.com.

Golden Boy promotions called the news conference late Friday, but did not reveal the particulars.

Multiple sources said Mayweather, who hasn't boxed since knocking out Ricky Hatton in a December 2007 welterweight title defense, will fight Marquez on July 18 on HBO PPV at the MGM Grand, the same venue hosting Saturday night's fight between junior welterweight champion Hatton and Manny Pacquiao, the man who succeeded Mayweather as the pound-for-pound king. Read on...

The sides have been close to a deal for several days but the one hang up had been the exact weight. In the end, they settled on a maximum weight of 144 pounds, a source involved with the fight told ESPN.com.

Mayweather had wanted the fight to be at 145 pounds, but Marquez (50-4-1, 37 KOs), the smaller man coming up from the 135-pound division where he is champion, wanted the weight as low as possible.

The deal was finalized Friday afternoon following a flurry of conversations over a six-hour period, another source said.

Besides the weight issue, the fight was delayed when Mayweather, a former five-division champion, visited promoter Don King last week at his Florida home, where they discussed a possible deal. But King couldn't get him to sign.

The seeds to a Mayweather comeback had been planted months ago when he began working out and sparring at his Las Vegas gym. Mayweather has also been dogged by IRS problems.

Mayweather (39-0, 25 KOs), who turned 32 on Feb. 24, told his advisers, Al Haymon and Leonard Ellerbe, in December that they were free to listen to fight offers.

Also, Mayweather's father, Floyd Mayweather Sr., who trains Hatton, told media members during the promotion of Hatton-Pacquiao that his son's ring return was imminent.

The winner of Mayweather-Marquez clearly looms as the most attractive opponent for the winner of Hatton-Pacquiao. Marquez and Pacquiao have already fought two very close, exciting fights, a draw in the first fight and a split decision win for Pacquiao in the second bout.

Comments (6) >>

schlup said:

If you compare Mayweather and Pacquiao common opponents (De La Hoya and Hatton) Pacquiao dispatched these two quite handily, while Mayweather did win, the De La Hoya fight was very close, and it took Pretty Boy far longer to put away a determined Hatton. Now compare how close Marquez and Pacquiao's two fights were. I'd say they were both about as even as you can get. the nod on both of those fights could have gone either way. I know that styles make fights, but Mayweather fighting a fighter the caliber of Marquez in this comeback spells disaster in my book. We shall see.

03 May, 2009

layzie guy said:

well dela hoya wasnt weight drained 2 years ago and floyd beat hatton so bad that he just wasnt the same after that fight. so you could say that floyd softened those guys for pacquiao to beat. and while i dont think marquez will beat floyd i am rooting for him. he's been chasing manny around for a 3rd fight and i felt like he did enough to beat manny twice. anyways this is great for boxing. marquez, floyd, cotto, mosley, and manny will meet up within the next 1-2 years. boxing is back

03 May, 2009

schlup said:

Good point, but do fighters in this caliber really get softened up? Sometimes they get old overnight. BUT, was De La Hoya done, or was the Pac Man just that good. I certainly wouldn't say that Mayweather softened up Oscar.
I also wouldn't say when Floyd beat Hatton that he was never the same again. Maybe Pacquiao did though.
If Manny goes out tomorrow and gets KO'd, it takes nothing away from what he's done for the sport, so far.
Pacquiao is a true blue collar fighter. Everything a true fan loves about the sport. I tip my hat.

03 May, 2009

dipsta said:

pacquiao beat hatton sooner only because of his style! mayweather is more of a technician and people well knew the fight vs. hatton would end the way it did in about the distance it did! it was only a matter of time! as a matter of fact, i believe its safe to say that if and when Marquez beats Mayweather, it may even be in the same fachion! he obviously isnt going to catch Floyd coming in, but it may only be a matter of time! like Mayweather, Marquez knows exactly when to capitalize on opportunities effectively!! in this case it will have to be the first one! i cant wait!! layzie is right, boxing isnt only back but here to stay!!

04 May, 2009

JoeLuis said:

I agree with some of you guy's viewpoints. Add this to the mix.. i believe that Delahoya's been at best a B class fighter for a while now, hatton's been a b class if that much. We all saw the many mistakes hatton made and tought well probably mayweather sr. fixed all of that but aparently he didnt? i believe he made it better but still at the B class level fighter. We know that floyd is the shisss but is he too old? are his hands really healed to beat a class A fighter?. All we know right now is that Manny is a Class A fighter not too old, experienced, and ready to get down with the best! I think it will take JMM for us to find out what is floyd really made of.. JMM aint no pushover even at his size.. and he's been able to adapt to any fighter even to pacman's speed. We'll have to see.. Oh yea, Boxing No estaba muerto! Handaba de parranda Cabrones!!

04 May, 2009

lukeblaze said:

Good Conversation. If I can add. No diserespect to Manny. But DeLahoya was a shell of himself when he fough Manny. I mean the dude weighed in less than Manny. When Floyd fough himit was at 154lbs. Oscar was a good 20lbs more than Floyd on fight night. Floyd KO'ed Hatton, he struggled against Lazcano punches. People felt Hatton was already shopworn, and Pacquiao proved it. The first punch he truly landed Hatton could not take. So its not really smart to compare how a fighter beats another fighter.

05 May, 2009

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