Pacquiao doesn't want to fight Marquez again, Roach wants it at 145

With Bob Arum mentioning that a third Manny Pacquiao-Juan Manuel Marquez fight could be made if a Pacquiao-Floyd Mayweather Jr. fight isn't doable, word is already circulating that Pacquiao himself has little interest, and that trainer Freddie Roach would want the fight at a weight that should make it as unappealing for most as it already is for me.

Roach told The Philippine Star that he'd want the fight at 145 pounds, which sounds like nothing more than an obvious Pacquiao walk-over to me. In fact, Pacquiao-Marquez III at 145 pounds is such an obvious destruction job by Pacquiao (in my opinion, of course) that I'd have to find some way to talk myself into even ordering that fight.

145, in fact, is what he wants for anyone, which is just kind of grating at this point. Those two pounds are not the difference, and they will not get Floyd Mayweather to do 145. Mayweather couldn't make 144 (or never really tried to) against Marquez, coming in at 146 and paying $600,000 for being overweight. He's a welterweight now. I know catchweights have been around forever, but it kind of stinks that the Pacquiao camp is so terribly confident, even arrogant, but they won't go to 147 to take on anyone besides what Roach knew was a shot Oscar de la Hoya.

If they feel Manny is so strong at 145, then have him weigh in at 144 or 145. He weighed in at 142 for Oscar and was fine. I realize they'd want to drain the opponent, but isn't that just as "cheap" in this silly warrior gladiator man's man John Wayne Jim Braddock code we seem to expect all fighters to live by?

But apart from that, Pacquiao said he doesn't want the Marquez fight anymore:

"Would people come and watch a Marquez fight? I don’t think so," said Pacquiao.

Truthfully, a third fight between the two feels an awful lot like Pacquiao-Morales III. Pacquiao lost to Morales the first time around, and beat up on him the second time. We all knew Morales was on the downside by the third fight, but it was made anyway, and Pacquiao mashed him inside of three rounds to the surprise of nobody.

Like Morales, I have no doubt that Marquez would go out on his shield, but I also have no doubt he'd go out quickly and viciously. He weighed in at 144 to fight the far less aggressive Floyd Mayweather Jr., and he didn't win a minute of the fight. He was heavy, he was incredibly slow, and he really got nothing done offensively. Pacquiao is far more inclined to go in for the finish than Mayweather is, and I think that spells an early doom for Marquez were they to fight a third time.

This is not a knock on Marquez. He's still a tremendous fighter, or at least will be if he goes back down to 135 pounds. I have nothing in the world but great admiration for his skills, his toughness, his tenacity and his pride. But fighting Pacquiao at 145 pounds would be absolutely nothing more than a grab at money. Marquez himself has to know that weight is terrible for him, and obviously it works just fine for Manny Pacquiao. It wouldn't be any more competitive a fight on paper than Mayweather-Marquez was.