WBA featherweight titlist Chris John is on board with the idea of a rematch with Rocky Juarez so long as it's not on Juarez's home turf again. Considering John came to Houston to defend, he's not exactly being a stickler.

The fight would also not be in Indonesia, as I think that part of John's career may largely be over. He previously had said he'd like to fight in Indonesia again, but is open to a neutral site such as Los Angeles.

John (42-0-2, 22 KO) won a competitve fight in most peoples' eyes, but Juarez (28-4-1, 20 KO) did quite well in the latter rounds. A rematch could go one of two ways. The more likely is John boxes to his strengths and decisions Juarez without much trouble. The more heroic is Rocky attacking hard earlier and throwing the power shots that John on unsteady legs inthe latter portion of last Saturday night's fight, which was a 114-114 draw on all three official cards. Bad Left Hook scored it 115-113 for John.

It's a fight that deserves a rematch for the sake of both fighters. There's really not a better opponent for either and there's unfinished business between them. I don't doubt Juarez has the power at 126 pounds to knock John out and score what would be a pretty big upset. It was a good fight and I think John largely impressed in his U.S. debut, and it was one of Rocky's best performances, too.

Juarez also recently said he'd take a rematch with Juan Manuel Marquez if he had to go up to 135 to do it. There's one that is beyond unnecessary. Marquez put a stomping on Juarez in late 2007. For those that didn't see it, it was a genuine shellacking. Juarez blames an early headbutt on his performance, but he's the only one.

35-year old lightweight champion Juan Manuel Marquez successfully defended his lineal title and picked up three (WBA, WBO, IBO) alphabet trinkets by stopping 25-year old Juan Diaz in the ninth round of a thrilling, all-action contest in Diaz's hometown of Houston.

The younger Diaz (34-2, 17 KO) started hot and was winning most of the early rounds on sheer volume and pressure, but was getting tagged here and there by the cagey, highly skilled Marquez, too. It was a cut that undid Diaz after Marquez started seizing the momentum.

Cut early in the eighth round, Diaz's body language and expression changed almost immediately. It was a bad cut right outside his right eye, with the blood dripping into his line of vision. But you cannot discount that in two fights where he's been cut, he has quickly lost full control of the fight and been unable to keep himself going.

The first time around, Nate Campbell wore him down for the rest of the bout and handed Diaz his first career loss in March 2008. Almost a year later, loss number two comes at the hands of Marquez after another cut. Marquez dropped Diaz midway through the ninth, then put him away mere moments later.

Nate Campbell is a really good fighter. Juan Manuel Marquez is a great fighter on his way to the Hall of Fame. Marquez (50-4-1, 37 KO) smelled the blood and took Diaz apart.

I'm not saying Diaz is gutless, and I thought HBO's Max Kellerman posing the question of, "Did you not learn anything from the Campbell fight?" was at best poorly worded and at worst hack broadcast journalism. I am saying he has twice seemed to hit the panic button when cut now. It was a question coming into this fight; for me, Diaz's heart was the biggest question.

He again showed he is a hell of a good fighter when the going isn't too tough. But how much resilience does the young man really have? Right now, he's starting to build a legacy of not being able to win tough fights. I'm not disrespecting Juan Diaz, simply calling it like I see it. He's been firmly tested twice, had his gut checked, and lost hard both times.

Marquez called out Floyd Mayweather Jr. after the fight, saying that since Manny Pacquiao doesn't want to fight him he wants to fight Floyd. It's not realistic. Bob Arum recently said that Floyd wanted $20 million to fight Shane Mosley, and if he can't get it there, he certainly can't get it for Marquez.

On the televised undercard, WBA featherweight titlist Chris John (42-0-2, 22 KO) retained his title on a 114-114 draw across the cards against Houston's Rocky Juarez (28-4-1, 20 KO). The fight was far better than most of us expected, with both of them fight at a crisp pace. I had John winning 115-113, and I truly feel he won the bout. He vastly outlanded Juarez, who snuck in some rounds on good power punching, particularly late in the fight when the drama got high and it felt like the Houston crowd might will Juarez into a stunning knockout of John.

Rocky also fought arguably his best fight ever, maybe even better than the first go-'round with Barrera. But it was clear at most points that John is simply a better boxer than he is. If they rematched, I think John would probably win wide. This was a good, competitive fight. But so, too, was Barrera-Juarez. The rematch saw Barrera pick Rocky apart for 12 rounds.

The only thing wrong with John-Juarez was Texas referee Laurence Cole, who's assured of being involved in at least one major fight on any multi-fight, big card run in Texas. He's awful, and he was awful again tonight. There are referees that have bad nights, but I don't remember a single time Cole ever had a good one. How Texas continues to put up with this guy and his intrusive, absurd tactics is beyond me. Cole is the worst referee in America.

All in all, the HBO show tonight was just fantastic. Marquez-Diaz is an early Fight of the Year candidate, and John-Juarez set the stage beautifully. All four fighters came to impress tonight, and they all did.

The Houston fans turned out for their fighters, too. Jim Lampley reported early in the telecast that the show had turned in the biggest live gate ever for boxing in the state of Texas.

ound-by-round coverage and scoring of both fights on HBO starts tonight at 10pm. Join us!

Ronnie Nathanielsz and the BoxingScene.com editors reported that featherweight titlist Chris John has been sick of late and there are concerns about his ability to make the 126-pound limit for his Saturday night fight against Rocky Juarez.

John (42-0-1, 22 KO) has been training in Houston since February 3. Nathanielsz stated that the weight issue seemed to be a big concern, but later contacts by BoxingScene.com lessened that somewhat. John's camp says he was sick, but has been feeling a lot better and they're not too worried about anything.

If John were to pull out of this fight, even with legitimate reasons, he'd take a brow-beating from the same folks that have long taken shots at him for not fighting in the States. I hope Chris is 100% for Saturday night's fight and the Friday weigh-in because it's been a long time coming.

Week three begins! We've got two major cards, one on Friday and one on Saturday. You don't have to pick every fight...but it's recommended. Let's see if I can avoid a genuine boner of a pick this time around.

Friday, February 27 -- Showtime

Tomasz Adamek v. Johnathon Banks (Cruiserweights - Adamek's Ring Magazine world championship and IBF/IBO titles on the line)

Manny Steward has said nice things about Banks, and I love the fact that he's trained and sparred with Wladimir Klitschko, who by all accounts is one of the hardest-working fighters in the sport. For all the talk of the flabby heavyweights of recent years, neither Klitschko brother has ever fit that mold. They are rocks.

Though Banks is the American and Adamek was born in Poland, Newark is Adamek's town. They overwhelmingly supported him when he beat Steve Cunningham (a Philly fighter) in December. Adamek has lived in Jersey for years and is very, very popular there. He'll have home field advantage in a big way.

This is also Banks' first huge test. The best fighter he's beaten is probably Eliseo Castillo, a small Cuban heavyweight that once lost to Wladimir himself and thought coming down to cruiser might do the trick in 2006. Banks knocked him out in the fourth round, after picking himself up off the canvas twice in the first.

The good news for Banks is he's shown resilience, has great training and preparation, and has sound folks that believe in his chances in this fight. The bad news is that Adamek is a well-rounded fighter that has the ability to box circles around him if he chooses to (Banks is no Cunningham in hand speed or movement), and will be more than happy to bang with him if it comes to that, too.

I just don't see this one ending well for Banks at all. Adamek KO-6

Giovanni Lorenzo v. Dionisio Miranda (Middleweights - IBF Eliminator)

The winner of this one gets the chance to fight Arthur Abraham if (snickersnicker) Abraham can, uh, "get by" the dangerous challenge of Lajuan Simon. Lucky winner of this fight...

Lorenzo was last seen in June getting outfoxed by veteran Raul Marquez in what was also an IBF eliminator, which Lorenzo lost handily even though the scores were 114-113 Marquez across the board, and Marquez technically only won because Lorenzo was docked a point in the 10th for a headbutt. Thank goodness that referee Jorge Alonso made that call or poor Marquez -- who retired after a whomping against Abraham -- would've been robbed of a win.

Lorenzo better be improved as far as movement goes, because Marquez hit him plenty and Marquez doesn't hit like Dionisio Miranda does. Miranda has 17 knockouts among his 19 wins, and out-fought Sebastien Demers to earn a road win split decision in Montreal last August.

Neither of these guys are top-flight dudes, really, and it'll probably be a slugfest. Miranda has been knocked out twice, and that alone is making me lean toward Lorenzo even though I don't think Lorenzo is all that great. Both have heavy hands -- we know Miranda can be torched on the chin. Lorenzo TKO-7

Saturday, February 28 - HBO

Juan Manuel Marquez v. Juan Diaz (Lightweights - Marquez's Ring Magazine world championship, Diaz's IBO title, and the vacant WBA and WBO titles on the line)

This one is for all the marbles at 135 pounds as far as anyone that matters is concerned. When two sanctioning bodies agree to put up vacant titles in a single fight, you've got something that can't be argued with. Marquez is the lineal champion, and Diaz was reigning as the people's champ before losing to Nate Campbell a year ago. With Campbell gone to 140, these are the two top dogs at lightweight. You don't get championship fights any more legit than Marquez-Diaz.

Add to that that this one promises to be a hell of a scrap and you've got something that is must-see for a fight fan. Marquez is a counter-puncher, but he's one of the most fiery, ready-to-throw counter-punchers you're ever going to see. Diaz is a workrate machine. Put those two together. The keg's gonna blow, y'all.

Marquez has been hurt by Manny Pacquiao in two of the best fights of the decade, but Diaz is not a puncher like Manny is. Marquez may be getting older, but he picked himself up off the mat last year against Pacquiao and fought him tooth-and-nail for 12 grueling rounds. When you look at what Pacquiao did to David Diaz (KO-9) and Oscar de la Hoya (Oscar quit after eight) later in the year, it's even MORE impressive now.

Diaz has good wins. He does not have a great win. Popo Freitas was past it and didn't have the heart anymore by the time they fought, and while Julio Diaz is a heck of a good fighter, he's not someone that's going to be remembered for all times. Marquez is. If Diaz beats Marquez, he instantly leaps into the top 10 pound-for-pound. That's how big of a win it is for him.

And that's all well and good, but I have some questions, and they center on Diaz's heart. Look, the cut man sucked against Campbell, but Diaz crumbled in that fight. Campbell went hard at him from the opening bell, got in his face, talked trash, showed him he wasn't afraid of a go-go-go fight, and when the cut opened up and Diaz's terrible corner didn't take care of it, Diaz lost control of the fight entirely. Nate took him apart in the latter half of that bout. Diaz was totally in it before then.

It's not a question of talent. But what's Juan gonna do when it's not easy? Yeah, he beat Freitas, and Freitas made it kind of easy after the first few rounds. Julio Diaz for whatever reason gave him no resistance. And Michael Katsidis came out and tried to box, which is like Evander Holyfield not bulling with his head.

I think Marquez forces Diaz to work harder than Juan might be prepared for. I'm not big on the "spoiled" B.S., or the "kid" B.S. either. Juan's a grown man and a tough guy. But he's yet to prove a lot of things. I don't think he can beat Marquez. I don't think he has the resolve. Marquez UD-12

Chris John v. Rocky Juarez (Featherweights - John's WBA title on the line)

And making his first trip ever to the U.S. as a fighter, Chris John everybody!

John's taken his shot from hardcore American fans in the past, including me, because he's refused to travel to the States. There are good fighters in his class over here. Now he shuts us all up by taking not just a fight in America against a legit challenger, but he's facing Juarez in Juarez's backyard to boot. Good on John and Golden Boy for making it happen. As one of those that maybe bashed John a couple times for the home field fights, I'm appreciative, because one of the reasons I did it was that I want to see him fight. He's a world-class fighter.

And that leads right into my pick. Juarez is a great guy who gives it his all. He's got trigger problems, and against a guy who has faster hands, that might not be so hot for him. As much as I like Rocky and do openly hope he wins so he can say he was a world titlist at one point, I have the feeling he peaked with the first Barrera fight. He's been jumping back and forth between 126 and 130, and the last time he fought a top opponent (Marquez at 130 in '07) he was torn to pieces.

There is the chance that John kind of wilts finally fighting out of his comfort zone. It's a real possibility. I think Rocky might hang for a bit, but by the middle rounds the cream will rise to the top, and Juarez will be hitting reset yet again. John UD-12

Though the week has started off fairly slow with news and all we learned in the last big card is that Marco Antonio Rubio and Michael Jennings predictably aren't on par with Kelly Pavlik and Miguel Cotto, that doesn't mean there's nothing to talk about or nothing to be excited for.

This weekend two of the legitimate, lineal championships in boxing will be contested, and Bad Left Hook will have live, round-by-round coverage of both fights.

On Friday night, cruiserweight champion Tomasz Adamek (36-1, 24 KO) defendds against unbeaten American challenger Johnathon Banks (20-0, 14 KO) in Adamek's adopted home arena, the Prudential Center in Newark. It was in that very arena that Adamek outlasted Steve Cunningham in a Fight of the Year candidate in December. The win over Cunningham was for the cruiserweight championship that David Haye vacated when he moved up to heavyweight.

Adamek is on a five fight winning streak since dropping a light heavyweight title to Chad Dawson in 2007 and moving up to cruiserweight. He has thus far proven he can both box and bang at the weight.

Banks, 26, is a Detroit fighter managed by the legendary Emanuel Steward and trained by Steward's nephew, Javan Hill. In a recent Showtime press release, the network interviewed Steward, who noted that Banks trains extensively with Manny's prized heavyweight Wladimir Klitschko, and has sparred many rounds with him and never been hurt. Steward describes Banks as a boxer-puncher who wouldn't jump out at you in most cases. That also describes Adamek.

On the Adamek-Banks undercard, middleweight sluggers Giovanni Lorenzo and Dionisio Miranda will meet in an IBF eliminator.

Saturday night on HBO, lightweight champion Juan Manuel Marquez (49-4-1, 36 KO) makes his first defense of the 135-pound crown when he takes on former three-body titlist Juan Diaz (34-1, 17 KO) in Diaz's hometown of Houston. Marquez won the championship against Joel Casamayor last September, becoming the first man to ever stop the cagey Cuban veteran.

Diaz is coming off of a win over Michael Katsidis, which followed his first career loss to Nate Campbell last March. Along with the Ring championship, Diaz's semi-recognized IBO title and the vacant titles of the WBO and WBA will be up for grabs. Marquez, who is on his way to the Hall of Fame most likely, is looking for career win No. 50 as he also intends to solidify his consensus spot as the world's second-best pound-for-pound fighter.

Diaz, still young at 25, has 10 years of youth on Marquez and will be looking to notch a huge breakthrough victory. He's had several very good wins, but beating Marquez would be a massive feather in his cap.

On that undercard, featherweight titlist Chris John of Indonesia -- who once beat Marquez -- makes his first trip to the States to defend against Houston's Rocky Juarez.

Both cards are important, both cards should be good. We'll include all four fights of the two cards in our ongoing picks competition, and on that note, I'll also be fully updating the standings with a BLH picks recap of the Pavlik and Cotto PPV tomorrow.

We will also have much more on Marquez-Diaz in the coming days. The two best 135-pound fighters in the world are going head-to-head this Saturday night. It's as legit as it gets.

From Dan Rafael's Notebook.

Despite the best efforts of Frank Warren and Don King, the vacant WBO lightweight title will not be decided on March 14 between Amir Khan and Marco Antonio Barrera. Instead, it will be decided much more fittingly on February 28 between lineal champion Juan Manuel Marquez and top challenger Juan Diaz.

Marquez-Diaz is basically best case scenario. With Campbell out of the division and Pacquiao never coming back to 135, we're talking the two best fighters that the class has to offer. The WBO made a just decision with this one. Khan-Barrera, which pits two top ten ranked WBO contenders (laughably so), would have been technically acceptable, but I think even the body knows that it would've gotten some lame press for that one.

So for the moment, kudos to the WBO.

UPDATE:

The vacant WBA "super championship" will be on the line, too, according to a Golden Boy press release. The WBA's super and regular titles are among the stupidest things in boxing. Paulus Moses holds the WBA "regular" title.

Veteran referee Joe Cortez won't be working the February 28 lightweight championship showdown between Juan Manuel Marquez and Juan Diaz, as Marquez has rejected Cortez's services for the bout.

Cortez has been under a lot of fire the last couple years, starting with his officiating in the Mayweather-Hatton bout, then followed by some complaints about his performance in the Hopkins-Calzaghe fight, and then it all sort of spilled into one of the worst calls in years when he disqualified Humberto Soto against Francisco Lorenzo the first time around. Unless I'm forgetting something (and I may be), I don't think Joe has reffed a major title fight since the Soto-Lorenzo fiasco.

Marquez called Cortez "the enemy" of Mexican boxers, which I think is pretty dumb, and sort of hides the fact that Marquez doesn't want Cortez to referee his fight because he thinks he's bad at his job, which is going to be a factor in Cortez's career. When a high-profile fighter like Marquez won't let a name guy referee his fight, it sort of sends a message out to other fighters, promoters, athletic commissions, etc.

Unbeaten Indonesian featherweight titlist Chris John will make his U.S. debut on February 28, when he defends his WBA title against Rocky Juarez in Juarez's hometown of Houston. The John-Juarez bout will be on the televised undercard of the lightweight championship fight between Juan Manuel Marquez and another Houston fighter, Juan Diaz, reports Dan Rafael:

The deal for John-Juarez was completed Wednesday after talks for Juarez's proposed bout with titleholder Steve Luevano ended.

A Thursday press conference is scheduled in Houston to formally announce the fight as well as the previously announced Marquez-Diaz bout.

"We have talked for a while about the right fight for John to come to the U.S. and now that time is here," Schaefer said. "It's a big fight for Chris John and the right spot for him. Everyone has accused him of just fighting in Indonesia but now he comes into the lion's den to defend his title in Rocky's hometown. It's a big showcase for both of them. For Rocky, it's an opportunity to finally win a world title and do it in his hometown, and for Chris John it's an opportunity to silence the people who say he only fights in Asia. He's not just coming to the U.S. for a fight, he's coming here to fight in his opponent's backyard."

At the end of the article, Juarez's manager Shelly Finkel says, "If Rocky is going to get a title, this is his best shot. If he can't do it, he just can't do it and he'll be one of the best fighters who never won a title. But if Rocky beats him, he beats the best guy in the division."

Frankly, I disagree with the assessment that John is Juarez's best hope for a world title, and with the way they're talking about Juarez as a "now or never" guy, I think it kind of speaks to exactly how low expectations from his management seem to be. Finkel doesn't say that he believes Juarez can beat John, he says Juarez believes he can beat John after seeing him on tape. It's "if" Rocky can get a title, Chris John is his best shot -- not Rocky will beat Chris John. It's a moot point, really, but it's rare to see managers or promoters talk like that.

And as much as I'd like to see Rocky win, simply because he's a solid fighter and a good, hard-working dude, I don't think he can beat John, who is a terrific fighter even if I don't consider him among the 20 best pound-for-pound, which most would if only because of his status as the world's best featherweight and what is nearing a five-year world title reign. I'm not even trying to discredit John's record completely, because he has a win over Juan Manuel Marquez and beat Hiroyuki Enoki last time out. But Renoit Caballero? Zaiki Takemoto? Jose Rojas as a world title challenger in 2007?

Either way, it's good to see Chris John finally coming to the States, and taking on a top contender. Chances are, he dominates Juarez. That's just my gut feeling after seeing them both fight several times. I think Chris is a bit out of Rocky's depth. But it's better that it's happening than another cupcake defense for John.