Around the Net: Pacquiao's Next Fight... Marquez III, Mosley or Berto

Juan Manuel Marquez has made a pretty good argument for another chance at Manny Pacquiao. If the two previous encounters between the brilliant Mexican counter-puncher and Filipino dynamo weren't enough to suggest another meeting is warranted, Marquez has since offered up a string of of outstanding performances to further bolster his claims for a third opportunity.

Pacquiao has been similarly outstanding since the fighters met on March 15, 2008, with highlight reel performances over a number of bigger foes.  And it's Pacquiao's success over fighters between 140lbs and 150lbs that makes many question whether Marquez can still keep up with the speedy southpaw.

Perhaps Marquez can't, but wouldn't you like to see him try?

Surely it's a better match-up than Pacquiao vs Shane Mosley or Andre Berto?

While Mosley brings a wealth of experience and success at welterweight, it appears father time has more than caught up with Sugar Shane.  He doesn't appear to have the stamina or sharpness of days past, and a match-up with a fighter of Pacquiao's caliber is very hard to justify from a competitive stand point.  We already saw Pacquiao embarrass a spent version of Oscar de la Hoya, do we really need to see him do the same to Mosley?  Surely not, but unfortunately Mosley appears to be the leading contender in the current Pacquiao sweepstakes.

Berto's a much better option than Mosley.  He's got youth on his side, as well as a nice blend of speed and pop.  It's been awhile since we have seen Pacquiao in against a fighter that can bring similar quickness to the table, and facing a bigger man with those attributes is an interesting proposition.  That said, Berto hasn't really proven his skills against the elite, and it would be nice to see him rack off at least one or two wins against legit top 5 opposition before throwing him in with Pacquiao.

Let's take a look around the net for the buzz on these potential match-ups...

Bad Left Hook - The Cases for and Against Pacquiao-Marquez III

Would I pay to see it? Yes. Would you? If you're reading this site, you'd probably at least consider it. Do I think it's competitive at 147 pounds? No.

But there just might not be anything any better. Asking Pacquiao to fight Sergio Martinez -- which I'd love to see, I admit -- is insane. Mayweather is not an option. That fight's not happening. Mosley would get overwhelmed, much as I like him. Berto still seems like a longshot.

This might be the only fight that can get Golden Boy and Top Rank to work together, and you know why? They're both out of legitimate options for either man, and are in the perfect position. Top Rank would be sure that Pacquiao would win. Golden Boy, not to sound harsh, knows that Marquez's future is very limited at this stage of his career, and essentially sacrificing him to a huge superstar fighter is maybe the best option for everyone's bank accounts. Marquez won't see it that way, but the businessmen will.

The Queensbury Rules - Weekend Afterthoughts, Featuring Andre Ward's Head Butts And Elbows, Larry Merchant's Thumbs And Questions, Carl Froch's Girlfriend's Voice And Breasts And More

Pacquiao promoter Bob Arum was quite blunt in this interview about how nobody but "boxing people" care about how uninteresting Pacquiao-Shane Mosley would be. It's true that the lightweight champ Marquez didn't draw much of a crowd over the weekend, but while Mosley might have name recognition outside the sport to a degree, it's not like anyone bought his last pay-per-view in any numbers, and it's not like he's a proven draw. Is it cynical of me to think that what Arum is really interested in Mosley for is that he's not as closely affiliated with Golden Boy, Top Rank's nemesis company?

ESPN - In Floyd Mayweather's absence, a plan for Manny Pacquiao

Marquez, Berto and Mosley all want Pacquiao badly -- the fight means big money -- and one of them will get him, because the way things look, Floyd Mayweather Jr. isn't going to fight him in the spring. Mayweather has avoided Pacquiao, and now the choice might be out of his hands anyway because Mayweather is jammed up with serious legal charges stemming from an alleged domestic incident in September. His first court date is in late January, and this could drag out for awhile. It seems doubtful he'll be available to fight May 7, which is when that fight was ticketed for.

So that leaves one member of the aforementioned trio to fight Pacquiao. The date for Pacquiao to fight somebody other than Mayweather is April 16, from what Arum told me.

Fighting Words - Marquez makes strong case for Pacquiao bout

And with the Mayweather camp facing more showdowns in court than in the gym these days Marquez re-emerges as Pacquaio's most compelling opponent.

Granted, Katsidis doesn't offer anywhere near the speed or savvy Pacquiao does, but Saturday's win proved that Marquez isn't just comfortable counterpunching when he appears outgunned.

He's devastating.

And nearly three years after dropping a close split decision in a rematch with Pacquiao he remains the last opponent to seriously rattle the Pac-Man, a bit of unfinished business Pacquiao might want to settle for good.

Dog House Boxing - Boxing Promoter Bob Arum on Manny Pacquiao's Next Fight

As it related to who will face Manny Pacquiao next, Arum said on Monday afternoon, "Well, Lou DiBella called me today and he's going to give me their proposal [for Andre Berto] tomorrow. As far as [Golden Boy CEO] Richard Schaefer is concerned, we understand he's going to give us a proposal for [Juan Manuel] Marquez. And once I have everything, I will go visit Manny in the Philippines for his birthday and I'll have a discussion with him to see who he wants to fight because there are different financial parameters with everybody."

Boxing Scene - Berto's Options: Cotto, Khan-Maidana, Bradley-Alexander

"I don't believe Berto is out of the running to fight Pacquiao, but based on what I'm reading it appears Mosley will get the fight. I'm going to speak with [Top Rank CEO] Bob Arum later today. Pacquiao's decision will have a domino effect on Berto's next opponent. Obviously if Pacquiao goes with [Juan Manuel] Marquez, then a fight between Berto and Mosley likely gets made," DiBella told BoxingScene.com. "If Pacquiao and Mosley fight each other, then we would like to get Miguel Cotto."

If Berto can't secure Pacquiao or Cotto, the list of possibilities at 147 begin to thin out. DiBella may look to a big name at junior welterweight, whether it's the winner of December's fight between Amir Khan and Marcos Maidana, or January's unification between Timothy Bradley and Devon Alexander.