HOLLYWOOD—“The world may be shocked but Pacquiao will be defeated. He has a lack of focus and Juan Ma will take advantage of this. Being a fighter, a congressman, a singer, all of this, will finally catch up to Manny. You will see a great explosion by Marquez on this night.”
That was Ignacio Nacho Beristain talking to BoxingScene.com’s Michael Marley more than a year ago, before Pacquiao-Marquez 3. He was wrong that time as Pacquiao won by majority decision. Saturday night, Beristain’s words turned prophetic.
Marquez beat Pacquiao in such explosive fashion that it shook the boxing world.
Like Beristain, boxing analysts are convinced Pacquiao may have spread himself too thin for his fourth fight against Marquez. While Pacquiao was intense, he committed a defensive lapse while going for the kill and allowed Marquez to steal the victory.