Confident Marquez overcomes injury heading into fight
Rafael Marquez is a tough guy but was no match for the car door in which he caught his right thumb after an August training session.
The injury delayed Marquez’s bout against WBO featherweight champion Juan Manuel Lopez, originally scheduled for Sept. 18. The pair will meet Saturday in the main event at the MGM Grand Garden.
Marquez’s thumb wasn’t broken in the car door mishap, but there was enough swelling that he was unable to wear a boxing glove on his right hand and train properly.
“It was tough to have to suspend the fight,” Marquez said. “But my preparation never stopped. I was running and doing other things, just not hitting anything.
“My injury is fine now. I’m very well prepared.”
Marquez (39-5, 35 knockouts), a former three-time world champion and the younger brother of world lightweight champ Juan Manuel Marquez, knows Saturday’s bout might be his last shot at glory. It’s hard to say how much the 35-year-old Marquez has left after 15 years as a professional boxer.
“I think that age doesn’t matter,” he said. “I don’t see that as a problem, I really don’t.
“I tell people they are wrong when they say I am through. As long as you take care of yourself and as long as you prepare well for a fight, that shouldn’t be any problem. I think my brother proved it against Juan Diaz, who was 10 years younger. I’ve always taken care of myself, and I think I have a lot left to give.”
Marquez last fought May 22, stopping Israel Vasquez in the third round of their fourth meeting in four years. He looked impressive that night, no doubt bolstering his confidence for the bout against the 27-year-old Lopez (29-0, 26 KOs).
“I’ve seen some videotape on him,” Marquez said. “I see how strong and powerful he is, but I also see his weaknesses. I see that he has a weak chin, so we have to take advantage of that and put our punches together and use a lot of combinations.
“I have to use all my experience and all of my power and all my intelligence in the ring to get to him.”
Marquez switched to trainer Daniel Zaragoza before fighting Vasquez, after years of working with Nacho Beristain, and the results were spectacular.
“I have a lot of confidence in him,” Marquez said. “He demands perfection. He points out your mistakes and he stays and corrects them. Nacho would point something out, then he would walk away. (Zaragoza) pays attention to me and he watches me closely. I feel I’m 1,000 percent better prepared than I have been for any fight.”
He will also have hand-wrap guru Rafael Garcia in his corner. Garcia, who has helped protect Floyd Mayweather’s brittle hands over the years, said he will make sure Marquez’s left thumb is not an issue by taping his hand properly.
Marquez said he is confident he can win a fourth world title and hand Lopez his first loss.
“There’s no question this is a very important fight for me, one of the biggest of my career,” he said. “I always thought I could still fight for a world title, and I trained like I have never trained before for this fight.
“I know he will try to pressure me. But I need to move and use my right hand. I’m ready for anything he tries to do.”
Contact reporter Steve Carp at scarp@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2913.