BREAKING NEWS: Although slated to defend his title on November 3, 2007 against Rocky Juarez (27-3 with 19 knockouts), world junior lightweight champion Juan Manuel Marquez (47-3 with 35 knockouts) has been ordered by the WBC to defend against Filippino superstar Manny Pacquiao (45-3 with 35 knockouts). If Marquez defeats Juarez, he will have 30 days to negotiate for the Pacquiao fight. This does not seem to be a problem according to Ignacio Beristain as he explained that Golden Boy Promotions have already started negotiating with HBO for an early date in 2008. In the first fight, Pacquiao knocked Marquez down three times in the first round and Marquez shockingly got up to brawl and box his way to a draw. The final decision was not without controversy however as one judge did not realize they could have actually scored the first round 10-6 in favor of Pacquiao. Had the first round been scored that way, the result would have been a split decision win for Manny. Â
