Juan Manuel Marquez willing to fight Miguel Cotto at 148lbs

A proposed fight between Juan Manuel Marquez and Miguel Cotto has been in the cards for what seems like a while now. The two sides were reportedly negotiating a potential fight but couldn’t overcome the hurdle of what weight they would fight at. Cotto reportedly wanted to fight Marquez at a catchweight of 150lbs but Marquez held firm that he wasn’t willing to fight over the 147lb welterweight limit.

That discrepancy proved to be a non-starter and those negotiations ended up falling by the wayside. But it looks like Marquez is now willing to budge just a little for what would be a marquee fight between two future Hall of Famers. Marquez tells ESPN Deportes:

“There would have to be an agreement on the weight. He and his team wanted to fight at 150 or 151, which I believe is particularly a lot of weight.

“Maybe there could be a maximum weight of 148, because we are already giving away an advantage the following day. How much weight will he put on?

“Freddie Roach had mentioned that [Cotto] was able to make the 147 limit – now why can’t he give me [a limit of] 147 if he wants to fight with me?”

The fact is, Cotto hasn’t fought at welterweight since losing to Manny Pacquiao back in 2009. Now 35-years-old, it seems highly unlikely that Cotto could make 147lbs again, at least not without severely diminishing himself.

Conversely, Marquez, 43, has never fought over the 147lb limit, starting his career as a super bantamweight.

Is there a “fair” weight that the two fighters could meet at to make this bout happen? And is the fight even worth continued negotiations – through the media or otherwise?