Juan Manuel Marquez joins Iran Diaz as he prepares for Srisaket Sor Rungvisai

Iran Diaz (14-2-3, 6 KOs) knows he’ll be the sizeable underdog when he travels to Bangkok in October to vie for Srisaket Sor Rungvisai’s title belt, so he’s brought in a Mexican legend in Juan Manuel Marquez to help him out. Marquez joins Diaz’s team as an advisor and will attempt to impart some wisdom in order to pull of the upset.

“We consider this to be a great opportunity for Iran to face one of the best [junior bantamweights] in the world today. It’s his first world title fight. With Juan Manuel Marquez extending his helping hand, it’s huge for us,” said Ernesto Salgado, Diaz’s trainer. “There is so much at stake in this fight. We will need all the help we can get to win.”

Marquez has won titles in four divisions and is known as one the the very best technicians in recent years. He last fought in 2014 but officially announced his retirement from boxing last year after it became clear he would never fully recover from his ailing knee.

Diaz’s opponent, Sor Rungvisai (46-4-1, 41 KOs), is most recently coming off a stoppage win last month over Young Gil Bae, which followed two straight wins over former pound-for-pound king Roman Gonzalez and a win over Juan Francisco Estrada in February.