Pacquiao and Hatton Want Floyd Jr., but Juan Manuel Marquez Goes First

The news that Floyd Mayweather will come out of retirement and return to the ring this summer is no surprise. But most people thought Mayweather would return against the winner of Saturday night's Manny Pacquiao-Ricky Hatton fight, or in a tune-up against an easy opponent. Instead, Mayweather has chosen to fight Juan Manuel Marquez on July 18.

Give Mayweather all the credit in the world for that. Marquez, one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world, is going to be a very tough opponent who will take the fight to Mayweather. At a time when too many boxers duck challenges, Mayweather is embracing a challenge.

Mayweather is also doing it at 144 pounds, which will be his lightest weight in years; Mayweather hasn't weighed in below 146 pounds for a fight since he took on Arturo Gatti in 2005. Some will suggest that Mayweather should have an easy time because of his significant size advantage over Marquez, who has never weighed more than 135 pounds for a fight. But 144 pounds is a fair weight for this fight.

Pacquiao and Hatton must be disappointed. Hatton said in a chat with FanHouse that he wanted another crack at Mayweather, while Pacquiao said in a FanHouse interview that he expected Mayweather to return, possibly with a tune-up fight before fighting Pacquiao. Mayweather-Marquez can now rival Pacquiao-Hatton as this year's biggest fight.

But the good news for boxing fans is that the two biggest fights of the year are among four guys who are all about the same size. That means we should see the Mayweather-Marquez winner take on the Hatton-Pacquiao winner. That's the superfight that boxing needs.