By Jhonny Gonzalez

The next fight for Juan Manuel Marquez will likely take place on July 2 at El Palacio de los Deportes in Mexico City. Marquez passed on the opportunity to fight in Las Vegas. He wants to face David Diaz in a junior welterweight bout to prepare himself for a third showdown with Manny Pacquiao on November 12 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Marquez has three proposals from venues who want host his next fight.

He will attempt to secure Diaz in the next couple of days. If a deal is not reached, he will choose another opponent for July. Diaz indicated in a recent BoxingScene.com interview that nobody from Marquez's team has approached him as of yet. 

"Option A, is to fight Palacio de los Deportes, Option B is Foro Sol, and option C is the Arena Mexico. It would be an honor to fight in Mexico. I hope to fight in [El Palacio de los Deportes]. That's what I want, but I don't have all of the details. It's been many years since I've fought in Mexico City, where I was born as a fighter and grew up as a champion. I want to secure David Diaz, who is a lefty and a tough fighter and should put me on pace for a fight with Pacquiao," Marquez told Sal Rodriguez.

The fight with Pacquiao will take place at a catch-weight of 144-pounds. Marquez is waiting to see if Golden Boy Promotions is willing to match Top Rank's offer.