Former Pound-for-pound Champion Manny Pacquiao has stressed a fifth fight with Juan Manuel Marquez is very essential to him and the Mexican could be his next opponent in the ring, if he manages to overcome Timothy Bradley in their WBO Welterweight Championship rematch on April 12 at MGM Grand Garden in Las Vegas, Nevada.

In a recent interview with Radio Rahim, Pacquiao, 35, cited he's still open to duke it out with his Latino archrival, if given a chance.

"Yes very important," Pacquiao said in response to Radio Rahim's question about the importance of the fifth fight with 'Dinamita.'"

It's very important to have that fight happen again."

Pacman is coming off a 12-round unanimous decision win over Californian slugger Brandon Rios in their welterweight clash in November 2013 at Venetian Macao in Macau, China. But the Filipino boxer suffered from two devastating losses prior to the match, one of which was a sixth-round knockout loss at Marquez's hands.

Dangerous Opposition In Bradley

After two years of waiting, Pacquiao will finally have a chance to redeem his controversial split decision loss to Bradley. In 2012, Pacquiao and Bradley met each other in the ring and fought in a solid 12-round slugfest. Many analysts believed the Filipino fighter did enough to bag another unanimous decision victory, but the judges stunned the boxing world when Bradley was announced as the winner.

Hammered by critics, Bradley stepped up his game in his next two fights as he overcame a war against Russian brawler Ruslan Provodnikov and edged Marquez in their counter-punching chess match in October.

Bradley is preparing his second bout against Pacquiao with his confidence at all-time high, making it a very difficult fight for the former eight-time division world champ.

The Bottom Line

With conditioning Trainer Justin Fortune back in the fold, Pacquiao is expected to have a smooth training camp, perhaps one that reminisces his boxing heydays in mid 2000. Head Trainer Freddie Roach and his Personal Assistant Buboy Fernandez also noticed the hunger and fiery attitude of Pacquiao appear at its peak after a long hiatus.

Pacquiao knows that he's career is definitely on the line, and another loss could mean the end of the road for him. A sensational win would surely catapult him back to the top of the pound-for-pound rankings, putting him much closer to possible showdown with Floyd Mayweather Jr. or a rematch with Marquez.