MEXICAN great Erik Morales recently disclosed that his upcoming duel with Olympian Zahir Raheem next month could very well be one of his last outings in the super-featherweight (130-pound) division.
Morales, arguably the brightest star in the division, recently bared that he plans to move up to the star-studded lightweight (135lb) division – largely due to the enticing prospect of landing multimillion-dollar fights against marquee names – if the planned December rematch between him and Filipino icon Manny Pacquiao doesn’t materialize.
“Once I beat Raheem in September, we will see if Pacquiao wants a rematch. If he doesn’t, I will just move on,” Morales was quoted in a translated article by the SaddoBoxing website yesterday.
“There are still a lot of great fighters out there and many wars that I can make. I will focus on bringing the best fights to the fans.”
Morales is set to fight Raheem on Sept. 10 in a blockbuster card that will also feature Pacquiao against Mexican brawler Hector Velasquez at the Staples Center in Los Angeles.
If Morales moves up, the lightweight division, which already boasts of some of the biggest stars in Americans Diego Corrales and Juan Diaz, Mexicans Jose Luis Castillo and Juan Lazcano, Cuban Joel Casamayor, and Kyrgyzstan’s Almazbek “Kid Diamond” Raiymkulov – will no doubt become one of most glamorous divisions in boxing.
“I know that I do want to go up to 135 pounds to try to capture my fourth world title. I also know that 135 pounds will be the last weight class for me,” said Morales, who added that he feels comfortable fighting at 135lb.
