In Tijuana, where the streets are filled with restaurants, shops, cantinas and barkers shouting welcomes to tourists and visitors, Erik Morales has become a hero.
It’s easy to understand when you look at a list of his former opponents.
Once more, Morales (48-3, 34 KOs) will leave his comfy compound in Tijuana to face yet another challenger to his throne as one of the most exciting elite fighters when he takes on Manny Pacquiao in a rematch Saturday.
The WBC International junior lightweight title fight will be at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas and shown on HBO pay-per-view.
The last time Morales and Pacquiao collided, few could confidently predict the outcome. Morales had lost to Marco Antonio Barrera, and Pacquiao had stopped him.
Those results proved misleading, and Morales earned a 12-round decision over Pacquiao when they met last March.
Pacquiao (40-3-2, 32 KOs), the harder hitting of the two, explodes on opponents with his blend of left-handed awkwardness and lightning speed.
Since signing with famed trainer Freddie Roach, the Filipino bomber with a nation in his corner has transformed into a stinger missile with boxing shorts. Few escape his arsenal.
In their first encounter, Pacquiao unloaded on his Mexican foe and quickly learned that Morales’ chin is like titanium. The Mexican fighter had conquered many brick-busting fighters in the past like Junior Jones, Kevin Kelley and Jesus Chavez. None could put him on the ground.
“Manny thought he could do the same thing to Erik that he did to Barrera,” Roach said at his gym in Hollywood. “He learned his lesson.”
Until Morales, the left-hand of Pacquiao was like chloroform to a number of fighters, including Lehlo Ledwaba and Emmanuel Lucero.
He almost put the skids on featherweight champion Juan Manuel Marquez, too, but the crafty scientific boxer found the antidote for the Filipino’s potent left hand: stay away from it.
Morales successfully adopted the same formula.
This time Morales enters the ring following a mediocre performance against Zahir Raheem last summer. Flabby and uninspired, he let Raheem dance and move for more than six rounds before shifting into high gear. By then it was too late, and he lost a 12-round unanimous decision.
“You never know if that was a signal that Erik Morales is sliding down,” said famed trainer Roberto Garcia, a former world champion. “It could be.”
When Morales defeated Pacquiao, more than a few observers wondered if the Filipino had been distracted by the cut he suffered during the fight.
“Yes, the cut bothered me,” Pacquiao said at the Wild Card Gym. “Every time he (Morales) moved to my right I couldn’t see.”
Morales has a penchant for rising to the occasion. He did it against Korea’s Injin Chi after capturing a controversial decision against Mexico’s Guty Espadas in 2001, and he did it against Pacquiao after losing to Barrera in their third meeting.
It’s difficult to count out the fighter known as “El Terrible.”
“The last fight (against Raheem) was an embarrassment,” Morales said. “I have to get some credibility back in my career.”
With his long reach and series of paralyzing uppercuts, Morales has the uncanny ability to set up fighters with his stinging jab and quickly capitalize on any missteps by opponents with deadly accuracy.
“I’ve been fighting elite fighters for a long time,” Morales said, explaining his lack of knockout victories. “I want to fight the best, so that’s why you see me go 12 rounds with guys because they’re the best. They can take a punch, too.”
In the past Morales has kept his word and performed above expectations. His win against knockout puncher Pacquiao after losing for the second time to Barrera, who had beaten him a few months earlier, proved it.
Tijuana’s best fighter refuses to lose the big tests.
Pacquiao, seemingly more focused for this fight, barely acknowledges the hundreds of reporters from around the world eager to hear his views.
But ask him what he thinks of Morales as a fighter …
“The hardest fight I’ve had is Morales,” said Pacquiao, almost embarrassed to acknowledge the fact. “He has a great jab.”
Ask Morales how he feels about Pacquiao, and you get the same bite-your-tongue response.
“He’s a great fighter who intimidates people,” Morales said softly. “I know he’s a good fighter, but I learned he’s not as strong as people think.”
Come Saturday, the gloves go on and the action resumes as if the first 12 rounds were just a warmup.
