The highly anticipated rematch between Erik “El Terrible” Morales and Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao at the Thomas and Mack Center, Las Vegas, Nevada has been labeled “The Battle.” Both fighters are exceptionally tough, aggressive brawlers. Considering their first encounter was a war, we may witness an early nomination for Fight of the Year.
This time there should be no excuses about the gloves.
After losing a hard fought unanimous decision in their first meeting, Pacquiao felt the unaccustomed gloves he was forced to wear were a disadvantage. Both fighters used Winning gloves favored by Morales. Pacquiao prefers the punchers gloves, Reyes. “I had never used those gloves before until one week prior to the fight,” explained Pacquiao. “It’s a bigger glove and that became a distraction for me during the fight… more than anything else.”
Morales gave less significance to the gloves. “The gloves shouldn’t be an issue. Reyes gloves are the best in the world and they have more history, but unfortunately they don’t fit well with my hands. Every time I use Reyes they give me problems. But when hitting, gloves don’t matter. The winner will be one who hits more and gets hit less.”
For their first bout, Pacquiao’s handlers contractually agreed to use Winning gloves. If the bad decision was a misjudgment, the lesson was learned. This time, they’ll take no chances: both sides have agreed to use gloves of their choice.
Manny’s trainer, Freddie Roach agrees that using the customary gloves is a key difference for the rematch. “I believe the change in gloves affected him psychologically during the first fight. You see, Winning gloves are like pillows. They are not gloves for punchers. So they definitely make a difference in the power of a punch.” Adding, “We will feel comfortable entering the fight using the gloves we chose.”“He can use Reyes,” Erick allowed, “that’s fine. For my protection and tranquility, I will use Winning.”
In addition to the gloves issue, Roach believes Pacquiao did not follow the strategy he had designed last March. “Manny was looking to throw the 1-2 and then land a big punch. But Morales is a smart fighter. He’s seen that a million times.” With the necessary adjustments in training, Roach is confident that Pacquiao now understands what he must do to defeat the Mexican warrior. “He will probably hand him his first knockout defeat.”
Morales still suffers from the disastrous showing against Zahir Raheem last September. “I feel embarrassed of my last fight because I know I can do things better and I will prove that against Pacquiao.” He is determined to show “El Terrible” has plenty boxing left. “After my last fight I felt in debt with a lot of people. I need this victory to regain credibility for myself and my career and demonstrate that what occurred that night should have never happened.
The legendary pugilists arrived in Las Vegas earlier this week. Both appeared in tremendous shape, fully convinced one will defeat the other. They seem eager for “The Battle,” with no thought to the gloves.
Not that extra motivation is necessary, but there’s an exciting incentive: The WBC has declared the bout a super featherweight eliminator. The winner will earn the right to face WBC/IBF king Marco Antonio Barrera. Pacquiao destroyed Barrera in 2003. Morales dropped two in a trilogy of showdowns to the “Baby Face Assassin.”
