What are the fundamentals that define a great legacy? Is it to garner wins over all the top level opponents in more than one division? Is it to demonstrate the fortitude to battle back from adversity on numerous occasions? Is it to possess a brilliant repertoire of skills and ring intelligence with the ability to execute them perfectly? Is it to collect a multitude of titles and defend them successfully against foes with the necessary talent and desire to tear them from your grasp?
For Erik “El Terrible” Morales read: all of the above. Fighting in lower divisions which have enjoyed an era rich in talent and always being among the dominant forces, he dropped out of most top ten pound-for-pound lists in January for the first time in years. Marco Antonio Barrera, his countryman and longtime rival was recently quoted, unbelievably following their intense dislike of each other, as listing him in his top five Mexican fighters of all time.
But another colossal challenge now presents itself with the upcoming Manny Pacqiuao rubber match, and Erik Morales finds himself at a life-or-death crossroads in terms of his career. He has lost three out of his last four fights and must bring the landslide to a halt, or it could spell the end of his magnificent tenure at the high-end level of the sport. The obstacles that may prevent this though are considerable in their severeness and of many: 1) he’s suffering with weight issues to the extent of which experts in the field have been employed, 2) his body is ravaged by the rigours of previous wars against outstanding opponents, and 3) he’ll be facing the most devastating puncher in the lower weight divisions, to whom he has already suffered a knockout defeat. To say the least, the signs are ominous for Morales at this point.
Born in Tijuana in 1976, Erik Morales is the son of former fighter and gym owner Jose, who let his son frequent the gym during his early years and reluctantly laced up Erik’s first pair of gloves when he was five. He fought in his first professional bout at the age of 16, and in ’97 became WBC World Champion by knocking out (for the third time in his mammoth career) Daniel Zaragoza. He then went on to stop Junior “Poison“ Jones in equally impressive fashion (Jones had by then twice beaten Barrera and had an excellent record against Mexican fighters). After outpointing the durable Wayne McCullough, Morales fought Barrera for the first time in 2000, getting the nod on a tight decision which was disputed by various observers and unifying the WBC & WBO Super Bantamweight titles. The first fight between the pair will go down as one of the greatest fights of all time, showcasing the talents and the battling spirit of both. He ended the year by stopping Kevin Kelley, who had given “Prince” Naseem Hamed such a great fight in ’97.
In the following year, Morales defeated Guty Espadas, JR. with a close points victory and the South Korean in Jin Chi who, himself, proceeded to win a World Title at 126 pounds. He then beat Johnny Tapia conqueror, Paulia Ayala at the latter end of 2002, and then knocked out Espadas in three in their second encounter. Morales then took the WBC Super Featherweight Belt by beating Jesus Chavez, and added Carlos Hernandez’s IBF Junior Lightweight Title in July 2004. His last victory came in the first fight against his upcoming opponent, against whirlwind Filipino megastar, Manny “Pacman” Pacqiuao. This win specifically was a masterful performance of ring acumen and boxing aptitude, his jab dictating the necessary “safe” distance between him and the bloodthirsty Pacman. That coupled with the brilliantly timed counter-punching helped Morales to probably what could be considered the defining win of his career.
Why have I made these wins in particular stand out in this fashion? Because these are outstanding wins, and definitive in their impressiveness. A who’s who of the 122-130 pound division in the last decade (with a few exceptions), most at the peak of their profession, and all at the least very good fighters.
When reviewing an overall legacy however, the glorious highs cannot be included without factoring in the devastating lows; Morales lost another highly-contentious decision against Barrera in 2002 (with Erik encountering his first defeat), and in November 2004 fought Barrera for a third time and suffered another razor-thin scorecard loss. A more absolute reversal was his points defeat against Zahir Raheem in his seemingly misguided move up to Lightweight, his lack of speed being hugely exposed. But the defeat most pertinent to his current position was the comprehensive knockout he suffered at the hands of his most recent arch-nemesis, Pacquiao. A brutal beating was dished out from the sixth round onwards, with Manny’s explosive straight left finding little resistance and being stopped very capably by Morales’ face and abdomen. Although the first five rounds shaped up much like the first bout between them, the sixth round was most definitely the turning point of the fight with Pacquiao’s ascent coinciding with Morales’ lack of conditioning, and Manny’s invariably brutal body attack having a crippling effect. The unthinkable had been thought, and Morales was legitimately knocked down and then out, both for the first time as a professional.
For someone who has always emitted the aura of such an indestructible obstacle, the underlying sense of vulnerability nows dogs Morales. A lot of people within the sport justly fear for his safety, with the eager to impress Pacquiao (having recently signed with his new employers, Oscar De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions) looking to seal his fate once and for all. Manny now possesses the psychological edge between the pair as well as the advantage with the betting odds, prospects, momentum, and good old fashioned speed and power.
Morales though is a more technically gifted boxer, as well as a stubbornly confident man who has been commenting in the last few months on how his new conditioning and fitness regimen will prove the difference against Pacquiao in November, asking fans to believe in him for “one last time.” Although many of them will undoubtedly be fervently cheering him on in what will ultimately be the fight of his life, with each loss the faith placed in their idol and the ability to disregard logic becomes more and more difficult to swallow. The obligatory riposte, that you should never count Morales out, does maintain a modicum of credibility due to his past endeavours and it’s a given that this will be mentioned with even more regularity by his followers in the coming weeks than the amount of jackhammer right crosses Morales throws in the midst of a superfight.
Although the signs point to the direct opposite, a win for the Tijuana native would redoubtably accentuate his status as one of the all-time great featherweights. Erik Morales won world titles at a very young age, unified titles, defended them, won them in multiple divisions, beating most of the prominent competitors in those divisions and along with Barrera and Pacquiao has transcended the lower weight classes for today’s fans.
On the flipside, providing El Terrible loses come this November, can the result be disregarded when calculating the significance of his pugilistic memoirs? The answer is no. I am a firm believer that once a boxer has solidified the glories in their pugilistic memoirs then these cannot be eradicated, which explains the most frequent excuse for a fighter’s loss at the tail-end of their career being that “they were past their prime.” But that is not to say the overall picture cannot become sullied, and, in Morales’ case, there is a prominent danger of his legacy becoming tainted as well as dangers to him physically should he lose the November 18th showdown.
