HBO DOUBLEHEADER HIGHLIGHTS THE SPORTS BEST!
It is hard to fathom that we have had him for nearly a decade but the ultimate warrior of boxing, Mexico’s Erik Morales, has indeed been a presence for that long. He has reigned at or near the top of every division from 122 to 130 since defeating Hall of Famer Daniel Zaragoza in 1997 and has quietly amassed the sort of record that any fighter, in any generation, would be proud to have.
FIRST BARRERA WIN STARTED THE DOUBTS
It is harder still to fathom that when he was awarded a dubious decision over fellow countryman Marco Antonio Barerra in the first chapter of their epic trilogy, Morales was touted by some as ‘overrated.’ History will belittle those who knocked him, and will have to answer in the years ahead when the subject arises on just how his contemporaries could have considered such.
MORALES CASE FOR “BEST” AS STRONG AS ANY!
The answer to that query will be hard to come by. Like Azumah Nelson a generation ago, Morales has been plagued by the curse of competitive fights, the depth of talent around him, and a tendency to fight at the level of his foes. He also failed to emerge as the ultimate victor in the feud that defines him (Barrera). Despite that, his accomplishments rank with the greatest fighters of his time. Barrera may hold two wins over him, but he holds wins over both of the men that defeated Marco in Junior Jones and Manny Pacquiao.
JULIO CESAR CHAVEZ SITTING IN ROW TWO?
Of the two Mexican greats, only Morales can say he holds at least one win over every man he’s faced. With title belts in three weight classes and aspirations for a fourth at 135, Morales is amassing credentials that soon may surpass those of the standard bearer in Mexican Boxing, Julio Cesar Chavez. So why then should Morales fans be nervous this Saturday in Los Angeles when Morales prepares for a December Pacquiao rematch against Zahir Raheem?
RAHEEM A POTENTIAL SPOILER!
Coming off of perhaps a career best performance against Pacquiao in March, Morales would seem more than primed to walk through the 1996 US Olympian Raheem. However, his tendency to fight to the level of his foes could really come into play. Raheem is a slick boxer and Morales has not faced many in his career. Were it not for the incompetent officiating (referee Bobby Garcia) involved in Raheem’s sole loss to Rocky Juarez, Raheem may well still be undefeated. He also will have the comfort of fighting at a weight more suitable for his body frame at 130-135 lbs. instead of 126 and the benefit of having been in far fewer wars (none) over the years than Morales (who can’t seem to avoid them). The only minus is that Raheem’s best foe (Juarez) doesn’t even rank among the five best foes of Morales’ career. While this matchup, to be aired with its co-feature of Pacqiuao against Hector Velasquez, is well below what HBO subscribers have come to expect in terms of World Championship Boxing quality, it does at least hold intrigue. With millions on the line, Morales will need his A-game not only to stay on the road to December riches, but also along the path of history.
CRUSIERWEIGHT CONTINUES TO BUILD ITS NICHE!
With his decimation of former titlist Wayne Braithwaite (21-2, 17 KO’s) on Saturday night, Panama’s Guillermo Jones (33-3-2, 26 KO’s) has not only added a scalp, as he also pushed himself to no less than the #2 contender spot at 200 lbs. A battle between he and the fantastic fighting Frenchman, World Champion Jean Marc Mormeck, would be a great way to finish 2005…or start 2006. Why not the #1 spot for Jones? That is because the last man to defeat him, Steve Cunningham, kept his undefeated record with a win over former IBF titlist Kelvin Davis on the untelevised undercard. Along with long reigning WBO titlist Johnny Nelson, and current all-action IBF titlist O’Neil Bell, King Mormeck finds himself with four legitimate threats to his throne. The possibility remains that former titlist Vasily Jirov, or the winner of Antonio Tarver-Roy Jones III, these three could try their hand at cruiserweight as well. For fight fans who want to see competitive, world class fights, cruiserweight is as good as it gets.
24-KARAT NOTEBOOK…
2005 has shown the best and worst of Don King. The risky, and successful, showings in February and April on Showtime (Zab Judah-Cory Spinks II and Mormeck-Braithwaite) are the King at his best. Owen Beck being on TV twice? That’s the worst. Beck has now lost in two prominent undercard spots this year with Saturday’s loss to Ray Austin as porous as it was unmerited for TV. Cunningham-Davis was an important fight that mattered but we missed it for the dreck of ‘quality’ heavyweights instead. Bad show Don…The ESPN 2 main even on Friday between Julius Long and eventual decision winner Terry Smith did not suck. In fact, it was fun TV. That said, if they were welterweights, they wouldn’t even have been on TV…What is with people saying the winner of Wladimir Klitschko-Samuel Peter will emerge as the best young heavyweight? That’s got to be HBO hypnotizing people. If Peter doesn’t win, it means we better hope Calvin Brock is the goods because otherwise there is no good young heavy…I’m down on heavyweights bad this week…Why is Manny Pacquiao angling for Morales and not titlists at 130? If you ever needed a sign that the sanctioning body titles are becoming less worthy of even wiping one’s ass with, that ought to do it…Speaking of, WBC representative Mauricio Sulaiman has promised to let me know why his boys do not have Antonio Tarver or Glenn Johnson in their top ten at 175 lbs.
Cliff Rold
