Erik Morales has downplayed his split with his father and erstwhile trainer, Jose, even as it left questions about his preparedness for his super featherweight rematch with Manny Pacquiao on January 21 at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada (January 22 in Manila), according to a top American newspaper.
Morales cut the services of his father as his trainer after a lackluster loss to former US Olympian Zahir Raheem at the lightweight (135 pounds) level in September at the Staples Center in Los Angeles.
On that same fight card, Pacquiao, who lost a close unanimous decision to “El Terrible” on March 19 last year also in Las Vegas, stopped the Mexican Hector Velazquez in six rounds at the 130-pound class—making the Filipino ring icon a 7-5 betting favorite to prevail in the return bout billed as “The Battle.”
According to an article by Norm Frauenheim of The Arizona Republic posted on the Web site doghouseboxing.com, the 29-year-old Morales said the separation was just “a natural step in his evolution as a fighter.” Jose, though, still acts as his manager.
Now trained by Jose Luis “Maestro” Lopez Jr., the Mexican legend said the elder Morales had talked about “not wanting to do this [train boxers] anymore,” citing the other fighters under his wing and his health problems.
“For various reasons, he was thinking about not coming up to train anymore,” the three-time world champion said of his father from his training camp in the hills of Queretaro, Mexico.
“His loss to Raheem might have been a sign that change is long overdue,” Frauenheim wrote. “But there’s been no tuneup to test whether the new relationship works, or whether a son just misses an ex-trainer who will never be an ex-dad.”
Meanwhile, HBO, which will broadcast Morales-Pacquiao II on pay-per-view in the United States, will begin the countdown for the fight by rebroadcasting some of the fighters’ memorable bouts.
Morales’ victory in 2004 over Carlos Hernandez and Pacquiao’s draw with Juan Manuel Marquez, also in the same year, were set for replay this weekend.
