Erik Morales will not be retiring anytime soon, and he will be taking advantage of the rematch clause that was written into the contract for his fight against Manny Pacquiao on Jan. 21 in Las Vegas. The day after Morales was stopped by Pacquiao in the 10th round of that fight, there was speculation that Morales, 29, might hang up his gloves after a long and successful career in which he has won world titles in three weight classes.
But Morales’ promoter, Bob Arum, on Sunday said that a third fight between Tijuana’s Morales and Pacquiao – each has a victory over the other – is a done deal for Sept. 16, which is Mexican Independence Day.
It will take place at Sam Boyd Stadium in Las Vegas, the home football field for the University of Nevada Las Vegas.
Their last fight was contested at the super featherweight limit of 130 pounds. The third fight will take place at 132.
“He called me and said he felt he knew what he did wrong in his preparation, that his legs gave out because of the weight problem,” Arum said of Morales, who appeared exhausted when he was knocked down twice by Pacquiao in the fateful 10th round.
“He said he knew how to deal with that and that he wanted a chance to win the rubber match.”
The Sept. 16 date is more than seven months away. Arum said Morales would not take an interim bout.
Another trilogy will soon be on tap, this one between Diego “Chico” Corrales and Jose Luis Castillo.
The two – each with a knockout of the other – were supposed to fight again last Saturday in El Paso, but Corrales pulled out last month because of a rib injury.
Instead, Castillo took on Rolando Reyes of Oxnard and won an easy unanimous decision.
A June 3 date has been set for Castillo-Corrales III, but the parties still have to come to terms on the location, which could be El Paso.
Lee Samuels, a spokesman for Arum who promotes Castillo, said Wednesday that when Castillo learned this week that the fight would not be until June, he said he would want a tune-up fight.
Corrales and Castillo will fight for Corrales’ World Boxing Organization and World Boxing Council lightweight belts.
Gary Shaw, who promotes Corrales and Reyes, didn’t have anything good to say about Reyes’ performance against Castillo.
“I am always candid and honest with everybody,” Shaw said, “and I almost thought Reyes was in there to survive. Could he have done better? Yes. Should he have done better? Yes. Every time he threw a jab, he hit Castillo, and I think if he would have fought, he could have made a real fight out of it.
“I’m sorry he didn’t show his real, good ability.”
Arum is promoting the Feb. 18 world championship doubleheader at the Aladdin in Las Vegas. It will see Antonio Margarito defend his WBO welterweight belt against Manuel Gomez, and Brian Viloria defend his WBC light flyweight championship against Jose Antonio Aguirre.
Arum said he wants to match the winner of Margarito-Gomez against the winner of the April 8 fight between International Boxing Federation welterweight champion Zab Judah and Floyd Mayweather Jr.
The Mayweather-Judah fight at Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas was formally announced Tuesday at a news conference in New York.
Mayweather, generally considered the top pound-for-pound fighter in the world, was at his smack-talking best.
“I may be going in as the challenger,” Mayweather said, “but I will be fighting like a champion. Zab is fast and strong, but he has no chin. No way will he be able to take my punch.”
With a Bernard Hopkins-Roy Jones Jr. fight on the shelf for now and perhaps forever, Hopkins has been actively seeking another opponent.
Richard Schaefer, CEO of Golden Boy Promotions, said Tuesday that a tentative agreement has been reached for Hopkins to fight Antonio Tarver, the people’s light heavyweight champion.
The date and location still have to be set.
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