Maybe the decline started in 2000, when Erik Morales won a split decision over Marco Antonio Barrera.
Maybe.
Or maybe he was just ?okay?. But after years of grueling fights, trying to make weight, and moving up and down weight classes, maybe, just maybe, the great Erik Morales is done.
Maybe.
Saturday night, Morales takes on Manny Pacquiao. To say the fight will be tough disrespects the fighters and everyone involved in the promotion. The fight is the end all be all for both, especially for Morales.
He needs this fight. But he can?t win it. His body is too broken down. His spirit is willing, but his body has taken too many beatings. You saw it last year when some cat named Zahir Raheem won a 12 round decision against Morales.
Yet, Morales got a rematch with Pacquiao in January. Morales lost, not by some decision, he lost by technical knockout.
?You know, at the first fight I needed to win,? Morales said. ?I was with a sense of urgency. I needed to get credibility back in my career after coming off a tough loss and you know, I think I was ready. I prepared myself as well as I ever have for that first fight and it showed.?
So now the promoters want to do this again and who can blame them.
Promoter Bob Arum said $2.6 million worth of tickets have been sold for the third fight. The fight is just $200,000 away from a sellout and ticket sales have surpassed the total for Morales-Pacquiao II.
They are calling this fight ?The Grand Finale!? It?s the proper name and not because a fourth one won?t occur. It?s the ending of Morales? career as a top flight fighter. Unfortunately, you can always tell the ending of a fighter?s career when the losses pile up.
Roy Jones Jr. had just beaten Antonio Tarver by majority decision in November 2003. It appeared Tarver won the fight. Anyway, Jones should have left well enough alone but couldn?t. The money, fame and all that other stuff kept him around. He lost three straight times, two to Tarver, once to Glen Johnson, in bouts that sent his career spiraling out of control.
Evander Holyfield?s little comeback is nice and all and I?m proud of him. He?s healthy and has a good trainer in Ronnie Shields behind him. But after he beat Hasim Rahman by technical decision in 2002, he lost three straight.
Then there?s Fernando Vargas who lost two fights, in convincing fashion, to Shane Mosley this year. Vargas is no longer a top fighter, just a pug now.
Which brings us back to Morales. He?s too good to be just a pug or a fighter just hanging around for money and fame. He?s a Hall of Famer. He goes in with no questions asked. He?s on the back end of his career now, and that?s fine. All the great ones fight on the back end of their careers. It?s just that the great fighters are the last to see it.
?I feel very good about this fight,? Morales said. ?There?s no pressure, I feel no pressure. I know what I needed to do to get to this fight, to win this fight and I?ve done it. I feel like I?ve done everything I needed to do and that I don?t see why there should be any pressure for me in this fight as long as I did my work, which I have done, and be ready for this type of fight.?
This should be his last fight win or lose. But he?ll lose because his body will betray him. How do we know this? History tells us so.
Morales was asked on a conference call the other day about losing the fight; will he no longer considered a top fighter?
Morales, a smart guy who is great with the fans, media and people close to him, handled the question with class.
?You know this is a very important fight,? he said. ?I know that I need to win, that?s why I ? we – work so hard; you know, I have a lot of help here. I have a real good team, Top Rank that helped me a lot to do everything that I can to do this. I?ve taken this fight very seriously and yes it?s very important to win it.?
