Does Barrera legend seemingly overshadow Chavez, Jr vs. Duddy main event? -- Examiner

By Matt Stolow, Examiner.com

I never knew what Big George Foreman meant by saying he originally came back to soon until he stood over Michael Moore and had reclaimed the heavyweight world championship as dramatically as it could ever be done.

Now I'm looking over names Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr. and John Duddy, and fight friendly San Antonio and thinking marketing whiz Lester Bedford already owes me for the piece I did on him on the Pacquiao card recently.

This is Cowboys Stadium vs. San Antonio AlamoDome and it just seems the "Whataburger Man" should naturally be doing the play by play like the late NFL's John Facenda.

So its got to be about come backing Marco Antonio Barrera. He came back a year ago on actually a decent and necessary pay-per-view card in England I bought one Saturday afternoon to both redeem Amir Khan coming off a first round KO loss and for Frank Warren to pay back Don King who delivered MAB with a quick, bloody technical knockout for Khan but here we are and all I can believe is previous reincarnations of Barrera have been premature.

I know Erik "El Terrible" Morales came back recently and promoter Bob Arum is trying to maneuver Antonio Margarito into the Manny Pacquiao sweepstakes but Marco Antonio Barrera?

Haven't we and MAB suffered enough? "I can't explain it, " said Bedford." It's hard to tell these guys "No". It's hard to tell these great fighters to see an end. Who knows, maybe he has a lot more to offer. I know there will be lots of fans in San Antonio glad to see him, either way."

This card with Chavez, Jr. and Duddy would be going on without MAB anyway.

This card is being set up for 17,000 fans and is the first big event for new Alamodome chief Marc Solis, a San Antonio native, boxing friendly, who has been toiling for a few years and with wife building a family in Corpus Christi.

I see this event as a better fit for San Antonio than Dallas.

San Antonio once hosted Barrera vs. a young Manny Pacquiao in 2003 and years later a more mature well-known Pacquiao vs. Mexico 's Jorge Solis.

But today, Dallas, is DALLAS and it already looking down at all but a Pacquiao vs. Mayweather, Jr. at its 100,000 seat, $1.2 billion temple in nearby Arlington.

So Monday afternoon they will host a big press conference with Mexican food and BBQ to welcome Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr, John Duddy, Bob Arum, and even come backing Marc Solis and Marco Antonio Barrera.

It will quickly be drowned out by fight week for Mayweather vs. Mosley but it will be good fun while it lasts.

Source: examiner.com

Marco Antonio Barrera To Return On June 26th Duddy-Chavez Jr Card? -- Eastside Boxing

By James Slater, Eastside Boxing

When he was last seen in a ring, Mexican legend and former multi-weight world champion Marco Antonio Barrera was being out-pointed by the much faster Amir Khan, on the way to an eventual TD loss that came about due to a nasty cut Barrera picked up due to a butt that was ruled accidental. Afterwards, the then 35-year-old all-time great insisted that Khan never hurt him with any of his punches, and later still Marco's promoter Don King tried to get the decision overturned..

It was not to be, however, and Barrera, who slipped to 65-7(43) disappeared for over a year. Now, according to Box Rec, "The Baby Faced Assassin" will return to action on June 26th; when he will fight an as yet unknown foe on the Julio Cesar Chavez Junior-John Duddy bill in San Antonio, Texas. It's not clear which weight class Barrera will box in, how many rounds his comeback bout will be set for, or whether or not his opponent will be of the world class variety.

Prior to his upset loss to Khan in March of last year, Barrera had won two fights on the spin against limited opposition; these wins having followed his back-to-back points losses to Juan Manuel Marquez and Manny Pacquiao in 2007. Unless we're in for a real surprise, Barrera will almost certainly face a "so-so" type fighter in June.

The Khan fight showed us that Barrera can no longer handle speed, and it also showed us that he is even easier to hit these days (he was never all that tough to nail, even in his prime). The TD loss also showed that Barrera, if matched right, could perhaps still win a biggish fight or two. Certainly, though he was only able to really tag the elusive Khan with one good shot to the head in the entire 5-rounds, Barrera did not look like the typical "shot" fighter.

That fight was at lightweight, although Barrera's two wins before the loss to Khan took place at or around the light-welterweight mark. Who knows what weight the one-time bantamweight will come in at on June 26th. One thing that does spring to mind upon reading about Barrera's in-the-works return, though, is the possibility that he may soon be hooking up with one-time fierce rival Erik Morales. As fans know, "El Terrible," three years younger than Barrera, made his own successful ring return, up at full welterweight, back in March. Morales, 49-6(34) is set to try to follow up his points win over the useful Jose Alfaro with another winning fight, again in Mexico, on July 24th (thus far a TBA). Could we, then, soon be seeing a Barrera-Morales IV?

When last seen together, the two one-time heated rivals were all smiles as they posed for photos. Still, though the hatred they once had for one another has faded, it doesn't mean they won't fight again; especially if big money were offered. But would a fourth fight between the two legends generate big money? And at what weight would the two ageing warriors fight at?

We'll have to see how Barrera does on June 26th (and Morales on July 24th) before we can tell if there is any serious chance of the two "doing it again," but would you be shocked if they did fight for a fourth time?

Source: eastsideboxing.com

Morales went out a HERO.. but he comes back a FOOL -- Mirror

By Barry Mcguigan, Mirror.co.uk

Erik Morales stands third in my all-time list of Mexican fighters behind Julio Cesar Chavez and Marco Antonio Barrera. That is how highly I rate him.

His first fight with Barrera is in my top 10 bouts of all time, an unbelievable meeting of fire and brimstone inside the ropes.

Morales is the last man to beat Manny Pacquiao five years ago but then he went on the slide, losing the next four fights before retiring.

There is no doubt that hanging up the gloves two and a half years ago was the right thing to do.

Tonight in Monterrey, El Terrible is returning to the ring aged 34 against a Nicaraguan journeyman called Jose Alfaro.

What is going on? There is no worse sight in sport than a shot fighter yearning for the past, a shadow of his former self.

In my 15 years as president of the Professional Boxers Association this was the biggest problem I had to address.

Next week Roy Jones Jnr takes on Bernard Hopkins 17 years after their first meeting. Jones reckons he will knock out Hopkins. It would be laughable if it were not so serious.

Morales conceded on retirement that he had taken too many punches to warrant extending his career. What has happened since then to change his mind?

Those punches have not gone away. He is no less susceptible to the dangers of long-term, slowonset impairment. He says he is targeting a fourth fight with Pacquiao. He must be dreaming. Pacquaio himself is hinting at retirement, doubtless to smoke out Floyd Mayweather.

But he won't hang around to beat up an old pug who cannot adhere to basic referee's instructions - defend yourself at all times.

The best outcome tonight would be a resounding victory for Alfaro. Sadly, that is unlikely given his pedigree.

It is a bad end to a sad week. My phone has been ringing off the hook with people wanting to discuss the passing of Harry Carpenter. Harry had been out of the limelight for 16 years, yet people remember him as if it were yesterday.

He went out at the top is no of his game and died in his sleep, aged 84. I would sign for that right now.

I recall Harry saying how he thought I had done the right thing when I retired. He was pleased I got out in good shape.

Morales is walking a tightrope that leads only one way - to misery and failure.

I prefer to remember him at his peak, standing toe to toe with Barrera going flat out to the finish. I have rarely seen such raw power and ferocity reciprocated so skilfully. They went through the full canon of boxing skills.

Morales not only hit like a mule, he could take a punch too.

He went out a hero and comes back a fool. Boxing is a young man's game.

Source: mirror.co.uk

Erik Morales: “Technically I have always known that I am better than Manny Pacquiao” -- Eastside Boxing

By Geoffrey Ciani, Eastside Boxing

This past week’s edition of On the Ropes Boxing Radio featured an exclusive interview with three division champion Erik “El Terrible” Morales. “El Terrible” was last seen inside the squared circle when he lost a somewhat controversial decision at the hands of David Diaz back in August 2007. This Saturday night Morales returns to the ring for the first time in a fight against former WBA lightweight champion Jose Alfaro. Here are some excerpts from that interview:

On coming back after nearly a two and a half year layoff:
“Yes, the rest was very good for me because I had a lot of physical fights and now, after two years, I feel well rested so things will turn out different for me.”

Regarding his thoughts on coming back:
“For me it is very important to give all of my heart inside the ring. I’ve always been able to accomplish that because I have always had the public behind me and that’s why I want to invite everyone on the 27th because it’s going to be no exception—it’s also going to be a great, great fight..”

Regarding his last fight where he suffered a disputed loss against David Diaz:
“The fight with David Diaz I did not lose. I think the judges beat me and psychologically for me it was not good for me in that moment, but now I am ready.”

On the controversial decision he lost in his rematch with Marco Antonio Barrera:

“I felt that in the first fight I was very, very happy because I won the fight. Barrera was very, very sad because he thought he won and they didn’t give it to him. In the second one, I thought for sure I had won that fight. I was celebrating like I had just won and Barrera never ever celebrated because he knew that even though they gave him the victory he could not celebrate. To me the most important thing in each of my fights is that all of the people that came to watch me fight are leaving happy that they saw a great fight leaving the arena. It doesn’t matter if I won or lost because I want those people to be entertained because they paid for those tickets.”

On being the last person to defeat current pound for pound King Manny Pacquiao:
“When I first fought him it was at 130 pounds. The second time he would not give me the chance to fight at 132 pounds and now he is fighting at 147 and I am coming back to fight at 147 also. I’m hoping that at a time not too long from now when the people see I can still do great, great things in the ring, I’m hoping that Manny Pacquiao will give me the chance to show he’s not the best in the world, because what I remember after twelve rounds is Manny Pacquiao crying—and crying and crying and crying because he knew about the beating he had just taken and he knew at that time there was somebody technically better than him. He had to find some way to be at an advantage to try and control me. That’s the way history was written, but here I am—brand new.”

On what he would do differently if he was to have a fourth fight with Pacquiao:
“The first time I fought him I just went right through him. The second time I went through him until the middle part of the fight but then I just ran out of steam and the third time I was just not able to, but now—I really value my condition more than ever before and so therefore now, I feel that I will show him I am much better than him. Technically I have always known that I am better than Manny Pacquiao, but now physically—that technicality and that skill and conditioning are all one and the same.”

Regarding his plan to compete in the welterweight division:
“I feel I can fight at welterweight easily. I can fight Pacquiao, I can fight (Juan Manuel) Marquez who has already fought at 147, and I can fight (Miguel) Cotto. I can fight any of those guys easily at 147 pounds. I feel very, very confident there.”

His views on Juan Manuel Marquez as a fighter:
“I’ve talked to Golden Boy about the possibility of fighting Juan Manuel Marquez. I think he’s a complete fighter, he’s an excellent fighter, but by the same token—there’s been Barrera and me, there’s been Pacquiao and me, there’s been all of those people with me but the one name missing is Juan Manuel Marquez. I am looking forward for the chance to fight Marquez.”

On whether he was disappointed he never got the opportunity to face Prince Naseem Hamed:
“Not at all. I’ve created my own legacy with the great fighters that I have fought so I never really needed Naseem Hamed and after he lost to Barrera he just disappeared.”

Regarding the story behind how he first started using the “El Terrible” moniker:
“Let it be told, that nickname was not given to me as a fighter but it was because I was so mischievous out in the street and it was actually given to me in the street.”

On Manny Pacquiao’s recent run of success in the higher weight classes:
“First of all, I respect all the hard work that Manny Pacquiao has put in with scaling the different weight divisions and showing tremendous dominance. For my particular taste, those fights were not a pleasure because they seemed way too easy and it defies logic how easily Pacquiao was able to win all of those fights.”

On whether he thinks rumors circulating about Pacquiao taking any illegal substances have any basis in truth:
“ I’m not really there so I don’t really know. I guess a lot of times when you don’t fear anything you’re willing to take anything or any of that stuff, but the bottom line is I don’t really know anything about that stuff so it’s not really for me to go ahead and decide.”

On what he considers to be his most complete performance:
“Obviously, winning my first title. I’ve had so many great moments. Winning my first title was one of them. The second being when I fought and unified the titles against Barrera, and of course, when I fought Pacquiao because everybody thought he was the best 130 pound fighter in the world and so therefore going in there, and also winning my third world title. They have all been great moments for me.”

On being a part of the famous trilogy with Marco Antonio Barrera:
“Basically we both had a warrior mentality where we both came in and gave it everything we had. That was the thing that united us in the ring—the will and the warrior mentality to give it everything that we had.”

Regarding whether or not he received any added satisfaction in his win over Junior Jones because Jones twice bested Barrera:

“Obviously, there have been two opponents that have been very, very important in my career. One of them of course as you just mentioned, was Junior Jones who had beaten 32 Mexicans before he got to me and so to go ahead and put a beating on him and beat him, that was a tremendous pleasure. Then after that it was Manny Pacquiao. Being the first Mexican fighter to ever beat Manny Pacquiao, that was a tremendous pleasure and also because of how many other Mexican fighters Pacquiao has beaten. So those have been the two fighters that are so, so important for my career.”

On whether he would ever consider having a fourth fight with Barrera:
“No, not really. I feel that Marco Antonio Barrera is retired and that he is now done with boxing—especially not at 147 pounds, I don’t think Barrera would ever want that.”

Regarding how he would ultimately like to be remembered by boxing fans:
“Like they’ve always known me—as a great, great warrior who gives his heart in the ring.”

On how he feels he will perform in his next fight against Jose Alfaro:
“First of all, I’m quicker than ever. I feel very comfortable at this weight because I feel I can let it all go. I can let it all go in the ring and I’m going up against a guy who was a world champion. He’s a tremendous, tremendous puncher and he’s a very young guy so he’s going to be anxious to make great fight so therefore it’s going to make for a great, great fight—but, I am more than ready for the task. Whatever is in front of me I am more than ready to show the world that I am back.”

Regarding his future plans in the event he beats Alfaro:
“First of all, the number one thing is that when I go in there the people are going to go ahead and rate me. So I am waiting for the people to go ahead and rate me and let them decide who, in fact, they would like to see me fight. So on your radio show or anything like that if you have some suggestions after the fight, let everybody decide what level I am fighting and let everyone voice their opinion and then they can pick who I fight next.”

His official prediction on his upcoming fight with Alfaro:
“We’re going to make a great, great fight—a beautiful fight—but we’re going to win.”

***

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Source: eastsideboxing.com

Erik Morales Returns to Ring Against Jose Alfaro -- FanHouse

By Lem Satterfield, FanHouse

Erik Morales' legacy as one of the premiere Mexican fighters is no doubt secure, as is his reputation as one of the best boxers ever to lace on a pair of gloves.

"Morales has sealed a respected reputation in boxing, in my humble opinion, because he's done so much. I believe that he's going to be a first-ballot Hall of Famer," said Robert Morales, of the Los Angeles Daily News and The Long Beach Press Telegram. "I don't think that there is anything that could stop him from being recognized as one of Mexico's greatest fighters of the past 25 years."

In November and April of 1996, and, 1997, respectively, Junior Jones handed the previously unbeaten Marco Antonio Barrera consecutive losses by fifth-round disqualification, and, unanimous decision.

Two fights later, however, Morales, nicknamed, "El Terrible," stopped Jones in four rounds on the way to running his own unbeaten mark to 35 bouts.

Born in Tijuana, Mex., Morales lost two out of three fights with Mexico City's Barrera, a classic trilogy that reached a legendary status which, for Mexicans, rivals the one between Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier.

Barrera-Morales" is probably the greatest trilogy in boxing history," noted boxing historian, Burt Sugar, said in 2004. "Muhammad Ali-Joe Frazier II was a non-fight, and Tony Zale-Rocky Graziano III was a walk-over," said Sugar. "Barrera-Morales is the only trilogy where each of the three fights was as good as the other."

After defeating Morales in their third meeting by majority decision in November, 2004, Barrera extended his hand to Morales, only to get a water bottle thrown at him.

"At one point, Barrera had referred to Morales as an 'Indio,' which means 'Indian,' and for someone from the well-to-do, Southern part of of Mexico like Barrera to say that to a guy from the down-trodden, Northern part of Mexico, Tijuana, like Morales was, that's quite an insult," said Robert Morales, a Mexican-American who is not related to Erik Morales.

"One guy who was born in Mexico but who now lives in the United States told me that 'Indio' was as bad as somebody using the N-word," said Morales. "That's what started the animosity and the real dislike for each other. And ther was no question that by the time these guys got done with their three fights, they just did not like each other."

But following that second loss to Barrera, Morales bounced back by earning a March, 2005, unanimous decision over future seven-division champion, Manny Pacquiao.

Since then, however, Pacquiao has gone 12-0, with eight knockouts -- including two stoppages over Morales -- earned Fighter Of The Year honors three straight times, been named Fighter Of The Decade, and agruably become the sport's best fighter, pound-for-pound.

"The two opponents who have defined my career are Junior Jones and Manny Pacquaio. Defeating Jones was important to me because he had stopped something like 32 Mexicans in previous fights," said Morales, who will turn 34 in September. "Defeating Pacquaio is my greatest accomplishment in the ring. I remember seeing him cry after our fight."

But Morales' career took a downward spiral following the victory over Pacquiao, after which, in succession, he was decisioned by Zahir Raheem in September of 2005, stopped in 10, and, three rounds, by Pacquiao, respectively, in January, and, November, of 2006, and, decisioned by David Diaz in August of 2007.

Morales lost, 115-112, 111-113, and, 114-113, to Diaz, who prevented Morales from becoming the first Mexican fighter to win a crown in four divisions.

Morales announced his retirement in the ring following losing to Diaz, which was his fourth straight setback, and the fifth in his last six fights.

"The smaller fighters usually have been in a lot of wars and take a lot of punishment because there are a lot more punches delivered. And his first championship was at super bantamweight [122 pounds,]" said Robert Morales, referring to Morales' September, 1997, 11th-round knockout of Daniel Zaragoza.

"So I don't see any reason for him to come back unless he needs the money or is in a financial hardship," said Morales. "Something like that could tarnish his legacy just a little bit because Morales has nothing left to prove."

But the 33-year-old, former three-division, world champion, is coming back.

For Morales (48-6, 34 knockouts) will end a 31-month ring absence on Saturday night when he takes on 26-year-old Jose "Jicaras" Alfaro (23-5, 20 KOs), of Nagarote, Nicaragua, in a 12-round, 142-pound bout in Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mex.

Among Morales' goals during the comeback are a fourth-straight match up with Pacquiao (51-3-2, 38 KOs), as well as a shot at Mexican great, Juan Manuel Marquez (50-5-1, 37 KOs), a WBA lightweight (135 pounds) champion and three-division titlist who has beaten Barrera, lost a disputed decision to Pacquiao and battled Pacquiao to a draw.

"I would love another chance at Pacquaio," said Morales, "and I also look forward to fighting Juan Manuel Marquez in the future."

Morales said that he would like to face Pacquiao at 147 pounds.

"At 147, I'm faster than ever and freer with my body, so I can get the most out of it. First, though, is my fight against Jose Alfaro on March 27th in Monterrey on pay per view," said Morales.

"Alfaro is a great young fighter and a former world champion. He's a wicked puncher who will bring his best," said Morales. "Alfaro has a big heart that he will bring into the ring, and he always gives fans everything he has."

Last seen in the ring on Halloween, however, Alfaro was absorbing a one-sided beating at the hands of Mexican southpaw, Antonio DeMarco, who won virtually every round of their WBC interim lightweight title bout before stopping Alfaro in the 10th.

Alfaro had won three straight fights, two of them by knockout, before facing DeMarco at Treasure Island Resort and Casino in Las Vegas.

Alfaro was attempting to line himself up for another shot at the WBA crown, which he had won in December of 2007 by split decision over Thailand's Prawet Singwancha.

Alfaro, however, was promptly dethroned by Japan's Yusuke Kobori, who stopped Alfaro in the third round of his first defense in May of 2008.

"I do not mind that Morales is the favorite in this fight. I understand, but I had the best training camp of my life, in my country, and I'm going to win," said Alfaro. "My youth and strength will dominate this match. I know that I'm going to be taking the victory to back to Nicaragua."

Among the bouts on the Morales-Alfaro undercard is a 12-round co-feature between former two-time, WBA light heavyweight (175 pounds) champion, Hugo Hernan "Pigu" Garay (32-4, 17 KOs), of Tigre, Buenos Aires, Argentina, against Chris "Hard Hittin" Henry (24-2, 19 KOs), of Houston, Tex., in a WBA eliminator.

"I'm happy to be here [in Monterrey,] and completely ready to face Alfaro. Fans will see a different Erik Morales than in my last few fights," said Morales.

"Now I'm hungry to win this fight and to go on toward winning a world title in my fourth division," said Morales. "I want to prove to everyone watching that all of the hard work in training camp will result in a great performance in my return to the ring."

Source: boxing.fanhouse.com