MORALES-BARRERA ERA’s TRILOGY

Erik Morales and Marco Antonio Barrera have beaten each other once in a half-decade, so now is the time to put the cap on this boxing trilogy and find out who is the superior superstar.

Now an upward crowd of 14,000 is expected Saturday at the MGM Grand Hotel for a card also including three other world title defenses on HBO pay-per-view distribution where the domestic buy is estimated at 400.000. The first TV bell is 9 p.m.ET/6 pm PT.

This is a 12-round mega bout seeping in intrigue since the gladiators will have fought at three different weight classes. Morales won the first mix at 122 on a controversial split decision Feb.19, 2000.
The first rematch was at 126 with Morales losing his WBC belt on a close decision many ringsiders thought went to the wrong corner.

Now the appropriate third bout is at 130 pounds with Morales having unified the WBC and IBF super featherweight crowns earlier this year with victories over Jesus Chavez (WBC) and Carlos Hernandez (IBF).

There couldn’t be a better tagline on this scenario than “Once and For All” since a fourth meeting is highly improbable no matter who emerges as the champion.

Morales, 28,.with a huge following on both sides of the border and raised in Tijuana where he is hailed as ‘El Terrible’. With a 47-1, 34 K0s record overall, Morales is18-1 in world championship fights and has a victory string that includes such stars as Paulie Ayala, Guty Espadas (twice),Wayne McCullough,Junior Jones, Jose Luis Bueno, Daniel Zaragoza, and Barrera.

Barrera, 30, living and fighting out of Mexico City, is equaling impressive as his arch-rival as a boxer-puncher with credentials that read 68-4.1 ND, 41 KOs, plus a championship record 17-3. Marco is also a three-time WBO junior featherweight champion. As the only rival to defeat Morales, Barrera’ conquest include Johnnie Tapia, Ayala, Enrique Sanchez, Naseem Hamed, Kevin Kelley, Jesus Salud, Kennedy McKinney, Eddie Cook, and Frankie Toledo.

Morales loves and respects his trainer/ father long before he turned pro at 16 in 1993

In a recent teleconference media call, Morales said his father “wasn’t overly happy about me fighting Barrera again.”

“I have always chosen my own fighters, so that means I’ll be at the MGM on Nov.27 but my father thinks Barrera hasn’t done enough over the last few years since our second fight, There is no real comparison, I have fought a lot of tough guys. i fought Paulie Ayala, Carlos Hernandez, and Jesus Chavez while Berrera met Ayala two years after I beat him.”

Morales likes the idea of facing Barrera at the.130-pound weight limit.

“I feel more comfortable at the weight 130, this is the weight that maybe I should have been fighting a long time ago. I feel like a more complete fighter. This is a great weight for me. I know I am going to be stronger and I think you will see the difference. I know I’ll be doing things that I couldn’t do because of the weight.”

CENSOR FOR TRASH-TALK IN BOXING

You get the idea that Marco Antonio Barrera, the college-educated elite fist-fighter from Mexico City, would like to see a little more sophistication
embracing boxing as we know it today.
Barrera’s chief irritation is the public’s growing opinion is that the game keeps shooting itself in the foot with huge negatives reeking with sleaze.

As the countdown started to complete Barrera’s trilogy with Erik Morales Saturday Nov.27 at the MGM Grand Hotel, he might have surprised the defending WBC/ IBF super featherweight champion.

“I’ve feel I’ve changed a lot than those early days when I turned pro. I’m more mature and understand you don’t have to use street language or gestures to make a point. You don’t need talk that way or act that way. We’re at an age now where we don’t have to play those games When we are in the ring, it’s always going to be the same way We only fight one way. However, outside the ring, we should also remember that we’re representing the sport.”

Morales. sometimes in a stoic mood, tried to smother laughter when he heard Barrera’s declaration.

“I guess Barrera must be sick. I gotta
think that because there is something that’s
wrong with him Today, he’ll say something, and then tomorrow, he’ll come up with something that’s completely different, You can’t believe what Barrera says. We’re not friends now and I don’t think we will ever be friends.”

(Jack Weish is a syndicated columnist based in Las Vegas and is a regular contributor to Ringsports.com and other national sports publications.