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Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him!!
Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him
By Joaquin Henson
The Philippine Star 08/17/2006
LAS VEGAS – The real Erik Morales emerged in a moment of transparency, if not weakness, during the recent Wynn Hotel press conference announcing his third fight against Manny Pacquiao on Nov. 18.
Morales was clearly peeved when in a STAR interview, he recoiled when asked to comment on Pacquiao’s reported objective of forcing his retirement.
"Let him tell that to me, to my face," said Morales in Spanish. He added something about Pacquiao that’s not fit to print.
Before his emotional outburst, Morales appeared cordial and civil towards Pacquiao with whom he shared the stage last Saturday in drumbeating for the "Grand Finale," the climax of their trilogy.
But don’t even think for a second they’re the best of friends. Their rivalry is seething and Morales realizes the coming bout will not only be for pride but his survival in the fight game.
Morales’ dare for Pacquiao to retire him exposed the sense of urgency that hangs over the Mexican’s head like a sword of Damocles. He was irritable and shaken up by the thought that retirement will be imminent if Pacquiao wins convincingly.
Morales tried to show a façade of confidence, smiling broadly at reporters and posing for pictures with wife Andrea and their baby son Erik Jr. But whenever he stole a glance at Pacquiao, there appeared to be a look of concern, if not disdain.
But the interview went on.
Who is a better fighter, Pacquiao or Marco Antonio Barrera? Me, he replied curtly.
How do you intend to fight Pacquiao – from a distance or close in? He smiled as if to sneer and said he’ll do what it takes to win.
What does he consider to be Pacquiao’s weaknesses? Again, he smiled and said he’d rather not say.
What does he intend to do differently in the third fight? He said he doesn’t respect Pacquiao’s boxing ability. Morales pointed out he won the first fight because he was in good physical condition and lost the second because he was not in shape. The defeat to Pacquiao had nothing to do with the Filipino being a better fighter – Morales insisted it was because he was not in shape.
Morales vowed to be in his best form for the third meeting and that’s why he said, he’ll win.
On his much-ballyhooed conditioning program in Los Angeles, Morales said it’s proceeding on schedule. He declined to reveal how much he weighs now although his weight was estimated to be in the 145 to 150 range. Morales has up to Nov. 17, the day before the fight, to weigh in at 130.
Morales said there are seven training, conditioning and nutrition specialists working with him at the Velocity Sports Performance gym in Los Angeles to prepare his body for the grueling workouts waiting at the Otomi Mountains in Mexico.
Top Rank Promotions head Bob Arum said Velocity was the same gym where Oscar de la Hoya underwent highly-specialized training for two years. Arum said the press will be invited soon to inspect the facility.
Morales said he watched Pacquiao beat Oscar Larios on TV and wasn’t impressed.
"It was nothing to be excited about because Larios was too easy an opponent," said Morales. "Pacquiao’s win didn’t mean anything because he won without difficulty."
Morales also didn’t seem excited about rehiring his father Jose as trainer. "Nothing new in what we’ll work on in the gym," he said. "We’ll just review the good things we did before. The real key is my conditioning."
Morales’ father was sidelined as trainer after he lost to Zahir Raheem last year and was not in his corner for the second Pacquiao fight.
Throughout the press conference, Morales put up a charade of being a humble fighter, grateful for the opportunity to redeem himself after losing three of his last four bouts.
However, his true colors surfaced when he was posed a difficult question that revealed his irascible nature.
Arum said Morales is a sketch of a perfect fighter to promote because he is a warrior who never says die.
"Erik is very determined and he is anxious to take on Pacquiao for a third time," said Arum. "These two great champions have always given it their all, each and every second in the ring, especially against each other. I expect this third fight to be the most exciting of the trilogy and that’s saying something."
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Re: Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him!!
Whooo Hooo! This is getting exciting guys, Erik has good and bad points on his comments though. When asked who's the better fighter MAB or PAC he said ME!!! True grit and confidence, I too believe of those guys Erik is the best fighter, it's just that MAB infused a fit of rage on Erik whenever they go at it and that becomes Erik's biggest mistake. If he should have stayed on the outside picking his spots MAB would, IMO, be KO'd. We all saw that in the third fight, I think it was round 7-8 where Erik should have established his dominance. Oh well, that's Erik always looking to retaliate, but MAB on the inside has faster hand speed.
It was the remark he made on Chololo mentioning that Larios was too easy for an opponent, I disagree with this. Chololo is very good fighter, and that night Pac was simply amazing. Throwing a variety of punches, showing us new moves and aside from round 3 Pac's D was solid. To downgrade Chololo ain't my cup of tea. He showed great heart, willing to exchange with Pac and shown some power too. Did you ever see Pac that dazed against EM, MAB, I saw that against JMM but not as quite.
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Re: Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him!!
I dont like morales, he never gives anyone credit for beating him.
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Re: Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Snakey
I dont like morales, he never gives anyone credit for beating him.
Both of us bro, it's just one thing I dislike about El Terible. But, everything else is Great, He's got a swagger of a confidence. I like that in a fighter and the way he fights tall. Almost unbeatable. CC dude!
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Re: Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him!!
Erik is definetly the better fighter between him and pacquio but MAB is the smartest of the three
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Re: Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by chamiley
Erik is definetly the better fighter between him and pacquio but MAB is the smartest of the three
CC bro! MAB is a smart fighter, but let me include JMM in that smart category. How I'd love for him to join trio dance. But as a complete fighter I ranked Erik first, it's just the intangibles that Manny does that guides him to victories over a more skillful opponent/ But then again, Manny is being looked at as a one dimensional fighter, maybe that is what he wants opponents to see and when they collide BOOM! they are dead wrong. IMO
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Re: Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mintymen
Whooo Hooo! This is getting exciting guys, Erik has good and bad points on his comments though. When asked who's the better fighter MAB or PAC he said ME!!! True grit and confidence, I too believe of those guys Erik is the best fighter, it's just that MAB infused a fit of rage on Erik whenever they go at it and that becomes Erik's biggest mistake. If he should have stayed on the outside picking his spots MAB would, IMO, be KO'd. We all saw that in the third fight, I think it was round 7-8 where Erik should have established his dominance. Oh well, that's Erik always looking to retaliate, but MAB on the inside has faster hand speed.
It was the remark he made on Chololo mentioning that Larios was too easy for an opponent, I disagree with this. Chololo is very good fighter, and that night Pac was simply amazing. Throwing a variety of punches, showing us new moves and aside from round 3 Pac's D was solid. To downgrade Chololo ain't my cup of tea. He showed great heart, willing to exchange with Pac and shown some power too. Did you ever see Pac that dazed against EM, MAB, I saw that against JMM but not as quite.
Morrales isn't even close to the best of the Pac,him, and Barrera... I would say Barrera, Pac, then him if there was any pecking order.
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Re: Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him!!
That's the Erik I want to hear!! The fire,the ego,come on ERIK!!! EL Terrribbbbbblllllleeeeee!!!!Ahem,Erik is a great great warrior who in his prime,would have stayed toe to toe with Pacman but the wars are catching up on him and also,against Raheem,he forgot how to box.I think he is realising this now and will work his ass off!(that's what I hope is happening 0therwise he's going to get knocked the F out!)
And if MAB is not even close to Pac,how comes,towards the end of his career,he still managed to beat him??? ???
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Re: Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him!!
Morales better be careful about what he asks for cause he just might get it!!!
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Re: Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Taeth
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mintymen
Whooo Hooo! This is getting exciting guys, Erik has good and bad points on his comments though. When asked who's the better fighter MAB or PAC he said ME!!! True grit and confidence, I too believe of those guys Erik is the best fighter, it's just that MAB infused a fit of rage on Erik whenever they go at it and that becomes Erik's biggest mistake. If he should have stayed on the outside picking his spots MAB would, IMO, be KO'd. We all saw that in the third fight, I think it was round 7-8 where Erik should have established his dominance. Oh well, that's Erik always looking to retaliate, but MAB on the inside has faster hand speed.
It was the remark he made on Chololo mentioning that Larios was too easy for an opponent, I disagree with this. Chololo is very good fighter, and that night Pac was simply amazing. Throwing a variety of punches, showing us new moves and aside from round 3 Pac's D was solid. To downgrade Chololo ain't my cup of tea. He showed great heart, willing to exchange with Pac and shown some power too. Did you ever see Pac that dazed against EM, MAB, I saw that against JMM but not as quite.
Morrales isn't even close to the best of the Pac,him, and Barrera... I would say Barrera, Pac, then him if there was any pecking order.
I think ppl are riding too high on Pacman's bandwagon that they have forgotton what a great warrior Erik was in his prime no way Pac could do to him what he did in the second fight. The wars have definetly caught up to him plus his efforts to make weight clearly present him a handicap
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Re: Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him!!
Without meaning ot take away from Pac's win,I also believe that Chamiley. Like I said,a younger,prime Morales who could stand toe to toe for 12 roundsl.who did not squeeze weight to make the fight would have beaten Pac in my opinion but no point going over the same ground,I still think Morales is good enough to win. He better not dissapoint.
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Re: Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mintymen
Quote:
Originally Posted by Snakey
I dont like morales, he never gives anyone credit for beating him.
Both of us bro, it's just one thing I dislike about El Terible. But, everything else is Great, He's got a swagger of a confidence. I like that in a fighter and the way he fights tall. Almost unbeatable. CC dude!
sounds like Eric is going to lay it all out....someone is getting KTFO!!!!!! can't wait for this one!!!!!!
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Re: Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him!!
Can't wait for the little pacman to pound Eric into retirement by the end of the year. Then he can retire Berrara presuming he scrapes by Juarez.
The little pacman owns the super featherweight division, even though he's still not a world champ yet.
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Re: Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him!!
Valero will end Pacman's reign!!! ;D
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Re: Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by El Phenomena
Valero will end Pacman's reign!!! ;D
Yup and next you will be telling us that B Hop beat Jermain Taylor in their two fights ::**
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Re: Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him!!
Trsut Me...
Mexico will reign supreme....
Morales Will WIN
Morales will then fight Barrera
Barrera will beat Juarez
Morales v Barrera For The Belt
Barreran Will WIN
and BOTH will retire.....
Theres NO Other WAY
(chamily - superb mate.....)
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Re: Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by bilbo
Can't wait for the little pacman to pound Eric into retirement by the end of the year. Then he can retire Berrara presuming he scrapes by Juarez.
The little pacman owns the super featherweight division, even though he's still not a world champ yet.
it pains me when I watch the Nature channel and the young lions/hippo's/elephants beat down or even kill the dominant male... and if Paciao does this to Morales I will be sad again....Eric was the ultimate warrior and it has always been a treat to watch him fight....you knew it was never going to be dull or boring and that it just might be the FOTY!!!
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Re: Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him!!
No,B Hop won the first,JT the second.... ::** ;D :D :)
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Re: Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him!!
Pac is a superb fighter, but he beat Morales and Barrera in the later stages, he wouldnt have lived with them in thier prime.
The thing is, as much as I love Barrera
Barrera > Morales > Pacman
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Morales will end victorious
Having read all the latest news updates about the third fight of Morales and Pacquiao made me realize that Morales will definitely win. I can say that Morales is now in his best condition not like his previous fights where he end up losing. I cant wait for this fight to happen.
So what if Morales answered that he's the best fighter among mab and mp.. He deserves to be the best coz he got skills, power and most especially he thinks of his moves not like mp.
Im a Filipino and im proud to be on Morales' side...
"EL TERRIBBLE" will surely win!!!
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Re: Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by El Phenomena
No,B Hop won the first,JT the second.... ::** ;D :D :)
I don;t know Valero is the truth, Hopkins beat Taylor first time around.................I'm not even going to enter into discussion with a guy who clearly has no clue about boxing. ;D
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Re: Morales will end victorious
Quote:
Originally Posted by vivaralasa
Having read all the latest news updates about the third fight of Morales and Pacquiao made me realize that Morales will definitely win. I can say that Morales is now in his best condition not like his previous fights where he end up losing. I cant wait for this fight to happen.
So what if Morales answered that he's the best fighter among mab and mp.. He deserves to be the best coz he got skills, power and most especially he thinks of his moves not like mp.
Im a Filipino and im proud to be on Morales' side...
"EL TERRIBBLE" will surely win!!!
CC FOR FIRST PART
BUT M8Y bARRERA WON ALL 3 AGAINBST MORALES
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Morales will win!!!
i think Erik Morales will show us what he can really do in their third fight :). The reason why he lost in the 2nd fight to pacquiao is because he was in bad condition and had difficulties going down from 135 to 130 just to fight pacquiao again which ended up in a 10th round TKO :o. But morales has now some weight specialist which can help him make 130 easily . EM asking to believe in him one more time, to show us all what he can really do.. im sure he is damn serious about it, cuz he is a smart fighter and he knows what it takes to win against pacquiao . morales key in winning this fight is his conditioning. and this november he will be in top condition and win their trilogy once and for all.. =D
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Re: Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him!!
morales is a punk with no respect for pacquiao
i want pacman to knock morales the fukk out
he lost the 2nd fight cause he got fukked up not because he was out of shape
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Re: Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by 1magine
morales is a punk with no respect for pacquiao
i want pacman to knock morales the fukk out
he lost the 2nd fight cause he got fukked up not because he was out of shape
yup
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Re: Morales will win!!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by janvares
i think Erik Morales will show us what he can really do in their third fight :). The reason why he lost in the 2nd fight to pacquiao is because he was in bad condition and had difficulties going down from 135 to 130 just to fight pacquiao again which ended up in a 10th round TKO :o. But morales has now some weight specialist which can help him make 130 easily . EM asking to believe in him one more time, to show us all what he can really do.. im sure he is damn serious about it, cuz he is a smart fighter and he knows what it takes to win against pacquiao . morales key in winning this fight is his conditioning. and this november he will be in top condition and win their trilogy once and for all.. =D
i definitely agree... last fight with pacquiao, morales was obviously not in his condition... you can really see his will to fight eventhough he got weak on the later rounds... and now that he's asking for us to believe in him one more time, not only pacquiao but all of us will be surprised by the skills that morales will show us in their fight this november.
El Terrible is BACK and he will be on his BEST!!!
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Re: Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him!!
What!!!!!!!!!?????????????????? Morales will not let that happen... He will @ least be a force in boxing for the next four years, win or lose... But I think Morales has something to prove and will decision Pac.... ??? I dont know... tough call ;)
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Re: Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by "PRIDE OF BOSTON"
What!!!!!!!!!?????????????????? Morales will not let that happen... He will @ least be a force in boxing for the next four years, win or lose... But I think Morales has something to prove and will decision Pac.... ??? I dont know... tough call ;)
what's up with the name change?????? this stuff is killing me...first GBRABDON now THE PRIDE OF PROVIDENCE!!! say it isn't so!!!!! but I hope Morales pulls it out...I really respect him as a fighter....
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Re: Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by janvares
i think Erik Morales will show us what he can really do in their third fight :). The reason why he lost in the 2nd fight to pacquiao is because he was in bad condition and had difficulties going down from 135 to 130 just to fight pacquiao again which ended up in a 10th round TKO :o. But morales has now some weight specialist which can help him make 130 easily . EM asking to believe in him one more time, to show us all what he can really do.. im sure he is damn serious about it, cuz he is a smart fighter and he knows what it takes to win against pacquiao . morales key in winning this fight is his conditioning. and this november he will be in top condition and win their trilogy once and for all.. =D
you think he isnt even serious on the 2nd fyt?
cmon dude...
i hate these arguments about the ages, the wars, blah-blah-blah....
and you're also sayin he had difficulties going to 130 from 135
what do you think is his weight ryt now 134?!
i like him. he is one hell of a fighter.
but truth is he is not that brave.
a guy who always have diffuculties on making the weight limit
means he is toooo big and doesnt fit the division
he just likes to fight smaller guys.
how do you think he'll do at 135 or 140?
if the weigh-in is actually at the night of the fight...
i myself can knock him out 8)
ironically pac came from 108
and is a natural 122
so whos brave enough?
who has the confidence? ;)
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Re: Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by the_answer
ironically pac came from 108
and is a natural 122
so whos brave enough?
who has the confidence? ;)
Well my friend, it's their prerogative to fight at this division, Manny came up and up and up to land the best fights possible for him, I myself(ashamed of me) did not think Manny belonged in the same ring with MAB 2003, and he shocks the world and dismantles Barrera. Next came the WBA/IBF Juan Manuel Marquez, where at that time was only decked once(I think) in his career and in the first round against PAC got Owned three times, though he got a draw, many were still riding high on PAC's big win over MAB and thought that PAC won a very close fight. he again stepped up to 130 to face EM where he lost via 12 round very exciting fight. Bottom line, PAC has already reached his goals, he landed the big fights, became the best fighter out of Asia and is now very popular among boxing fans.
Erik on the other hand, had his hands full at 122, 126 and 130 that's why he does not move up that fast. And given his tall frame, I'm pretty sure it is hell to make the limit. He has already been part of the biggest fights in his divisions and I was sure when he fought Raheem at 135, he does not want to go back to 130 to fight PAC, he already got a win. If PAC still wants to fight him it would be at 135, if EM had won against Raheem, he was leaning to fight the winner of Chico/Castillo fight but things ended up on the different side and that's what is screwing Erik now. He must make the limit or he loses his chance for revenge. Anyway, I still think that Erik can win over a lot of lightweights but not as impressive when he was fighting smaller guys. His punches coming from above, because of his height advantage, does not have the same power anymore. Hey, he has already defeated a current lightweight champion.
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Re: Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by the_answer
you think he isnt even serious on the 2nd fyt?
cmon dude...
i hate these arguments about the ages, the wars, blah-blah-blah....
and you're also sayin he had difficulties going to 130 from 135
what do you think is his weight ryt now 134?!
i like him. he is one hell of a fighter.
but truth is he is not that brave.
a guy who always have diffuculties on making the weight limit
means he is toooo big and doesnt fit the division
he just likes to fight smaller guys.
how do you think he'll do at 135 or 140?
if the weigh-in is actually at the night of the fight...
i myself can knock him out 8)
ironically pac came from 108
and is a natural 122
so whos brave enough?
who has the confidence? ;)
r u saying that pacquiao is braver than morales? o cmon.. Did you know that Morales challenged Pacquiao to fight on a 131-132 weight... Roach accepted that challenge but still Pacquaio insisted coz he is not brave enough to fight Morales in the weight where Morales would be in his top condition. Now who's braver? Think wisely dude... and confidence? Check out the latest news and you'll find out that Morales is confident to beat Pacquiao.. 8)
If not because of the 3rd fight of Pacquiao...Morales won't go down on a weight to fight Pacquiao. Why? Do you know who's the next fighter that Morales will face?... Are you sure that it will be a smaller fighter again? Morales aint afraid to fight bigger fighters. He is just on a contract at this moment to fight Pacquiao on a smaller weight..
Morales may be fighting a smaller fighter..but the smaller fighter we're speaking about is not small when it comes to boxing superfeatherweight...
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Re: Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him!!
guys, are you aware that, in the 1st Morales-Pac fight, Pac's manager duped him by taking blood samples just days before the fight, and the gloves used was not the prepared gloves of pacman?
That i is why morales could stand toe to toe with the pacman.
But then in the 2nd fight, Morales cant take the punches of pac coz of the prepared gloves which is thinner, thus harder to hit.
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Re: Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mintymen
Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him
By Joaquin Henson
The Philippine Star 08/17/2006
LAS VEGAS – The real Erik Morales emerged in a moment of transparency, if not weakness, during the recent Wynn Hotel press conference announcing his third fight against Manny Pacquiao on Nov. 18.
Morales was clearly peeved when in a STAR interview, he recoiled when asked to comment on Pacquiao’s reported objective of forcing his retirement.
"Let him tell that to me, to my face," said Morales in Spanish. He added something about Pacquiao that’s not fit to print.
Before his emotional outburst, Morales appeared cordial and civil towards Pacquiao with whom he shared the stage last Saturday in drumbeating for the "Grand Finale," the climax of their trilogy.
But don’t even think for a second they’re the best of friends. Their rivalry is seething and Morales realizes the coming bout will not only be for pride but his survival in the fight game.
Morales’ dare for Pacquiao to retire him exposed the sense of urgency that hangs over the Mexican’s head like a sword of Damocles. He was irritable and shaken up by the thought that retirement will be imminent if Pacquiao wins convincingly.
Morales tried to show a façade of confidence, smiling broadly at reporters and posing for pictures with wife Andrea and their baby son Erik Jr. But whenever he stole a glance at Pacquiao, there appeared to be a look of concern, if not disdain.
But the interview went on.
Who is a better fighter, Pacquiao or Marco Antonio Barrera? Me, he replied curtly.
How do you intend to fight Pacquiao – from a distance or close in? He smiled as if to sneer and said he’ll do what it takes to win.
What does he consider to be Pacquiao’s weaknesses? Again, he smiled and said he’d rather not say.
What does he intend to do differently in the third fight? He said he doesn’t respect Pacquiao’s boxing ability. Morales pointed out he won the first fight because he was in good physical condition and lost the second because he was not in shape. The defeat to Pacquiao had nothing to do with the Filipino being a better fighter – Morales insisted it was because he was not in shape.
Morales vowed to be in his best form for the third meeting and that’s why he said, he’ll win.
On his much-ballyhooed conditioning program in Los Angeles, Morales said it’s proceeding on schedule. He declined to reveal how much he weighs now although his weight was estimated to be in the 145 to 150 range. Morales has up to Nov. 17, the day before the fight, to weigh in at 130.
Morales said there are seven training, conditioning and nutrition specialists working with him at the Velocity Sports Performance gym in Los Angeles to prepare his body for the grueling workouts waiting at the Otomi Mountains in Mexico.
Top Rank Promotions head Bob Arum said Velocity was the same gym where Oscar de la Hoya underwent highly-specialized training for two years. Arum said the press will be invited soon to inspect the facility.
Morales said he watched Pacquiao beat Oscar Larios on TV and wasn’t impressed.
"It was nothing to be excited about because Larios was too easy an opponent," said Morales. "Pacquiao’s win didn’t mean anything because he won without difficulty."
Morales also didn’t seem excited about rehiring his father Jose as trainer. "Nothing new in what we’ll work on in the gym," he said. "We’ll just review the good things we did before. The real key is my conditioning."
Morales’ father was sidelined as trainer after he lost to Zahir Raheem last year and was not in his corner for the second Pacquiao fight.
Throughout the press conference, Morales put up a charade of being a humble fighter, grateful for the opportunity to redeem himself after losing three of his last four bouts.
However, his true colors surfaced when he was posed a difficult question that revealed his irascible nature.
Arum said Morales is a sketch of a perfect fighter to promote because he is a warrior who never says die.
"Erik is very determined and he is anxious to take on Pacquiao for a third time," said Arum. "These two great champions have always given it their all, each and every second in the ring, especially against each other. I expect this third fight to be the most exciting of the trilogy and that’s saying something."
I love how insanely biased that article was towards Pacquiao. The writer made Morales out ot be some insecure egomaniac, deathly afraid of Pacquiao. Did he conveniently leave out the quote which demonstrated Morales' "irascible nature". I sure as hell didn't see it.
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Re: Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mintymen
Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him
By Joaquin Henson
The Philippine Star 08/17/2006
LAS VEGAS – The real Erik Morales emerged in a moment of transparency, if not weakness, during the recent Wynn Hotel press conference announcing his third fight against Manny Pacquiao on Nov. 18.
Morales was clearly peeved when in a STAR interview, he recoiled when asked to comment on Pacquiao’s reported objective of forcing his retirement.
"Let him tell that to me, to my face," said Morales in Spanish. He added something about Pacquiao that’s not fit to print.
Before his emotional outburst, Morales appeared cordial and civil towards Pacquiao with whom he shared the stage last Saturday in drumbeating for the "Grand Finale," the climax of their trilogy.
But don’t even think for a second they’re the best of friends. Their rivalry is seething and Morales realizes the coming bout will not only be for pride but his survival in the fight game.
Morales’ dare for Pacquiao to retire him exposed the sense of urgency that hangs over the Mexican’s head like a sword of Damocles. He was irritable and shaken up by the thought that retirement will be imminent if Pacquiao wins convincingly.
Morales tried to show a façade of confidence, smiling broadly at reporters and posing for pictures with wife Andrea and their baby son Erik Jr. But whenever he stole a glance at Pacquiao, there appeared to be a look of concern, if not disdain.
But the interview went on.
Who is a better fighter, Pacquiao or Marco Antonio Barrera? Me, he replied curtly.
How do you intend to fight Pacquiao – from a distance or close in? He smiled as if to sneer and said he’ll do what it takes to win.
What does he consider to be Pacquiao’s weaknesses? Again, he smiled and said he’d rather not say.
What does he intend to do differently in the third fight? He said he doesn’t respect Pacquiao’s boxing ability. Morales pointed out he won the first fight because he was in good physical condition and lost the second because he was not in shape. The defeat to Pacquiao had nothing to do with the Filipino being a better fighter – Morales insisted it was because he was not in shape.
Morales vowed to be in his best form for the third meeting and that’s why he said, he’ll win.
On his much-ballyhooed conditioning program in Los Angeles, Morales said it’s proceeding on schedule. He declined to reveal how much he weighs now although his weight was estimated to be in the 145 to 150 range. Morales has up to Nov. 17, the day before the fight, to weigh in at 130.
Morales said there are seven training, conditioning and nutrition specialists working with him at the Velocity Sports Performance gym in Los Angeles to prepare his body for the grueling workouts waiting at the Otomi Mountains in Mexico.
Top Rank Promotions head Bob Arum said Velocity was the same gym where Oscar de la Hoya underwent highly-specialized training for two years. Arum said the press will be invited soon to inspect the facility.
Morales said he watched Pacquiao beat Oscar Larios on TV and wasn’t impressed.
"It was nothing to be excited about because Larios was too easy an opponent," said Morales. "Pacquiao’s win didn’t mean anything because he won without difficulty."
Morales also didn’t seem excited about rehiring his father Jose as trainer. "Nothing new in what we’ll work on in the gym," he said. "We’ll just review the good things we did before. The real key is my conditioning."
Morales’ father was sidelined as trainer after he lost to Zahir Raheem last year and was not in his corner for the second Pacquiao fight.
Throughout the press conference, Morales put up a charade of being a humble fighter, grateful for the opportunity to redeem himself after losing three of his last four bouts.
However, his true colors surfaced when he was posed a difficult question that revealed his irascible nature.
Arum said Morales is a sketch of a perfect fighter to promote because he is a warrior who never says die.
"Erik is very determined and he is anxious to take on Pacquiao for a third time," said Arum. "These two great champions have always given it their all, each and every second in the ring, especially against each other. I expect this third fight to be the most exciting of the trilogy and that’s saying something."
Nice read. I just have 1 thing to say.
DE LA ZONA NORTE TIJUANA BAJA CALIFORNIA, MEXICO
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Re: Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by chamiley
Erik is definetly the better fighter between him and pacquio but MAB is the smartest of the three
Ohhh!!!! :coolclick: YOU ALMOST GOT IT RIGHT!!! :)
"Erik is the better fighter of all of them, but Barrera is the smartest of the three."
Cool Click for getting close and making me realize the above! ;D
When it comes to raw physical ability, it's Pacquiao that comes out first.
I believe that Morales has the most talent. Footwork, Jab, DAMN!!!! WHOO!!! heheh
But it's Barrera that's smartest. ;)
To me, Morales is the best out of all of them. So much belief in himself.
After Pacquiao demolished Barrera, Marco wouldn't utter a word about rematch,
only when it couldn't be done, did he say "rematch."
Pacquiao cries when he wins. heh When Morales wins, he already expects it. haha
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Re: Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him!!
morales aint better than pacman or MAB. i cant wait to see pacman destroy him
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Re: Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by ds91
morales aint better than pacman or MAB. i cant wait to see pacman destroy him
Morales at his orime,was the complete fighter,can fight backwards,forwards,had power,good defence,lateral movement,excellent at countering and did not need to go to war because he was so skilled,he could avoid. Watch the [aulie Ayala fight,it is one of the most complete performances I have ever seen. He did EVERYTHING. And overall,his resume is far far superior to Pac's and close to MAB's.
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Re: Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him!!
It is because Ayala does not have the power of Pacman. EM can just stand in front of ayala.
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Re: Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by sparkle
It is because Ayala does not have the power of Pacman. EM can just stand in front of ayala.
Bro,I was giving an example of a complete boxing performance,showing EM's skills. He knew when to fight,when to box. Heck,watch Pac-EM1,outboxed and outbrawled Pacquioa. Like I said,EM in his prime,was just as furious as Pacman,if not more,watch EM-MAB1.Ditto for MAB,he could go to war(Kennedy Mckinney,Junior Jones) and box beautifully(Naseem),now he cannot go to war,certainly not with the same intensity. It's a fact that EM is going slightly downhill as evidenced in his run of losing 3 in 4 fights,that's totally unlike EM.
I am not taking anything away from Pac,I have used facts all the way through. He is a sensational fighter and his win over EM was incredible,but I have and always will maintain that at their primes,EM and MAB would have matched him and in my humble opinion,beaten him. It would still be close but they are are the more complete fighters.
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Re: Morales dares Pacquiao to retire him!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by El Gamo
Quote:
Originally Posted by sparkle
It is because Ayala does not have the power of Pacman. EM can just stand in front of ayala.
Bro,I was giving an example of a complete boxing performance,showing EM's skills. He knew when to fight,when to box. Heck,watch Pac-EM1,outboxed and outbrawled Pacquioa. Like I said,EM in his prime,was just as furious as Pacman,if not more,watch EM-MAB1.Ditto for MAB,he could go to war(Kennedy Mckinney,Junior Jones) and box beautifully(Naseem),now he cannot go to war,certainly not with the same intensity. It's a fact that EM is going slightly downhill as evidenced in his run of losing 3 in 4 fights,that's totally unlike EM.
I am not taking anything away from Pac,I have used facts all the way through. He is a sensational fighter and his win over EM was incredible,but I have and always will maintain that at their primes,EM and MAB would have matched him and in my humble opinion,beaten him. It would still be close but they are are the more complete fighters.
I'm getting a bit nostalgic here, remember the 'Mr. Game' days?:'( We started just like this. Why not give the guy a click and welcome him. Mr. sparkle, your first click is from me.