Erik Morales
San Francisco, CA– A fortnight ago, Erik Morales, now 34 years old, made a comeback after almost three years away from the ring and faced Marcos Maidana. While the fighter nicknamed, “El Terrible” (The Terrible One) came up short on points in losing unanimously to Maidana, Erik was both game and competitive, something few pundits expected against Argentina’s Maidana, a fighter considered to be in his boxing prime.
WATCHED ERIK RISE FROM THE CRIB
Today, I bring you back to September 1997 and Erik’s first interview after winning the WBC 122 lb. (super bantamweight) championship. After personally watching his ascension through the ranks fighting in his native Tijuana, I knew that the sky was the limit for the lanky Mexican that could box and punch. In this interview you’ll see that “El Terrible” was both confident and humble, a rare combination in the world of professional boxing.
ORIGINALLY FROM FLASH MAGAZINE ISSUE #218
The 122 lb. weight class has a fresh face in newly-crowned WBC champion Erik Morales. The champ appeared on “Ring Talk Worldwide” and talked about his fight with Daniel Zaragoza and who is the best 122-pounder in the world.
Ring Talk– Take us through your fight with Daniel Zaragoza.
Erik Morales- It was a fight that went exactly the way we thought. The strategy was to get physical with Zaragoza and make him work,
RT– He appeared ready to go twice but you didn’t jump on him.
EM-I was told not to…to relax and wait.
RT-Did you think he was ready to go?
EM– Possibly, but I did not want to get careless.
RT– Did he ever hurt you with those left crosses?
EM– No. None of the punches affected me.
RT-Other than on cuts, Zaragoza had never been stopped before. When he went down that final time he sort of saluted you, acknowledging the fact that he had been beaten.
EM– He told me after the fight that I would make a good champion.
RT– Was knocking him out important to you?
EM– I wanted the knockout. A decision would have given me the title. But a knockout means more to me. Zaragoza is a legend in Mexican boxing.
RT-Did you know when you landed that body shot that he was finished?
EM– I thought it might be over. It was such a clean punch.
RT– What about unification at 122 lbs? Do you want to fight the other champions?
EM– Right now I’m not challenging anyone. I will defend my title and let my manager pick the fights.
RT-Who is thr best 122 lb. fighter in the world?
EM– I would say, most people would say Junior Jones. And one day I look forward to facing him.
RT– The world is you will defend at 122 lbs. for three or four fights and move to featherweight (126). Do you have a problem making 122?
EM-No. It’s not easy. I have a nutritionist and I eat right and train right. I can stay at this weight as long as I want.
NOTES SURROUNDING 122 LBS. AT THE TIME
Had the late Gil Clancy, then of CBS TV, not pushed the inept management team of the #3 WBC rated fighter at 122, Eddie “Prime Time” Croft, into an obviously ill advised IBF 126 lb. title fight with champion Tom Johnson, promoter Don Chargin had worked out a deal with Zaragoza’s manager, the Mexican Godfather Rafael Mendoza, thus Croft would have gotten the first shot at the then 38-year old Zaragoza.
ERIK WOULD TANGLE WITH THE VERY CAPABLE JUNIOR JONES
As for Junior Jones, who held two wins over Marco Antonio Barrera, the man that would later become Morales’ arch nemesis, Jones fought Morales in Tijuana and got licked like a stamp by “El Terrible” in a one-sided affair that ended early.
Pedro Fernandez