With the depressing discussion of Marquez and Morales fighting NOW going on in the main board, I thought Id brighten the mood and pit these two against one another in their hey day. Thoughts? Marquez wins a decision for me.
Ive always been a Marquez fan, and I always disliked Morales..... but I think it woulda been a very close fight at 126-130. Marquez is overall the better fighter, but Morales would do well against Marquez's style, IMO. Obviously, any weight above 130 Marquez beats the hell outta him.
I'll go with Marquez by decision but it's probably a controversial one. Wouldn't surprise me if a trilogy was required for these two as well.
Close as hell fight. Morales gets forgotten on just how good he really was in his prime, tho I do think people seem to forget just how good Marquez was at those weights as well... Morales turns this into a brawl but I think ultimately Marquez figures him out enough in the middle rounds to counterpunch himself to a very close but clear decision 115-113.
Even though I think Marquez is the better fighter, I would pick Morales, quite confidently too. Morales's height/range/jab/handspeed would all do very well against Marquez, as would his occasional to launch fearless, balls to the wall assaults at opportune moments. Not only that but Morales' activity level. I can see Erik winning about 8 rounds to 4.
I don't think we ever saw Morales outboxed, did we? Not until the Raheem fight, anyway and I think it's fair to say he had shot his load by then. Barrera, Espadas, Chi & later Pac all had success by taking the fight right to him and pushing him back, but I don't remember seeing him troubled by a counter puncher. Barrera's attempt at it in their 2nd fight was a qualified success I suppose, but definitely his poorest showing of the 3. And as Mex says, Morales' distance & foot speed works well against Marquez, if the Chris John fight is anything to on. Obviously Morales would allow more action/exchanges than John, but then he'd fair better in them than John. think I'd pick Morales.
GREAT fight, I wish it happened when Morales still mattered I hate Morales too and I generally like JMM (the PED thing, which he likely did, is a let down big time) but I also would favor Morales a little... it's a close one though
It's a good point. For an aggressive fighter, Morales has always been troubled by people who got in his face. Morales is kind of an aggressive "boxer" who likes a bit of room to move, but conversely - can actually fight on the inside a bit when called for.
