Erik Morales: GBP offered me Mayweather!

Source: ESPN

This transcript translated by me will be devoid of minor dialogs.

ESPN: How are you Erik?

Morales: Very well thank you.

ESPN: Erik your return has been more than spectacular. You have fought five times and you've only lost one and the one you have lost against Maidana has been your best performance.

Morales: Well, when we think about sequels or about returning to boxing it is out of necessity and circumstances. The statistics tell you that you are going to lose. However, we made a plan to return and fight maybe not the best fighters but very good fighters. The fight against Maidana I didn't win yet I won. I won the respect of the people I won that I didn't come to play that I was working seriously. I won that not only I thought i could do it that now I knew I could do it.

ESPN: Morales in the negotiation tables there is talk of a fight with Antonio DeMarco, Floyd Mayweather or even a possible rematch with Maidana. What is next for El Terrible?

Morales: I've been talking with Golden Boy and they are offering me Floyd Mayweather. There is nothing concrete nothing clear they are just seeing if we can come to terms.

ESPN: In what weight?

Morales: In 145 pounds.

ESPN: Terrible he is a Welterweight though.

Morales: He is a welterweight. I don't have problems with the weight. I am pretty tall for the division. I wouldn't have a problem going up it is a minor detail. Another option is I've just sat at the fight of Hopkins vs Dawson. Pacquiao was behind me and we talked a little bit about the fights and what we were going to do and I told him, "last time we fought at 130, you didn't want to go up 2 lbs now you fight at 147 why not." He told me, "Yes, I think yes." We ended up talking about a possible date and a few conditions. I agreed to come down to 135 lbs to fight Pacquiao. At that time the fight with Linares and DeMarco was happening and Linares was looking excellent and they looked at me with disbelief and said, "Morales you are really going to fight Linares?" I said yeah first with Linares then with you (Pacquiao). They were surprised then when DeMarco knocked out Linares I laughed even more because I said now we can skip that detail no?

ESPN: Between DeMarco, Linares and what you speak of Mayweather and Pacquiao we are talking about major leagues in boxing which I believe you belong to the upper leagues than the lower ones.

Morales: Yes, maybe but you have to remember that in leaving boxing for 2 and a half years and return little by little has been a lot of work. Not just fighting with the best, I would have fought the best from the beginning. But to aspire to win the fight, I want to go up there and leave with the victory. It is there where you have to plan things a little better. I don't believe I am there yet I want to have one more fight before I take on these guys. When I am ready it wont be me telling you guys, it will be you guys saying we should see Morales vs this guy or this guy.

ESPN: Why does Maidana say you are afraid of him?

Morales: Maidana says I am scared because at the end of the fight we felt we won, and you've seen on the tape at the end of the fight he tells us, "If you want ill give you the rematch tomorrow" or something like that. After a few days I sit with Golden Boy and I say, "Ok lets talk about the rematch with Maidana" and they tell me, "No, Contursi and Maidana say they have had too many tough fights they don't want to get in the ring with you right now." So I said ok. Time went by and I told Golden Boy ok he doesn't have many options give me the rematch with him. They tell me, "Erik, he just plain doesn't want to get in the ring with you." So we planned a new path for my career, he did as well he planned to fight with the Ghost then he got sick so he fought in Argentina where things didn't go so well economically. Now that things aren't going so well for him now he wants to mess with me. That's not fair. So now I tell him, when the opportunities were there he didn't want to and I've redesigned my career plan. It's not about fear, besides if I was scared remember that before the fight they were telling me he was going to knock me out and what not. However, the only one that was about to get knocked out was him, the only one that was really hurt was him. The only one that won more than lost was him because they gave him the fight.

ESPN: Erik you've now won 4 titles in different titles. Travieso Arce had something to say about that what do you think? Why does he say these things about you.

At this time a video comes up that is travieso passionately saying Morales won a fourth title but against who? Who was Cano? Not even Cano's Grandma knew him and what not.

Morales: You probably remember that I used to represent travieso, I molded him, i taught him technique, what to do in the ring for certain scenarios but as time went by he got closer and closer to Fernando Beltran and he ended up going with him. Now there has been a competition since I've come back about winning the title and what not. The truth is that it is very childish. As you know, Ive won 4 titles and one could arrogantly say I am the best Mexican fighter since im the only one thats done it. However, Mexican boxing history is so rich and extensive with so many fighters. We have Raton Macias, he was never a world champion and he was an idol. Ruben Olivares was only champion in two divisions and he was also an idol. Napoles was another fantastic fighter. So winning titles is merely a statistic simply a data point. I don't know where I am at or if I am an idol, just good fighter, technician, or bad fighter but the only thing I know is that when I go up in the ring I give it my all and people applaud it and keep going.

 

Oh trust me. They'll find a way to spin this! :yep

 

Morales: I've been talking with Golden Boy and they are offering me Floyd Mayweather. There is nothing concrete nothing clear they are just seeing if we can come to terms.


Now that my friend sounds like a negotiation.