~~~ ESB Box! Writing Championship™ - August - Erik "El Terrible" Morales Tribute~~~

Morales; More or less? With Morales, it was always more.

From his successful days as a scrawny junior bantamweight to his darker times as a small lightweight, Morales gave us everything. Energetic when provoked, Rugged on the receiving end, Intense in motion, Kinetic in action, Marvellous in winning, Obdurate when faced by adversity, Rapacious on assault, Athletic regarding mobility, Lethal on attack, Epic in battle and Stubborn always. That was Erik Morales.

 

Erik Morales - The Ultimate Warrior Of Boxing.

Not just the pride of Tijuana, not just the pride of Mexico but the pride of everything we love about this great sport.... he was the ultimate fair play sportsman in the ultimate of hard sports, there is nothing not legendary about El Terrible.

You want to box him, he will box you
You want to fight him, he will fight you
You want to hit him with what you think is the ko punch on the chin, he will hit you right back TWICE if your lucky.

1 of the best technicians of the past 10 yrs
1 of the most value for money warriors of all time
How many boxers can claim to be both an artist & warrior combined, not many.

Never lost decisively in his prime yrs & even when his body was packing it in his heart never did.

It doesnt hurt that he won the best fight Ive ever seen = Morales MAB 1... what a war.

For a fighter who never believed too much in clinching, he done pretty damn well.

Erik Morales = The Ultimate Warrior Of Boxing.

We will never forget you as long as boxing lives.

:good :good :good :good :good :good :good :good :good :good :good :good :good :good
:happy :happy :happy :happy :happy :happy :happy :happy :happy :happy :happy :happy :happy :happy

 

Like the timeless Spartan* Erik Morales captured our imagination held with true boxing fans one of our highest titles, the title of warrior. His battles deep, his victories astonishing and this warrior will always be remembered for his heart, grit and determination in gaining victory and thrilling fans.

El Terrible stood behind his boxer-puncher stance dishing out and absorbing punishment for the good majority of his run at the top level and it was a sacrifice well spent. I remember my first Erik Morales bout very well, as it was Barrera vs. Morales, from the opening bell these two opened up on each other and until the final bell they continued. This intense showing of skill and will ended up going down as one of the greatest fights of all time and rightfully so, it was an experience.

Needless to say, this was not the only event that Erik left a little part of himself in the ring, so a tribute to you great warrior and a wish of happyness and good health in the rest of your adventures life.

 

Once in a (long) while a fighter comes along that has that mixture of skills, toughness & burning passion... a fighter you just know would have made a home in any era of boxing & entertained along the way.

Erik `El Terrible` Morales was that kind of fighter, from his Tijuana humble upbringing right through to his last superb effort vs David Diaz, Erik Morales never lost his passion or his heart, unfortunetely he made 1 simple mistake, a mistake he could not help... the mistake of being human.

El Terrible proved in his prime days that he was superior or at least equal to any fighter who stepped in the ring with him.
Of his 6 defeats - 3 were debatable (MAB 2 & 3, Diaz) & some would argue (with a strong case) that only 1 of these happened before Erik`s body started feeling the effects... That `Loss` being the 2nd MAB fight, a fight Morales won clearly in my eyes.

I could go on forever why Morales pluses heavily outweigh the minuses but I`ll leave it at this.....

ERIK MORALES - TIJUANA - MEXICO - WORLD ICON

(Thanks for memories that will never die, just like your spirit & passion)

:good :happy :hi:

 

Who says dashing, gallant heroes are a thing of the past, or perhaps never were? Viciously seizing glory in the ring, graciously raising his conqueror’s hand in his own twilight, Erik “El Terrible” Morales looked and lived the part of that vanishing specimen, the honorable gladiator.

Boxing inspires the best in a young boy: to transcend your humble origins, to develop into the guy who saves the day, to win glory but only with honor, to buy your mother a house, and inspire the children to call out your name.

He became a frightful attack machine, defeating opponent after opponent. He stopped the unstopped champion, and beat the best men of his era. In boxing, you conquer yourself and you must conquer another, equally-hungry man’s will. “El Terrible” knew what it took and thrilled audiences while overcoming rivals with his technical, fierce craft. Never satisfied, he always looked to the next summit, claiming three different belts in three different weight classes.

Perhaps defeat shows more of a man than constant victory, and when time caught up with “El Terrible”, he was promptly courteous and respectful in acknowledging his opponent and his own shortcoming. Never a showboat, never an ego trip, the man quietly went about his business, and demonstrated what dashing, gallant heroes are truly all about.

All this I see in the serene look of the winner that is Erik Morales.

 

Morales Dared To Be Great
The Quixotic Dream: Thirty years ago, Wilfredo "Bazooka" Gomez ruled the junior bantamweight division with an iron fist, defending his title with seventeen consecutive knockouts. many experts assumed that no fighter could ever match the Puerto Rican’s accomplishments. But the one they called "El Terrible" dared to be great. He dared to challenge himself. Gomez proved his greatness by turning out the lights on seventeen consecutive super bantamweight challenger. We watched "El Terrible" do so by going to war with some of the very best fighter of his generation; of any generation.
The Hunger: During his championship reign, "El Terrible" sought to push himself beyond his perceived limits. With millions of pesos in the bank and a guaranteed place in the hall of fame, the self-searching warrior pursued fights with Diego Corrales, Joel Casamayor, and Juan Diaz. The Tijuana tough man was insatiably ambitious, taking only the toughest assignments. "El Terrible" Understood that risk is the price of greatness. He dared to be great.
The Epilogue: In the penultimate fight of his career, "El Terrible" finally took a count of ten. His face was unmistably that of a broken fighter. A man who couldn’t (or wouldn’t) play the young man’s gambit anymore. That "El Terrible" was finally beyond his limits is no commentary on his desire. Rather, it proves the earnestness of his search for the frontier of his ability. He continued until he could go no further. He dared to be great.

 

After a fantastically long-winded period of success against the worlds elite followed a string of painful reminders. The disdainful veteran was to take heed of his failing powers, eventually. A man like Erik Morales, a fighter like ‘El Terrible’ would attempt to march without legs. It’s the typical, Mexican warrior attitude, but Erik Morales delivered a little more than your average Mexican…

There was something a bit special about Morales. Your attraction to boxing could be for a number of reasons, but Morales would provide the goods wherever you stood. A small man, but a distinguished figure, Morales had a magnetic demeanour about him. Jet black hair, the looks of an undertaker and a seriousness that never dwindled. He was intense to look at. He would showboat, beat his chest, he would take that chance, salute the fans, just for you. He understood what boxing was about and covered all pillars with his boxing, bravery, fire and modesty. There was a great admiration for his weight-jumping, P4P worthy skill-set, and an even bigger appreciation for his selfless rallies that brought you to your feet.

He was a fighters fighter.

Morales’ career turned into a bit of a car-crash at the end, but you can’t hold it against a man when his instinct tells him to fight on. It was the same instinct that created magic against Barrera and the same instinct that later created failure against Pacquiao, but, either way, it made you care - a rarity indeed.

 

Please read the entries at posts 45 - 52 carefully, and vote for the best Tribute to Erik "El Terrible" Morales.

 

I am finding it hard to pick between 4-5 very good entries...:think

 

The entry at no. 50 looks hard to beat!:yep

 

Yap...46 is very good too!

 

*vote*vote*vote*vote*vote*vote*vote*vote*vote*vote*vote*vote*vote*vote*vote*vote*vote*vote*vote*vote*vote*vote*vote*vote*vote*vote*vote*vote*vote*vote*vote*vote*vote*vote*vote*vote*vote*vote*vote*

 

:-((

 

Voting is underway! There are some very good entries, and they deserve out attention!

 

:dead