What’s the better win: Morales UD Pac or MAB UD Naseem Hamed?

To me, these two victories are the marquee wins for both these Mexican rivals. Both fights were close (MAB never dominated Hamed as some here claim) but still clear enough wins.

Let’s have a closer look at each win:

Morales just came off a (disputed) loss to MAB when he entered the ring as a huge underdog against Pac. Pac was far from being considered the #1 P4P fighter that he is today, but he was a rising star and clearly on his way up. Pac was undefeated for over 5 years, yet JMM showed that he was not unbeatable and could be outboxed. Some say that Pac was green then, something that I find absurd given that he already had 40+ pro fights and was a champ already; but I accept that he may still have been a bit raw then and has fine-tuned his skills under Freddie Roach during the last 5 years (however, he was with Roach for some years already in 2005). Pac moved up to 130lbs for this fight, but seeing as how he fights at the WW limit these days I don’t think that mattered. I never understood how Morales was being considered such a huge underdog – he never gave a bad performance in a fight, even in his two (disputed) losses to Barrera, and he was a top dog at the 130lbs limit for years. Morales learned the lesson that was shown in the first Pac-JMM fight and used his skills to outbox Pac to a close but clear decision. He nearly let Pac snatch the fight away from him when he decided to trade with him in the 12th round though.
And Pac avenging this loss twice, and in a brutal fashion, should not be taken into account here – we’re strictly talking about their first fight.


MAB entered the ring against Hamed as an underdog too, but he was on a winning streak. He was the super bantamweight champ moving up to Hameds 126lbs limit for this fight, but he had boxed above the super bantamweight weight before. Hamed was an international super star, he was undefeated and rightfully considered one of the top3 P4P boxers. He had an aura of invincibility about him, many wouldn’t believe he could ever be beaten; yet knowledgeable boxing people knew he showed weaknesses in some of his previous fights, he broke with his trainer Brendan Ingle and turned his focus away from actual boxing to showmanship and a luxurious lifestyle. Hameds blown up ego made him believe in his own invincibility and he would cut corners in training. Experts saw that he would eventually lose a fight, it was only a matter of time. So to me, it came as no surprise that Hamed was shocked by the Mexican warrior, who was not intimidated at all and didn’t respect Hameds power. MAB never let Hamed find his rhythm and he controlled the pace of the fight. However, to my eyes, Hamed still showed heart and made the fight competitive even though he couldn’t fight his type of fight (meaning him being in control of it all the way, like he was used to). Hamed did have his moments and won his share of rounds, it wasn’t like he got mugged by MAB. We shouldn’t forget that Hamed was a fantastic fighter under all his showmanship – that tends to get overlooked these days. I had MAB winning by two rounds only (plus there was a point deduction against MAB).

MAB beating Hamed was the bigger upset to me – however that doesn’t mean it was the bigger win. By taking into account where Pac and Hamed went after their respective losses, I will have to say that Morales UD Pac should be regarded as the better win, but barely. Pac was on his way up, and while Hamed wasn’t exactly on his way down, he had been on the very top for years and there was no other way for him but down, sometime.

Your thoughts?

 

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Um... 'when Pac was so little'. Not valid since both men weighed in at 130lbs. Plus Pac more recently showed that he has no problem beating really bigger men like Margarito or Clottey.

'Manny didnt even eat that morning because he was poor' - Pac wasn't the multi millionaire he is today back then, but he got a big payday when he faced JMM at the MGM in Las Vegas. That's probably more $ than you and I together will make in many many years... And he was able to pay Freddie Roach as his trainer since 2001, but wasn't able to buy himself breakfast??!
I know Pac was really poor at the start of his career and he came up the hard way - that's what makes me a fan of his - but I think Pac was living quite comfortably for some years before he met Morales for the first time.

 

MAB may very well have been Hameds best opponent, but to say he was his first real test might be a bit far stretched.. I mean Hamed faced good fighters like Kevin Kelley or Wayne McCullough and a couple others before