Lucas Matthysse Likely to Replace Jorge Barrios Against Erik Morales
by Scott Christ on Aug 2, 2011 4:07 PM EDT
in Boxing News Analysis
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In a turn of events that could end a lot of complaining (including mine), it appears that Jorge Barrios is having legal issues leaving Argentina, and because of that, Lucas Matthysse will likely be facing Erik Morales on the Mayweather vs Ortiz undercard.
This is quite the switch-up for Morales, who goes from facing a rusty fighter who has never fought at 140 pounds to facing one of the best junior welterweights in the world, a hard hitter who many felt was shafted in his last two fights on U.S. soil against Zab Judah and Devon Alexander.
The fight would still be for the WBC's vacant junior welterweight title, but is now a far more legitimate bout. It doesn't change my complaint that the September 30 fight between Ajose Olusegun and Ali Chebah should have been sanctioned for the title after the WBC chose to strip Timothy Bradley (or call him "champion in recess," whichever sounds more real to you), as the WBC was already calling it an eliminator. But Matthysse (28-2, 26 KO) is a serious contender in the division, and Morales is back-end top 10 at this point. It's a real fight.
Does anyone think Morales can beat Matthysse? I think Lucas has to be considered a serious favorite here, but Morales pushed Marcos Maidana to the brink in April. I would say Matthysse is a better boxer than Maidana, and Morales may not be able to outfox him as easily, but are you giving Morales a legit shot here to pull out another great performance and maybe take this one?
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This just goes to show what kind of man Morales is. He just wants to fight. He fears no man.
Crolla?
Ok. Don’t know him, but sure.
Crolla out. How about Barrios?
Ok. Make it happen
Barrios out. How about Matthysse?
Yeah sure, I don’t care. Just give me somebody to fight, damn it!
All of it. Gimmie, gimmie, gimmie. I want it all.
Yeah it doesn’t seem 100% official yet, but I can’t imagine Morales turning it down when he’s already scheduled for the date and all that. Too much pride, too much balls.
Bad Left Hook
"To the town of Agua Fria rode a stranger one fine day..."
Wow, really? We’ll finally get an interesting comparative look (beyond whatever their Corley fights told us) at Matthysse v. Maidana, by way of Morales. Matthysse is nowhere near slick, but he’s also not the crudity that is Maidana (who I did think won his Morales fight, but definitely not as expected).
I’m rooting for Lucas, and I’m rooting for this fight. This is a match you might as well put a belt on.
IF YA LIKE IT THEN YA SHOULDA PUT A BELT ON IT
Bad Left Hook
"To the town of Agua Fria rode a stranger one fine day..."
by Scott Christ on Aug 2, 2011 4:18 PM EDT up reply actions 3 recs
don't
Bad Left Hook
"To the town of Agua Fria rode a stranger one fine day..."
by Scott Christ on Aug 2, 2011 10:46 PM EDT up reply actions
Neither one has been on the right end of close fights lately
Bad Left Hook - The SB Nation boxing blog
"Baseball is played on the field, not on a calculator."
Taking this fight just reinforces my love for Morales, and I’m happy to see that Matthysse will be getting another big shot after getting wronged again (though the fact that this is more acceptable as a title fight obviously doesn’t justify the WBC’s actions).
On the match-up, one thing I’ll point out is that while Matthysse probably is a better boxer than Maidana, I don’t think he has the same stamina. He started slow against Judah, and while he upped his workrate against Alexander, he still ended up having to take the 9th off IMO. This could certainly play into Morales’ hands; his main problem against Maidana seemed to be that he had problems getting off in the face of constant pressure. While Matthysse is also a pressure fighter, Morales might not have to expect anything like 1000 punches to come his way.
I fully expect Morales to pull out another great performance...
And to lose again…
Either way, can’t wait. Awesome addition to the card.
I’m not sure he can beat Matthysse at this point in his career. I still feel like he kind of pulled a rabbit out of a hat in his last fight. I don’t think he has it in him to do it again. But then again I thought he was going to get slaughtered by Maidana, so I refuse to count Erik out this time.
The matter of where Morales is in his career is important, I think.
Morales has always been one of my favorite fighters, and when he has been beaten, he was, but he is a great fighter. Matthysse, in his fight with Alexander, was (in my opinion only) fighting a boxing idiot, and so looked very good. But he is legitimately good.
I think that I will be a good fight, and Matthysse will take it mostly on youth and stamina. And so, since I’m not actually putting any money on it, I will pick Morales on a late KO or TKO. I just like him.
bittersweet
i want matthysse to get some vindication after being robbed twice in a row, but on the other hand i don’t want to see el terrible lose. i’m going for el terrible split decision, but not a robbery
I hate the Texans
by battle axe of doom on Aug 2, 2011 5:44 PM EDT reply actions
If anyone can do it,
Morales can, especially given his last performance. Ok, so that could have been his last hurrah, but I really hope he can do it. Then we can put him in Ted’s “Can you name fighters who finished their careers well” fan post.
by Phill on Aug 2, 2011 5:47 PM EDT via mobile reply actions
All credit due to Matthysse if this fight happens. It takes balls to stand in the way of a golden paved road to history and given the results of his last two fights he seems to have huge ones to take this fight. I expect this to be a ferocious war of wills as both men have a ton to lose. I’m not underestimating Morales again.
by glatin1982 on Aug 2, 2011 7:37 PM EDT via mobile reply actions
I just fear Matthysse is going to get robbed again, causing him to retire
by The Boxer Rebellion on Aug 2, 2011 8:36 PM EDT via mobile reply actions
As someone suggested above, Morales benefited from the style match-up with Maidana. Maidana, of course, is a puncher’s puncher. He’s puts everything he has into getting to you and knocking you out. As the saying goes, the last thing to go for an old boxer is his chin (for better or worse). That plus Maidana’s crude style, which is the kind of thing a wily veteran can exploit, made for a good night from Morales. Matthysse is a different beast. As Scott suggested above, I think you have to favor Matthysse here. That said, this is a great substitution by any rational standard, and I’ll be cheering on Morales. I just hope this doesn’t prove to be sadly one-sided for Matthysse.
Boxing writer: "Iran, what are you going to do when you retire?"
Iran Barkley: "Rob your house"
I would say Matthysse is a better boxer than Maidana, and Morales may not be able to outfox him as easily, but are you giving Morales a legit shot here to pull out another great performance and maybe take this one?
Agree – Matthysse is a better boxer than Maidana, and stylistically, I think he’s a much tougher proposition for a fighter like Morales. Maidana is a heavier hitter, but he attacks wildly, and he leaves wide openings for counters. Matthysse is far more measured, and I think Morales is going to find it very difficult to pick his spots. I have a feeling he’s in for a slow and steady beating.
I’m a little hesitant to bring up Corley, because I didn’t see his fight with Matthysse. But, he was able to use his experience to stay close with Maidana – and didn’t fare nearly so well against Matthysse.
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