By Cliff Rold - Some find it sad when old champions fall to the hands of time and younger men. It can be. It can also be fitting. The phrase “going out on their shield” carries special meaning. The fighters willing to do that earn a special place in the hearts of the masses.
In his last two contests, former 118 and 122 lb. champion Rafael Marquez went out on his shield. The fighting spirit remained. The fighting ability had waned too much. Efrain Esquivias knocked out the 38-year old Marquez in the ninth round on September 7, 2013. Eighteen years before, insanely matched with a former champion in his pro debut, he was stopped in eight.
He came out the way he came in, a warrior through and through, fighting until the fight was beaten out of him.
Some might call it sad.
But there is honor in a career, and even an exit, like Marquez’s. He pondered retirement in the ring after the Esquivias fight. On September 20, it was reported by Salvador Rodriguez of ESPN Deportes that Marquez made the official announcement. Assuming this retirement holds and he is now at the end, it was for him a fitting conclusion.
With Marquez clearly past that inevitable point of no return, it is an honor for those who observed his exciting career to ask: [Click Here To Read More]
In his last two contests, former 118 and 122 lb. champion Rafael Marquez went out on his shield. The fighting spirit remained. The fighting ability had waned too much. Efrain Esquivias knocked out the 38-year old Marquez in the ninth round on September 7, 2013. Eighteen years before, insanely matched with a former champion in his pro debut, he was stopped in eight.
He came out the way he came in, a warrior through and through, fighting until the fight was beaten out of him.
Some might call it sad.
But there is honor in a career, and even an exit, like Marquez’s. He pondered retirement in the ring after the Esquivias fight. On September 20, it was reported by Salvador Rodriguez of ESPN Deportes that Marquez made the official announcement. Assuming this retirement holds and he is now at the end, it was for him a fitting conclusion.
With Marquez clearly past that inevitable point of no return, it is an honor for those who observed his exciting career to ask: [Click Here To Read More]
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