By Matthew Hurley (Photo by Tom Casino)
It was a fight for the ages. It was a boxing match that became a transcendent sporting event that left even non-fight fans breathless. It was what boxing needed. It was Ali – Frazier and Hagler – Hearns all wrapped up in a lightweight package. It flew under the radar screen. Only five thousand people witnessed it live, but fifty thousand people now swear they were there. It was that good. And on October 8th, Diego Corrales and Jose Luis Castillo will step into the ring again and resume a battle that has become legendary in the annals of boxing history.
Hyperbole? Well, if you feel that way you didn’t see their first epic battle. Diego Corrales and Jose Luis Castillo, two little giants, went to war against one another and produced a fight that was better than the Super Bowl and better, dare this Red Sox fanatic say it, than last year's World Series. So gut-wrenching was this fight that many boxing fans, this one included, were more than a bit concerned for their health when a rematch was proposed.
But time has only enhanced the glory of that night and now true boxing fans are salivating over the rematch. The beers are already on ice and calls have already been made to those friends who aren’t big boxing fans. It’s bouts like this that make fight fans smile and say to the naysayers, “Watch this one, and then you’ll understand.”
Castillo was stopped in the tenth round of the first fight after decking Corrales twice. He feels he momentarily lost his concentration and swung for the fences when he should have pin-pointed his blows and stopped his wounded foe. He has not brought up the argument that Corrales, perhaps, should have been disqualified for spitting out his mouthpiece, thereby buying time to recover.
It is to Castillo’s credit that such an infraction doesn’t truly weigh on his mind because he understands a fighter does what he can to survive when hurt. Corrales wasn’t in the wrong when he committed the infraction. And the referee abided by the rules, deducting points from Diego after the second knockdown.
When asked about the mouthpiece Corrales shrugs. “It fell out the first time. The second time, I pulled it out so I could catch my breath. But I couldn’t put it back in. It’s hard to hold on to something with a boxing glove.”
Fair enough. Either way, it was a smart move that may or may not prove that Corrales was clear headed when he went down the second time. Diego has a history of getting hurt and coming back. He prides himself on his warrior’s mentality. It’s a mindset that puts him at risk but makes him a fan favorite. When told that with his height, reach and boxing abilities his passion for combat reminds fans of Thomas Hearns he smiles and nods.
“I’m like a mini Thomas Hearns,” he says. “I’m not as good, but I’m just as exciting.”
Castillo seethes over the loss quietly. He knows he was a participant in a fight that elevated his status, but he lost. And he feels it was a loss that he should have avoided.
“Just one more punch,” he says, almost wistfully. “To the body, the head. Just one more and I would have won.”
He smiles and shrugs his shoulders. “This time I will knock him out. I won’t let him off.”
The fight may come down to who took the most punishment in their first go round. That scenario would actually seem to favor Castillo. Corrales took a hellacious beating before storming back and decimating a target he couldn’t even see – so swollen were his eyes. But a knockout is a knockout and some fighters simply don’t recover. What we may have on October 8th are two damaged fighters with hearts the size of their 135 pound bodies. It’s a fight that has the potential to match the intensity of their initial encounter.
Diego Corrales and Jose Luis Castillo have already produced one classic fistic encounter. They know what the other brings to the table. Now, they fight not just for money and respect but for pride. Both men believe they are better, tougher than the other and yet there is a bond between them that is almost loving. No matter what happens in the rematch they are forever linked in a brutal dance of fists and courage and neither of these two outstanding boxers would want it any other way.
