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by David P. Greisman - Before, we wondered what took them so long. After, they left us longing for more.
They were two men with too much in common to not have met in the squared circle. From their beginnings cutting their teeth at the Great Western Forum in Southern California to their final years in boxing competing at the top of the featherweight divisions, Marco Antonio Barrera and Juan Manuel Marquez were destined to collide but delayed in doing so.
Each could box, but the combinations could also come hard, fast and face-first if the situation called for doing so. Experience made them all-around fighters, and on Saturday they fought with excellence for twelve rounds.
Forget, for one moment, the official result. Juan Manuel Marquez picked up the biggest victory of his career, but Marco Antonio Barrera – and the fans – came out as winners, too.
Barrera made his name with classic brawls against Kennedy McKinney and Erik Morales. His fame, however, came when he completely out-boxed Prince Naseem Hamed. Like Arturo Gatti – another warrior whose brutal battles helped kick-start Boxing After Dark – Barrera incorporated boxing and extended his career.
And there Barrera was, in the early rounds against Marquez, jabbing, hooking and countering, winning the opening stanzas with his Art of War and Science of Sweet. And few minded, because unlike in Barrera’s bout with Robbie Peden and his rematch with Rocky Juarez, “The Baby-Faced Assassin” had a rival who could ratchet up the tension and even the odds. [details]
They were two men with too much in common to not have met in the squared circle. From their beginnings cutting their teeth at the Great Western Forum in Southern California to their final years in boxing competing at the top of the featherweight divisions, Marco Antonio Barrera and Juan Manuel Marquez were destined to collide but delayed in doing so.
Each could box, but the combinations could also come hard, fast and face-first if the situation called for doing so. Experience made them all-around fighters, and on Saturday they fought with excellence for twelve rounds.
Forget, for one moment, the official result. Juan Manuel Marquez picked up the biggest victory of his career, but Marco Antonio Barrera – and the fans – came out as winners, too.
Barrera made his name with classic brawls against Kennedy McKinney and Erik Morales. His fame, however, came when he completely out-boxed Prince Naseem Hamed. Like Arturo Gatti – another warrior whose brutal battles helped kick-start Boxing After Dark – Barrera incorporated boxing and extended his career.
And there Barrera was, in the early rounds against Marquez, jabbing, hooking and countering, winning the opening stanzas with his Art of War and Science of Sweet. And few minded, because unlike in Barrera’s bout with Robbie Peden and his rematch with Rocky Juarez, “The Baby-Faced Assassin” had a rival who could ratchet up the tension and even the odds. [details]
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