In The Ring
With Marco Antonio
Barrera
PHOTOGRAPHY Andrew Takeuchi
Some refer to him as The Baby Face Assassin, others consider him “The Best Featherweight in the World.” Whatever you call Marco Antonio Barrera, one thing is certain: he is one bad-ass fighter. Barrera has risen to the top of the boxing world by taking on all comers and delivering round after round of masterful boxing. He boasts a record of 55-3-0 and has dismantled formidable opponents including Prince Naseem Hamed and Erik Morales.
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Next up on his plate
is the current IBF Featherweight Champion Johnny Tapia. Barrera may not
be looking past his next opponent, but many of his fans are. His first
fight against another great Mexican champion, Erik Morales, was dubbed
“Fight of the Year” by most boxing experts. That brutal, hard-fought
bout produced a decision in favor of Morales which most felt was unjust.
(In fact, WBO basically rejected the decision by reinstating Barrera as
WBO champion.) Barrera and Morales met again this past June. This time
the decision went to Barrera in a fight that, though close, lacked much
of the brawling and excitement of their first match up. It seems like
only a matter of time before the two meet again in the rubber match. Many
of Barrera’s fans would also like to see him step into the ring to
pound the obnoxious Prince Naseem Hamed again.
We caught up with
Barrera as he prepared for his November 2nd fight with Tapia.
What do you expect
from Johnny Tapia in your upcoming fight?
We expect a really hard fight. He’s ranked the number three pound
for pound fighter in the world and that brings greater responsibility
and expectations. Right now all the fighters want a piece of us and Tapia
just won the IBF title, so I think he’s very motivated.
Your first fight
with Morales was a slugfest, while the rematch was more of a careful boxing
match. What type of fight do you think this one will be?
I think it’s going to be a toe-to-toe fight. Tapia is a very
aggressive fighter and we won’t be able to back away from him and
still win over the public.
A lot of people
admire you for having such a big heart in the ring, for never quitting.
As a fighter, do you think it’s more important to have a big heart
or be in great physical condition?
I think that a big heart is more important because regardless of whether
you possess strength and conditioning, it’s your heart that carries
you forward. It’s something that Tapia has demonstrated—he has
the courage and heart to throw blows for 12 rounds.
Who do you consider
the toughest opponent you’ve been up against?
I would say it was Kennedy McKinney. We fought for 12 intense rounds.
I knocked him down five times and he knocked me down once, so I think
that has been one of my hardest fights.
Of all the fighters
you fought, who would you most like to meet again to utterly destroy?
Well I don’t know about destroy, but I think I’d like to
meet Prince Naseem Hamed again. The last time I fought him I used a unique
strategy, and I’d like to have another fight with him and give fans
a better show.
What about Morales?
When do you think there will be another fight?
Who knows, I’m satisfied with my two fights against him, but
if the people were to demand another, I’d be delighted to give it
to them.
Beyond Morales
and Naseem Hamed, who else would you want to fight?
I don’t know. We don’t like to plan. We like to take things
step by step, so right now we’re focusing on Tapia.
What do you think
is the biggest difference between Mexican fighters and other fighters?
I think we’re warriors and gutsy in the ring. We’ve always
demonstrated that the Latino fighter gives the biggest show because of
the heart of courage he unleashes in the ring.
What did you think
of the Vargas vs. De La Hoya fight?
It was a great fight and I think it lived up to everyone’s expectations.
We were there ourselves for all the excitement. I think it’s been
the fight of the year, so far.
With Vargas and
De La Hoya, as with maybe you and Morales, there was a lot of animosity
and personal feelings motivating the fighters. Do you think it’s
good to have anger as a motivating factor or is it better to be professional
about things and just treat every fight as another “day at the office.”
I think it’s better to keep it professional. It’s better
for us to respect ourselves as people and fighters because there are sometimes
that we end up looking bad—like in the way we behave and the things
we say to each other. We should treat it as what it is, which is a sport,
and stay away from that type of behavior.
Yeah, like what
happened between you and Morales at the pre-fight press conference. By
the way, why did you punch him?
It was a light blow. What happened was he kept bad-mouthing me, calling
me a homosexual and a whole bunch of other things. I didn’t even
let the press know all the things he was saying. He was in front of me
so I told him what I thought about his comments and I gave him a little
punch just to let him know that this is a man’s business and there
is no need to say all those kind of things publicly.
A lot of people
were upset about the decision rendered for your first fight with Morales.
There seem to be a lot of fights where the judges appear to be watching
a different fight than the one everyone else sees. Why do such horrible
decisions happen?
I don’t know why it happens, but nevertheless I’m satisfied
with that fight [against Morales] in 2000. I feel good about what I did
in the fight, and I proved him wrong since he had predicted that he’d
knock me out in three rounds. Despite the fact that they gave him the
fight I’m satisfied with my performance.
You may be running
out of quality opponents in the featherweight division. Would you consider
moving up in weight class?
Right now, at 126 pounds, I don’t have any problems with my weight,
I feel good at this weight. For me to go up to 130 pounds would be—not
impossible—but certainly difficult.
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