Action Heroes, Part 2: Katsidis-Guerrero & Morales’ Last Stand

Katsidis-Guerrero: The Show-Stealer?

Main event level matchups on undercards are rare in boxing. Michael Katsidis and Robert Guerrero matchup tonight on Golden Boy’s “Action Heroes” PPV is one such occasion. The stakes are high; the winner becomes the clear-cut #1 contender to champion Juan Manuel Marquez’s linear lightweight crown.

Guerrero, the classic boxer, has shown his toughness before, but never through a 12 round dogfight that Katsidis has regularly competed in. Although he’ll likely at times outbox Katsidis, he knows he won’t be able to win strictly on those skills alone. And even though the Australian is coming off a very grueling TKO loss to Marquez just five months ago, Guerrero believes it would be foolhardy to assume he’ll get a diminished Katsidis in the ring.

“You’re gonna have to stand your ground and have to fight him off. You have to use your range and [still] be able to fight him on the inside,” Guerrero explained. “I’m actually expected him to come better than he did against Marquez. Coming off that bout with the situation he was under mentally when his brother just died, all that’s behind him now. He’ll be a lot more focused.”

Not surprisingly, both fighters have differing views on the importance of facing Marquez. For Katsidis, suffering a TKO loss in a fight he dedicated to his recently deceased brother is a painful reality that still lingers. To rectify that disappointment, he has to get through Guerrero to earn another shot.

“The Marquez fight was the first fight where I showed any reservation,” Katsidis admits. “In a perfect world, I would’ve finished the fight when I had the opportunity. There was a 10-15 second window to finish it. When you get someone hurt, you jump straight on them. If it happens again in this fight, I’ll finish the job.”

“That [Marquez] fight doesn’t really make my career,” Guerrero countered. “We tried to make it before and I moved on. He’s more focused on getting that Pacquiao fight. There’s even a lot of good fights at 140 pounds for me. There’s alot of names like Timothy Bradley, Amir Khan and even possibly Manny Pacquiao. It’s about making those big fights. If it comes at 140 pounds, I’ll take it.”

Katsidis’ career has reflected this PPV’s “Action Heroes” tagline. But the gritty fighter has also come up short in his two previous title shots against Marquez and Casamayor. Even so, the losses have not deterred his self-confidence.

“I’m a very confident fighter; it’s a very big part of me,” he noted. “I don’t see the reasoning why I’d be in any less condition [from the Marquez fight]. A fighter coming off a loss should jump right back on the horse. When you get knocked down, you get back up, that’s what boxing is about. What the point of taking tune-up fights? How many years you want to waste doing tune-ups? You have to fight the best you can as soon as possible. What doesn’t kill you will make you stronger.”

Can Maidana Destroy a Legend?

The “Action Heroes” main event could very well turn into a symbolic funeral for the career of Mexican legend Erik Morales. That belief seemed to be reinforced by yesterday’s weigh-in, which showed Morales looking worn and haggard next to Marcos Maidana, a relentless Argentinean slugger in his physical prime.

But don’t blame Morales’ appearance on his age. According to Maidana, Morales’ downfall is the fact he’s been in too many ring wars. And when he presses his attack, Maidana expects Morales to fall apart.

“I’m in tip-top shape. I’m definitely stronger than him,” Maidana claimed. “Those are the conditions I’ll show in the ring to beat Morales. I don’t think Morales is old. He’s just taken too many punches and had too many fights. I’m not sure about his skill. He’s a skillful fighter, but the only thing I’m convinced about is that I will prevent him from using his skill by putting pressure on him.”

Legends die hard. That was also evidenced yesterday by the Las Vegas weigh-in that was heavily attended by Morales supporters. The glimmer of hope some have is the idea that Maidana is crude enough for Morale to exploit with his boxing skills. For all his power, Maidana had a recent shaky performance against a faded veteran in DeMarcus Corley. Late in that bout, Maidana was laboring badly and seemed close to going down. He doesn’t downplay the close call completely, but does dismiss its merits when compared to Morales’ chances.

“I never took a fight lightly, including the DeMarcus Corley fight. There were a lot of issues with my manager and other things,” Maidana claims. “The Morales camp probably watched that fight and the [Amir] Khan fight. That’s probably why they took this fight. But we’ll see about that in the ring.”

“We focused more on body-punching and I have to do it more,” Maidana said of the upcoming Morales bout. “When I connect, my opponents feel it… I focused on the head [against Khan] which was a mistake.”

Maidana’s fight with Amir Khan earned them Fight of the Year from the BWAA (Boxing Writer’s Association of America). However, a rematch is not in the cards should Maidana defeat Morales. Last year, Timothy Bradley’s attempts to make a Maidana fight were pushed aside due to HBO’s preference to see Bradley take on Devon Alexander. Should Bradley opt to take another fight before unifying with Amir Khan, Maidana is a more than willing adversary.

“That’s a real possibility. We were supposed to fight last year but my manager issue prevented that fight from coming to fruition,” Maidana disclosed. “I know I might be sounding boring, but I’ll fight anybody at anytime. I know I have to fight the best, and Bradley is one of the best out there. But Morales is first.”