Erik Morales said Carlos Hernandez had the heart, but not the skill, to beat him. That pre-fight analysis was right on.
Morales peppered Hernandez with jabs and rocked him with uppercuts to take an unanimous decision Saturday night in their super featherweight title unification bout.
PHOTO: REUTERS
WBC champion Morales, who has held crowns in three weight classes, added Hernandez's IBF title.
Although he won by scores of 119-109 on two cards and 115-113 on the other, Morales finished the bout with great respect for the brawling Hernandez.
"Carlos is a very tough man," Morales said through a translator. "He is very strong with a big heart. I thought he brought out the best in me."
It was a very hard-fought match. After the final bell, the appreciative crowd of 8,611 at the MGM Grand gave a standing ovation -- to both fighters.
"Everybody tells me this was a great fight, and I believe it," Hernandez said. "This may be the best fight Morales ever fought, and the best fight I've ever fought.
"I'm sad because I lost, but I'm proud of the way I fought."
Morales, a considerably more polished fighter than Hernandez, dominated the 12-round bout most of the way, with Hernandez having the edge in only a couple of rounds.
There were no knockdowns, and, although Hernandez was a little wobbly several times after taking hard shots, neither fighter seemed in serious trouble.
Usually circling to use his two-inch height and five-inch reach advantage against the 5-foot-6 Hernandez, Morales consistently landed shots to the head and body as Hernandez tried to duck inside.
Even when Hernandez was able to get in close, Morales countered well, with his right uppercut particularly effective.
The 27-year-old Morales (47-1, 34 knockouts), from Tijuana, Mexico, had taken the 59kg title -- his third WBC championship -- with an unanimous decision over Jesus Chavez on Feb. 28.
Morales' only loss was by split decision against Marco Antonio Barrera in 2002. He had taken a split decision over Barrera two years earlier.
On the undercard Saturday night, IBF bantamweight champion Rafael Marquez of Mexico displayed his power again, knocking out countryman Heriberto Ruiz with a right uppercut that sent the challenger flopping to the canvas in the third round.
The knockout was the 29th in 35 fights for Marquez. The fight against Ruiz was relatively quiet for the first two rounds, then Marquez got off the shot to Ruiz's head. Ruiz was out immediately and the fight ended at 2:11 of the third.
Marquez is 32-3, and Ruiz is 31-3-2. Each weighed 53.1kg.
Undefeated Ivan Calderon defended his WBO light flyweight title with an unanimous decision over Roberto Leyva. Calderon, from Puerto Rico, is 20-0, with four knockouts. Leyva, from Mexico, is 22-4-1. Calderon weighed 47.25kg, Leyva 47.025kg. Julio Cesar Chavez Jr., son of the renowned former champion, ran his record to 10-0 with an unanimous decision over outclassed Jason Smith in their four-round lightweight bout.
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