No Mas Fight of the Year - The Weigh-in

Here are the No Mas candidates for Fight of the Year. Again, all write-in candidacies will be given due consideration in direct proportion to the fervor of the argument. Roll the tape:



1. Manny Pacquiao/Erik Morales II - Don't let the three-round debacle in November cloud your memory of the second fight in the trilogy back in January, because Pacquiao/Morales II was a great fight. El Terrible owned Pac Man early, but in his true warrior fashion, refused to pace himself for the late rounds and paid a dear price for it. Ahead on all scorecards, he ran out of steam at the midway point, and in many ways, by about the eighth round, it felt as if you were watching a once-great champion's powers dissipating in front of your eyes. At which point, His Pac-ness did what he do, and got the 10th round stoppage.

2. Ricky Hatton/Luis Collazo - The fight in which HBO, Ricky Hatton and all his fans learned that Mr. Manchester ain't no 147. Collazo got caught in the Hatton buzzsaw 10 seconds into the fight and landed on his back, but after the knockdown Luis C. represented his Brooklyn roots and stood toe-to-toe with Hatton for the duration of the fight. It was a bloody affair, and Collazo was robbed when the judges awarded a unanimous decision to Hatton. If anything, the fight should have been ruled a draw, and one couldn't help but imagine that the big contract Ricky had just signed with HBO was weighing on the judges minds a little. Of course, Hatton saw the error of his ways immediately, and vacated the welterweight belt he won from Collazo to head back down to 140, where he'll fight Juan Urango this January.

3. Marco Antonio Barrera/Rocky Juarez I - Another case of the star fighter getting a little more than he bargained for. Of course, unlike Hatton, Barrera has nothing to prove at this stage of his career after the great wars he's been through. But hubris got the better of him in his May bout with Houston's Rocky Juarez. Able to tag Juarez with ease in the early rounds, he clearly thought the stoppage was imminent, and went for it with abandon, standing toe-to-toe and slugging for the fences. As it turned out, Juarez is a slugger of the highest order who could take everything Marco was serving up and give as good as he was getting. Spent in the middle rounds, Barrera found himself in legitimate trouble against an under-appreciated, tough-as-nails puncher. From there, it was a race to the finish, as Juarez started to rack up the points and Barrera hung in for dear life, relying on his considerable guile and heart. When the scorecards were initially read, the bout was ruled a draw, which is probably how it should have stayed. But after the fight it was discovered that one of the judges had incorrectly calculated his scorecard and the bout was awarded to Barrera on a split decision. In September, Barrera erased any spectre of doubt from the first fight by schooling Juarez in a rematch, easily winning a unanimous decision. But it was duly noted that the great Mexican did not stand and trade with Juarez in their second meeting. Lesson learned.

4. Jason Litzau/Jose Hernandez - All's I have to say about this fight I already said, in my post from this past Sunday titled Jesus what a fight. So check that out and then check out the highlights below.



5. Israel Vasquez/Jhonny Gonzalez - Four knockdowns, two for each fighter, a lot of blood, and a seesaw struggle that ended in controversy when Gonzalez's trainer threw in the towel, never something you expect to see in the middle of Mexican-on-Mexican ultraviolence. Both of these guys have crazy skills and heart to match, and this fight had it all. Highlights below aren't that good, but all the knockdowns and the stoppage are included.