by James Slater – Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier never fought for a fourth time, even though Frazier wanted a fourth go at his archrival. Riddick Bowe and Evander Holyfield never met for a fourth battle, even though an ageing Bowe said he’d like a fourth rumble. And Tony Zale and Rocky Graziano, who fought three all-out wars, never had enough left in the tank (Zale especially) to be able to take each other to the kind of hell a fourth fight would have brought..
That’s probably the three finest boxing trilogies right there (although there have obviously been a good number of other great trilogies over the decades) – but there is one trilogy missing from the above paragraph; and on May 22nd next year this trilogy will disappear, as the two fighters will meet again, thus making their series a four-fight affair.
Super-bantamweights, now featherweights Israel Vazquez and Rafael Marquez, two of the toughest men ever to have come out of Mexico, will meet again at The Staples Centre in L.A, and the series that is currently topped at 2-1 by Vazquez will be rekindled. But was there a reason why the greats mentioned above never met for a part-four? Now both in their early or mid-thirties and faded as a result of this age combined with the ferocity of earlier fights (most notably against each other) Vazquez and Marquez just might leave too much of themselves in the ring this time; if they haven’t already taken enough out of each other to the extent that they may be unable to live healthy lives in the coming decades.
Some series are meant to be left as a trilogy, yet it can’t be denied how a whole bunch of fans (this one included) will be eagerly tuning in to see the featherweight reawakening of what just might be THE best and most savage world championship-calibre boxing rivalry of all-time next year. However, if Ali and Frazier, or Bowe and Holyfield or even Zale and Graziano had met for a fourth time, chances are the fight would have been either a letdown or maybe even something of an embarrassment. Could this be the case when 34-year-old Marquez, 38-5(34) and 31-year-old Vazquez, 44-4(32) clash next May?
It would be a terrible shame if their stupendous rivalry was tarnished by a poor fourth fight – or even worse; by a fourth fight that saw one of the two proud warriors hurt or humiliated. But how much does either guy have left at this stage? And with diminished skills, how similar to their earlier fights will the fourth instalment look? There is a real possibility the fight we see in May, though entertaining, will look something like a cheap caricature of their first, second or third fights.
And as to what either guy will have left after their blending of styles sees to it that the fourth fight can be nothing but another draining and painful battle, that’s anybody’s guess. There’s a strong possibility both fighters pound each other into retirement next summer.
Then again, as both gutsy sluggers (who also have/had not inconsiderable boxing skills as well) seem totally unwilling to hang up the gloves, it’s perhaps better they are facing each other, as opposed to some younger and fresher featherweights on the world scene. With both having roughly the same left in the tank (with Marquez looking to maybe be a little fresher, judging by the two men’s most recent fights – both of them winning at 126-pounds earlier this year in their only action since their third fight in March, 2008) neither guy figures to be able to overwhelm the other.
It is, perhaps, fitting that Vazquez and Marquez each send the other into retirement, instead of some young gun who is near to his prime ending the career of either future Hall of Famer. Another concern, though, is who will win in May. And what if it’s Marquez. Should Rafael even the series up two-all, will we then see a FIFTH fight!?! That would surely be going too far. But haven’t Vazquez and Marquez gone too far already, in agreeing to turn their trilogy into a four-fight series?