British Boxer Willie Limond Looking to Cut Erik Morales' Comeback Short

While all eyes will be on the distinctly dull-looking heavyweight rematch between Wladimir Klitschko and Samuel Peter in Germany tonight, a slightly more intriguing matchup is taking place a few thousand miles to the west in Mexico.

Erik Morales will continue the comeback which began with an underwhelming points victory over Jose Alfaro earlier this year. While Morales might no longer look like the same boxer who played his part in thrilling trilogies with Marco Antonio Barrera and Manny Pacquiao, he is still only 34. That is the same age as Wladimir Klitschko and it is not necessarily too late for Morales to recapture some of his former glory.

The major difference between the careers of Klitschko and Morales is that the former has seldom been challenged whereas the latter has consistently found himself in grueling wars of attrition with the top pound-for-pound fighters on the planet.

Morales has lost four out of his last five fights which, given that he won his first 41, speaks volumes about the extent to which time has caught up with 'El Terrible'. In his prime Morales would have easily dispensed with tonight's opponent, Willie Limond. Whatever you think about Morales' decision to prolong his boxing career, there is no question that his prime is well behind him, and the Scottish veteran has a great opportunity to add a victory over a legend to his boxing resume.

Limond's only two losses have come at the hands of Arthur Abraham and Amir Khan, the best in the business as far as British boxing is concerned. The vast majority of Limond's  35 fights have taken place in his native Scotland though and it will be interesting to see how he copes fighting in the Plaza Del Toro. A bull ring in Mexico City is, both culturally and geographically, about as far from Scotland as it is possible to get.

Morales' propensity for getting involved in macho, Mexican-style exchanges means his fights are always worth a watch. This is a defining moment for both men. A win against Morales would be the highlight of Limond's career while the humiliation of losing to a relatively unknown fighter in front of his home fans could effectively end Morales' career.

By contrast the bout between Peter and Klitschko has little to recommend it. While Peter deserves credit for all that he has achieved in boxing, he is, unfortunately, just not that easy on the eye. The Nigerian has put together a run of four straight stoppage wins but they have come against mediocre opposition. Peter could not get past the jab of Vitali Klitschko, who outclassed him a couple of years ago, and his younger brother will come in with exactly the same game plan.

Neither of these are marquee matchups. Morales has more than earned his retirement and many fans feel uncomfortable at the thought of him putting his body through any further punishment. The bookmakers seldom get it wrong, and they feel that Peters is such a massive outsider that the term mismatch wouldn't be totally inappropriate. It is difficult to get excited about any sort of a contest when one of two possible winners is priced at 11 to 1.

Limond is definitely the underdog against Morales, but he has a better chance of pulling off an upset than Peters does. The heavyweight contest in Germany might make all the headlines, but I suspect the welterweights in Mexico will offer the most entertainment.