Barrera: end of the line?

And a three-weight world champion, who lost only six times in 70 fights? We're talking about one of the greats when talking about the Baby Faced Assassin. It was nice to see him retiring with, in my opinion, his pride in tact.

McCrory on Barrera
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Glenn McCrory pays tribute to a departing legend.

So it finally looks like it's the end of the road for Marco Antonio Barrera and it's sad to see him go.

In all my 19 years working for Sky Sports, he was part of the best fight I have been lucky enough to witness - that first meeting with Erik Morales.

Here we are eight years on and it is still my stand-out. Which when you consider some of the great fights we've shown, tells just how good it was. To be ringside was an utter privilege and is something I will never forget.

It was Ring Magazine's Fight of the Year and Round Five was named their Round of the Year, but every round could've scooped that award! It was sensational stuff and in a way very hard to commentate on.

On one hand the action spoke for itself so you didn't need to say too much, but on the other when you see a fight like that, the fan inside you takes over and it is almost impossible to keep the emotions in check.

Which, funnily enough, is something Barrera managed to do throughout his 18-year career. That first fight with Morales was pretty low-key, even though it was at the Mandalay Bay and it was on a Mexican holiday.

We were out there and I do remember interviewing both Barrera and Morales before the fight - and they couldn't have been more different.

Barrera was very serious and although he started the interview in English it became too hard and he quickly reverted to Spanish, but he was clearly a man on a mission. His English has since improved.

Special

Morales' camp was great: we were invited into his hotel room and before me or Ian Darke could get a word in, his team were at the fridge offering us a beer!

They were so relaxed and clearly having a good time. If I'm honest, Morales was probably my favourite out of the two, so maybe those Coronas made a difference!

But those two were just special. They say every great fighter needs that one great rival, and Barrera had Morales. Barrera was the guy from the wealthy background of Mexico City, while Morales was the working-class lad from Tijuana. And anyone who knows Tijuana knows that is well, to put it bluntly, bandit country! He had the tougher upbringing and there was always the sense of a class war when the two got together.

Of course, the second and third fights never came close to the first. They were good, but it would have been impossible for both to reproduce it again. The potential was always there, but they never quite hit those explosive heights - and you can't blame them. I'm not sure I would have been able to handle it either!

Barrera though went on to put our own Naseem Hamed in his place. He out-psyched him, out-thought him and out-fought him and Naz was never the same fighter again.

And a three-weight world champion, who lost only six times in 70 fights? We're talking about one of the greats when talking about the Baby Faced Assassin.

Figurehead

And I'm glad he didn't get stopped by Manny Pacquiao at the weekend. He took a terrible beating in their first fight and it was nice to see him retiring with, in my opinion, his pride in tact.

I say 'retiring', but you never know. He will presumably be a figurehead for Golden Boy promotions' Mexican fighters but, as incredible as it seems, he is still only 33. As I know from experience, when you stop fighting, there is nothing: it's what you are and when that is gone, there's nothing left.

I was lucky enough to fall into a job at Sky Sports and I suppose Barrera will now take his place in the Golden Boy set-up. That will keep him involved and enthralled in the sport, but as we have seen with Oscar De La Hoya and Bernard Hopkins, it does mean you never really leave it. They both came back for the superfights and I suppose the one thing about Barrera is, with the Pacquiao trilogy beyond him and Morales gone, there is nothing left.

He's had his time, he's had a great career and he has got his place in boxing folklore, as well as a few dollars in the bank. He's a smart lad and if anyone deserves to enjoy retirement, it is him - even though he is by no means shot. The only problem might be the old Mexican machismo. It is running through his veins and as we've seen many, many times before, you can never say never!

Slightly closer to home for me and a million miles away from Marco Antonio Barrera and the Mandalay Bay, is this week's Friday Fight Night in Peterlee and a big, big chance for Isaac Ward.

I'll be honest and say boxing in the north east could do with a lift. With three Premier League teams up here it is so hard to get a look-in, and the sport really needs a local hero. We all saw what support Michael Hunter generated and the fact that he's not on the undercard, might help Isaac.

It takes a big step up to breakthrough and in one night he will go from being famous in Peterlee, to being known up and down Britain. I have seen the lad he is up against and this is definitely a fight he can win. He needs to take inspiration from another local lad, Francis Jones, did a couple of weeks ago in defeat to Kevin Anderson. It's a great stage for him, and it's up to him to seize the opportunity.

My Northumbria Boxing Club are putting on a show against 12 fighters from Accra and Ghana, trying to do our bit for the local scene and indeed further afield. In fact, one of the lads coming over - Emmanuel - is going to fight for us!

Because we have the Cuban coaches working with us, we wanted him to get the best possible coaching and I have spent all week trying to get work permits and immigration sorted out. If he boxes well, I might not let him leave!

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