Former world champion Marco Antonio Barrera was a fan favorite fighter throughout his career as he fought in some highly entertaining fights.
Considered to be one of the greatest Mexican boxers of all time, Barrera is best known for his trilogy with Erik Morales and his Manny Pacquiao rivalry. However, ‘The Baby-Faced Assassin’ is also a former three-division champion.
Finishing his career with a 67-7 record, Barrera earned 44 knockouts during his career. His resume also includes handing ‘Prince’ Naseem Hamed his first career loss.
In one of the more bizarre outings of his career, a blunder at the end of the fight would briefly cost Barrera a win.
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Marco Antonio Barrera and Rocky Juarez had their fight result incorrectly announced
On May 20th, 2006, Barrera looked to make it five wins in a row following his loss to Pacquiao. Having defeated Morales and Paulie Ayala in this run, Barrera was paired with Rocky Juarez in Los Angeles.
Juarez went into the bout with a 25-1 record, as he was challenging Barrera for his WBC World Super Featherweight title.
The Mexican and the American would have a closely contested fight, with both men scoring significant shots on one another in the brawl. However, despite the damage dealt in the fight, the competitors would hear the final bell.
As the fight ended, the two men eagerly awaited the judges’ verdict. As the announcer read the scorecards, the result was a split draw between the two men. However, this was not the correct decision.
15 minutes after the result was read in the ring, it was discovered that the judge who was read to have scored the bout a draw actually had the result in favor of Barrera. This meant that the champion was the winner via split decision.
The result was officially changed, which would see Barrera retain his title with a win rather than a draw.
Juarez told ESPN after the fight, “To come back to the dressing room and tell me that I’d lost by a point is very disappointing, very upsetting. When I was walking out of the ring, everyone was saying, ‘Good fight, you won.'”
Marco Antonio Barrera and Rocky Juarez would have an immediate rematch
Given the controversy and close nature of their first meeting, Barrera and Juarez met for a second time in September 2006. However, Juarez was not able to avenge his previous disappointment.
Fighting in Las Vegas, Barrera would once again get the decision victory, this time unanimously.
The win would be Barrera’s fourth defense of his WBC title. As for Juarez, he would fall to the third defeat of his career.
Barrera would go on to lose his next two bouts. Losing both fights by decision, he was bested by Juan Manuel Marquez and Pacquiao.