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Mark Lyons explains why he'll be watching the comeback of Erik Morales on March 27.

It seems like only yesterday that Erik Morales gave his fans a thrill by switching southpaw and engaging Manny Pacquiao over the final 3 electrifying minutes of their first meeting.

When Erik's arm was raised in victory that night, he had the boxing world in the palm of his hand and many thought that Pacquiao had reached his limit, as between Morales and Juan Manual Marquez the blueprint to defeat the explosive Filipino seemed to have been perfected.

While I said that night seems like only yesterday, when looking at the current boxing landscape, it also seems like a dream.

In a few days Manny will fight Joshua Clottey in front of a huge crowd in Dallas and he has designs on meeting Floyd Mayweather for the mythical pound for pound title in what would be the richest fight in history. Two weeks later Morales quietly returns to take on Jose Alfaro on a small PPV that will be going against boxing cards on HBO & Showtime as well as a huge PPV from the UFC. That isn't a recipe for many buys, but it has one here.

In today's internet age, fans of the sport fans are quick to throw out the term "shot" and spit out claims of great fighters tarnishing their legacies by returning to the ring.  In many cases they are correct about the former, but the latter never holds true.

People don't remember Muhammad Ali for fighting Trevor Berbick or Roberto Duran for getting slaughtered by William Joppy. But they sure remember Ali defying the odds in Zaire and Duran turning back the clock in his epic win over Iran Barkley.

Almost all of the greats hang on too long and it is painful to watch them fight as a shell of their former selves, but in my opinion, the sport has no greater thrill than a champion turning back the clock for one more magical night. That's the type of thing that keeps fans like myself tuning in. These guys are our heroes and it's as hard for us to let go as it is for them give in to father time.

Morales has lost four of his last five fights and will be coming off a 31 month layoff. Now, I'm not suggesting Alfaro can be a magical night for history, but he's a responsible choice for an opponent and we will get a gauge on what Erik has left in the tank. I'm also not trying to paint a picture suggesting that the p4p lists need to make way for Erik Morales again.

However, I do think he deserved the decision against David Diaz, and I question how harshly anyone can hold the two losses to Manny Pacquiao against him - especially given what we've seen Manny do since then.  As for the Raheem fight,  Morales was up against a style that would have bothered him on his best day.

He is only thirty three years old, though admittedly he is older in boxing terms when you consider all his ring wars. But lets give him a chance and see what he has after recharging his batteries. It worked more than once for Roberto Duran.

Hopefully his promoter will make the proper fights and not listen to the warrior himself, as God knows Morales would drench himself in blood and plunge into a pack of great white sharks in a feeding frenzy. Have two or three fights like Alfaro to make sure the tank isn't empty and take a run at that one more special evening

I don't want him in the ring Timothy Bradley or Devon Alexander, but Juan Diaz, Zab Judah, Jose Luis Castillo or Juan Manual Marquez might all be attractive fights.

I'm not naive, I know his best days are gone and he may well really be "shot".  Should that be the case, Alfaro will be enough to prove it.  I also fully understand why there are fans that don't want to watch him fight anymore.  But think about Mosley/Margarito & Hopkins/Pavlik before you sling too much mud. They are just recent examples in a long line of legends that shouldn't be in a fight, only to surprise us when the bell rings.

On March 27th, when many are watching Andre Dirrell do what he can to avoid exchanges with Arthur Abraham and some are watching the doubleheader on HBO, I'll be watching my hero slug it out.

One more time Erik, one more magical night.  I believe you have it in you and there is nothing on earth that can make me miss it.

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