In his June 23rd Random Thoughts column on ESPN.com, the well respected Dan Raphael mentioned that there were talks for a December 4th rematch between Puerto Rico’s Miguel Cotto (35-2, 28KOs) and Antonio Margarito (38-6, 27KOs) of Tijuana, MX. In their July ’08 first match up, Margarito survived an early ambush from the Boricua to completely destroy the face and spirit of Cotto by 11th round TKO.
Margarito Stops Cotto
Since that fight, the career of both fighters has changed immensely. After taking some time off and enjoying his time under the sun, Margarito was the first to return to the ring in January of ’09, only to lose the WBA title he ripped from Cotto and to fall neck deep into a pit of controversy. It is old news that Margarito was caught with a plaster-like substance prior to his KO loss at the fists of “Sugar” Shane Mosley. After being suspended by the California State Athletic Commission for a year along with his trainer, Javier Capetillo, Margarito has since resurfaced under the tutelage of former champion Robert Garcia last May and earned a unanimous decision over Robert ” La Amenaza” Garcia (no relation).
Cotto bounced back one month later after Margarito, stopping Michael Jennings in the fifth round to capture the WBO welterweight strap. After that, Cotto survived a war against Joshua Clottey only to walk straight into a world of hurt when he was destroyed by the one and only Manny Pacquiao. The resilient “Junito” has since gotten up from his boot straps once again, stopping the Rabbi-to-be Yuri Foreman last month for the WBA 154 lbs. title.
It is no secret that since that fateful July night two years ago, neither men is who he was before lacing up the gloves in the Nevada desert.
I for one, do not want to see a repeat of that night because I believe that if those two warriors met one hundred times, Margarito would come out victorious ninety-nine times.
Now will be the point when all those boxing fans step in and scream from the mountain tops that Margarito did not fight clean that night because of his actions six months later.
Pacquaio Hurts Cotto
There is no evidence that Margarito had anything in his wraps in any of his prior fights before Mosley. Saying that he did is like stating that if you have gotten a DUI, then you have driven drunk every other time prior to the DUI. A person might of driven drunk before the DUI and not gotten caught but it doesn’t mean that every time that person got behind the wheel, they were inebriated.
I don’t think we will ever know if Margarito and his team used tainted wraps before January 24th, 2009. It has been reported by other sources that prior to the Margarito-Cotto fight, there was no indication that Margarito should be suspected of cheating. Evangelista Cotto, Miguel’s uncle and at that time trainer, was known for scrutinizing intently the hand wraps of all of his nephew’s opponents and the Nevada officials present in the Tijuana fighter’s dressing room before the bout stated that they did not see any irregularities. For fans and writers alike to state that Margarito had loaded gloves in that fight is pure speculation.
With that being said, I believe that Margarito drew the blueprint of how to beat the Boricua fighter that night which in a way Pacquiao followed to a T. Full pressure from the beginning of the bout, not letting Cotto set up his punches, continually pursuing Cotto around the ring and attacking at all times with great condition and a granite chin to survive the oncoming onslaught from the Puerto Rican’s fists. Many before tried and failed, Margarito didn’t.
There wasn’t any plaster on his chin.
Despite training with Emmanuel Steward, I believe the 29-year-old Cotto is too old to learn new tricks or at least any to help him against the torrid pace of Antonio Margarito, 32.
I am not trying to defend Margarito. If he in fact did know that he had an illegal substance in his Mosley bout, something he denies, and in any other fights, then he should be banned for life.
Mosley Rocks Margarito
I just don’t want to see him fight Cotto again, for the sake of both fighters because Margarito did not come out unscathed from that fight and because of the simple fact that I don’t believe the outcome would be any different. Both fighters have lost something since that fight, whether it be pop in their punches, reflexes or credibility.
A fight that makes sense is Margarito versus Sergio Martinez of Argentina. The two faced off back in 2000 in Las Vegas where the “Tijuana Tornado” stopped Martinez in seven rounds. The Martinez of now is much more skillful than of ten years ago and with much more to offer including a date on HBO.
Recent news is that Margarito will seek reinstatement by the state of Nevada as early as this Friday. With a Mayweather-Pacquiao super match up coming into fruition, the word is that Bob Arum will try to put Margarito and Cotto back in the ring.
I hope he doesn’t.
For the record, I don’t want to see Pacquiao versus Cotto II either…
Recent Comments