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Miguel Cotto – Antonio Margarito II: Why?

By Donald Stewart

There is a call for the Puerto Rican Superstar, Miguel Cotto 35-2 28 KO’s, to take on Mexican Antonio Margarito, 38-7 27 KO’s, in a rematch of their 2008 WBA Welterweight title fight.

But why?

Surely Margarito managed to win fair and square?!

When illegal hand wrappings were found in Antonio Margarito’s gloves in his fight against Shane Mosley, suspicion grew. The fact that Mosley went on to show Margarito a thing or two in the ring heightened those suspicions beyond mutterings into some kind of clamor for his record to be re examined.

Nobody can know what went through Margarito or Javier Capetillo, his trainer’s mind when they decided to put Plaster of Paris in his gloves for the fight. The subsequent thought that went through the California State Athletic Commission’s was strip their licenses for at least one year.

What is more concerning is that Margarito thought he could get away with it.

It is worrying that it took Mosley’s trainer to notice the white powder. It wasn’t any of the officials in attendance. The opportunity to cheat seems to have been as easily grasped by the Margarito camp as taking mustard out the Hot Dog stand. Where were the officials? What checks did he get past to put this in his glove? It makes the sport look an easy target for the likes of Margarito and his camp.

You see, cheating is big business. In the eyes of administrators, like the International Olympic Committee it’s appalling, to be banned, hunted down and prosecuted. Some sports even have syndicates making Millions out of single events which happen within a sporting event that should be almost impossible to predict. Sport is big business with high stakes and people can howl with derision all they want cheating exists in sport because an edge, any edge is, for some worthy of the risk.

Sometimes we tolerate it without knowing and the faintest hint that any sportsman or woman has been involved in cheating of any kind throws their career all up in the air. We feel cheated and it makes us feel that we can question the entire career stats of the person in question. According to most of our sports stars few cheat if any, until they retire and then you should have seen who we thought was at it. There is little value in being the whistle blower and you ask ANY sports star in an interview if they have ever cheated and be prepared to duck. They are highly sensitive to the idea.

For Margarito his win where he won the WBA Welterweight Title by Cotto – previously unbeaten – in the 11th round is now under suspicion. Now people are sure – don’t know how they can be totally sure – that Margarito must have been strapped for this fight illegally.

They cite his next fight – the fight above against Shane Mosley where Mosley stopped Margarito easily in the ninth. It was expected that Margarito would win easily. I am not so sure, you see the mental attunement needed to win would, of course be upset if he was found to be breaking the rules. In such circumstances, no boxer would be able to overcome the doubts in his mind that people would judge him as a cheat rather than as a boxer. With the mind gone, the legs and the rest follow.

Margarito has also fought twice since Mosley. The first return he won a unanimous decision against Roberto Garcia–a journeyman. He then climbed in the ring against Manny Pacquiao – in a fight that went all 12 rounds.

Not an easy choice for anyone trying to get back in the ring! It was more than just a workout for Margarito and many had called it the David versus Goliath contest. It turned into far more complex a spectacle than that but another loss was not what Margarito needed. Having said that would his management been still representing him had they turned down such a fight down?

For some it might have smacked of desperation but whilst Floyd Mayweather, JR., juggles court appointments with dodgy drugs calls the rest of the division has to get on with the sport of boxing. For Margarito his legacy will remain until we see his redemption.

For the moment though, people should be concentrating on the fighter – does Margarito offer his chin too often? Can he handle quick fighters? Does Margarito need more action before stepping in for Cotto for the second time? What did the Pacquiao and Garcia fights tells us about Margarito after his lay off?

For me he does offer his chin too often, he can handle quick fighters but he has problems against those who are multi dimensional, he needs some more bouts before he steps in against Cotto and removes the doubters and his return just tells us he needs more action to build towards his climax.

It could be said that Margarito deserves more condemnation than pity but after having lost to Pacquiao the only way to put this to the test is for what other commentators are calling the REDEMPTION fight where Cotto and Margarito get it on again. The reality is that all it will prove is that right now which one is better than the other.

So – Cotto vs. Margarito II – would you pay to find out who is the best boxer now?

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