09 Boxing Thread:: 12/12 Diaz.vs.Malignaggi HBO/Bradley.vs.Peterson Showtime

[dako akong otin]

[h1]Pacquiao, Hatton, and Bradley make room for Nate Campbell at 140[/h1]
8 comments



February 15, 11:49 PM

by Vivek Wallace, Boxing Examiner

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Last week was a very bittersweet time span for Jacksonville, Florida native Nate 'Galaxxy Warrior' Campbell.

On Friday afternoon he failed to make weight, requiring him to forfeit his highly coveted WBA and WBO straps; Then he turned around a day later and put up the type of performance that showed everyone watching how he was able to attain those straps in the first place.

A True 'Throwback'

Some at ringside spoke of the fact that Campbell performed in a very 'Bernard Hopkins-like' way by overcoming energy depletion (from trying to make weight), to defeat a highly skilled, yet unknown commodity after the longest layoff in his pro career.

Few fighters in the game today have the sheer ability to win a gutsy fight with sheer experience and execution by simply kicking into auto-pilot and weathering the storm.

It wasn't a thing of beauty, but as we know, the end results is all that counts.

Pacquiao, Hatton, Bradley Beware...

With Campbell declaring that his body isn't able to make the 135lb limit anymore, the move to 140lbs instantly makes things a lot more attractive.

That division is now home to Manny Pacquiao, Ricky Hatton, Tim Bradley, and a host of others with amazing potential, and has also been rumored to soon possibly consist of Zab Judah and potentially Andre Berto as well - (although no confirmations have been made on those two).

It'll be a thing of beauty to see a potential Pacquiao-Campbell showdown, but many industry insiders believe that Bob Arum of Top Rank would view Campbell as far more risk than reward, and simply find a bigger name with more money value for Pacquiao to square off against - namely Floyd Mayweather jr. if Pacquiao defeats Hatton this spring.

With the welterweight division being the sports deepest, all of a sudden, one block south things are getting awfully hot!

Stay tuned.

(Follow more of Vivek Wallace's work at 8CountNews, and Eastside Boxing or show him some love at Myspace and Facebook).

 

[gunna get it]

I watched the post fight interview. I take it back, Nate aint come in over the limit on purpose. Dude was bout to cry he was so disappointed.

 

[bigmike23]

Rising lightweight contender Anthony Peterson of Washington injured his left knee, forcing him to withdraw from his 10-round pay-per-view fight against Edner Cherry on Saturday night at Madison Square Garden.

While training Friday, Peterson (28-0, 19 KOs) heard a "clicking noise" in his left knee area, did an eight-mile run anyway and aggravated the area behind his kneecap, according to promoter Top Rank. They are awaiting results of an MRI.

"Anthony is very, very upset as he really wanted to fight at Madison Square Garden," said Barry Hunter, Peterson's manager and trainer. "He is physically unable to compete at this time."

Cherry (24-6-2, 12 KOs), returning to his more natural 135 pounds, was looking at the bout as a way to rebound from losing a decision to junior welterweight titleholder Timothy Bradley Jr. in September.

Peterson and Cherry were due to meet on Top Rank's split site pay-per-view card. Kelly Pavlik's middleweight championship defense against Marco Antonio Rubio headlines the telecast from Youngstown, Ohio, while the rest of the telecast will emanate from Madison Square Garden, where Miguel Cotto faces Michael Jennings for a vacant welterweight belt in that arena's main event.

With the Peterson-Cherry bout off, Top Rank moved super middleweight Matvey Korobov's scheduled four-round bout with Cory Jones (4-4, 1 KO) onto the pay-per-view. It will open the show.

Korobov (3-0, 3 KOs), a 2008 Russian Olympian, is a highly touted prospect who signed with Top Rank after the Olympics and now lives in Florida.

Also on the pay-per-view, junior middleweight John Duddy faces Matt Vanda in a 10-round fight.

Dan Rafael is a senior boxing writer for ESPN.com


.

 

[bigmike23]

[h1]Rankings: Top promoters[/h1]
By Kevin Iole, Yahoo! Sports Feb 12, 1:17 pm EST

• http://buzz.yahoo.com/vote/ method=post> Buzz up!9 votes
• [h5]Print[/h5]

More From Kevin Iole

• Hard-hitting Angulo gaining recognition Feb 12, 2009
• Patient Martinez finally catches break Feb 11, 2009

The 30 boxing writers who participated in the February Yahoo! Sports boxing poll voted for 23 different fighters who represent 10 different promoters.

Ex-super middleweight and light heavyweight champion Joe Calzaghe was ineligible for the poll, since he announced his retirement before the voting commenced, which means there's a new name at No. 2.

And given that fighters are ineligible to be voted upon if they're inactive for more than a year, and if they're on suspension, that means that in the March poll, No. 3 Israel Vazquez and No. 6 Rafael Marquez will fall out for inactivity and No. 12 Antonio Margarito will drop because of a one-year license revocation assessed by the California State Athletic Commission for illegal hand wraps.

Margarito's votes were counted because voting was concluded before the commission's penalty was announced, but he will not be included again until he is legally cleared to fight and is under no penalty.

But as I compiled the votes, I began to wonder which promoter would come out on top. And so, before I get to the monthly fighter rankings, I'll provide a little promoter rankings. This isn't meant to pick the identity of the world's best boxing promoter, because I know how easily the egos of promoters bruise and I'd have at least half of them on the phone to me in the morning whining. It's only to see which promoter currently has the most fighters in the top 23 (the number of fighters who received votes in our poll).

I used the same rules as I use for the fighter poll. Since 23 men received votes, I gave 23 points for first, 22 for second on down to one point for the fighter in 23rd.

With that, here are the results of the promoter poll:

Top Rank, 91 points: Led by undisputed No. 1 Manny Pacquiao, it had three fighters in the top 10 and eight fighters receive at least one vote.

Golden Boy Promotions, 72 points: Golden Boy placed three in the top five, but it didn't have another fighter until a tie for 19th. Of its ranked fighters, the average age is 34.8 and only one, heavyweight David Haye, is under 30.

Gary Shaw Productions, 45 points: Super bantamweight Rafael Marquez has lost two straight, hasn't won since March 3, 2007, yet has continually moved up in the poll, now at No. 6. That curiosity is because he's lost back-to-back scintillating fights against one of the best in the business. Marquez is one of three GSP fighters in the top 11.

Sycuan Ringside Promotions, 21 points: Sycuan has only one fighter in the poll, but he's a doozy: No. 3 Israel Vazquez.

Goossen-Tutor Promotions, 17 points: If Paul Williams earned points for all of the weight classes he fights in, Goossen-Tutor might sit atop the list.

Chris John Promotions, 11 points: The classy featherweight Chris John promotes himself.

Team Palle Promotions, 10 points: The Danish company is represented by the outstanding super middleweight, Mikkel Kessler.

Sauerland Events, 8 points: Arthur Abraham, and not the more well-known Kelly Pavlik, just might be the world's top middleweight.

K2 Promotions, 4 points: Heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko is his company's only representative in the poll.

Seminole Warrior's Promotions, 1 point: Lanky super bantamweight Celestino Caballero received a single 10th-place vote in the poll.

With that, let's get on to the real poll and unveil the Yahoo! Sports top 10 for February:

Pacquiao

1. Manny Pacquiao
Points: 300 (30 of 30 first-place votes)
Record: 48-3-2 (37 KOs)
Title: WBC lightweight champion
Last outing: TKO8 over Oscar De La Hoya on Dec. 6
Previous ranking: 1
Up next: May 2 in Las Vegas vs. Ricky Hatton for super lightweight title
Analysis: Overall game has improved dramatically in last two years

Marquez

2. Juan Manuel Marquez
Points: 261
Record: 49-4-1 (35 KOs)
Title: Ring lightweight champion
Last outing: TKO11 over Joel Casamayor on Sept. 13
Previous ranking: 3
Up next: Feb. 28 in Houston vs. Juan Diaz
Analysis: Desperate for another crack at Pacquiao

Vazquez

3. Israel Vazquez
Points: 205
Record: 43-4 (31 KOs)
Title: WBC and Ring super bantamweight champion
Last outing: W12 over No. 7 Rafael Marquez on March 1
Previous ranking: 4
Up next: TBA
Analysis: Hopeful he can return to action from eye surgery by June

Hopkins

4. Bernard Hopkins
Points: 197 ½
Record: 49-5 (32 KOs)
Title: None
Last outing: W12 over Kelly Pavlik on Oct. 18
Previous ranking: 5
Up next: TBA
Analysis: Joe Calzaghe's retirement makes Hopkins' more likely

Mosley

5. Shane Mosley
Points: 131
Record: 46-5 (39 KOs)
Title: WBA welterweight champion
Last outing: TKO9 over Antonio Margarito on Jan. 24
Previous ranking: NR
Up next: TBA
Analysis: Looked like the Mosley of 2000 in dominating victory

Marquez

6. Rafael Marquez
Points: 123
Record: 37-5 (33 KOs)
Title: None
Last outing: L12 to No. 4 Israel Vazquez on March 1
Previous ranking: 7
Up next: TBA
Analysis: Hasn't won in nearly two years, but still moves up in rankings

Williams

7. Paul Williams
Points: 108
Record: 36-1 (27 KOs)
Title: Interim WBO junior middleweight champion
Last outing: TKO8 over Verno Phillips on Nov. 29
Previous ranking: 8
Up next: April 11 in Las Vegas vs. Winky Wright
Analysis: Is fighting at middleweight but considers himself a welterweight

Cotto

8. Miguel Cotto
Points: 84
Record: 32-1 (26 KOs)
Title: None
Last outing: TKO by 11 to Antonio Margarito on July 26
Previous ranking: 9
Up next: Feb. 21 in New York against Michael Jennings
Analysis: Legitimacy of only loss now in question after Margarito hand wrap controversy

Calderon

9. Ivan Calderon
Points: 60
Record: 32-0 (6 KOs)
Title: WBO light flyweight champion
Last outing: TD7 over Hugo Cazares on Aug. 30
Previous ranking: 10
Up next: TBA
Analysis: Quickest fighter in lower weights

Darchinyan

10. Vic Darchinyan
Points: 52
Record: 32-1-1 (26 KOs)
Title: WBA, WBC, IBF super flyweight champion
Last outing: TKO11 over Jorge Arce on Feb. 7
Previous ranking: NR
Up next: TBA
Analysis: Powerful southpaw hoping to hold titles in three weight classes in 2009

Others receiving votes: Chad Dawson 32 ½; Antonio Margarito 17; Chris John 15; Mikkel Kessler 9; Juan Manuel Lopez 8; Arthur Abraham 6; Nonito Donaire 5; Kelly Pavlik 5; Ricky Hatton 4; Wladimir Klitschko 4; David Haye 2; Fernando Montiel 2; Celestino Caballero 1.

 

[eagle 0n]

eps. 2, the first defense
http://www.hbo.com/ringlife/http://www.hbo.com/ringlife/
vid ain't up on youtube yet.

still can't believe nate couldn't make weight. even in sparring dude was looking gassed.

 

[bigmike23]

Last summer, Miguel Cotto and Kelly Pavlik were undefeated stars and world champions quickly climbing the pound-for-pound top 10. The sky was the limit forboth exciting fighters. Suddenly, both crashed to earth with rough, physically taxing defeats in upsets.



In July, Cotto faced Antonio Margar-cheato in a sensational fight. But in the 11th round, Cotto finally succumbed to his opponent's relentless pressure andperhaps-plaster-wrapped fists. (Guess we'll never know if he cheated in that one, but I digress). Gone were Cotto's welterweight title and perfectrecord.



In October, middleweight champion Pavlik was taken to the woodshed in a nontitle 170-pound fight by Bernard Hopkins, who won a virtual shutout in what amountedto man vs. boy.



Had Cotto and Pavlik won their respective bouts, I'd be really disappointed in Top Rank promoter Bob Arum's decision to match them in the fashion hehas for Saturday night.



That's when Cotto faces England's Michael Jennings (who am I, and how did I become a mandatory challenger?) for a vacant welterweight belt at NewYork's Madison Square Garden, and Pavlik returns to middleweight to defend his championship in his hometown of Youngstown, Ohio, against hard-hitting butlimited Marco Antonio Rubio.



With HBO and Showtime passing on the fights, Arum -- the one promoter who has never been shy about taking a risk -- packaged the bouts for his own independentpay-per-view card, which will cover both fights from different cities along with other undercard bouts.



Arum's guys need to fight, and just because a network passes does not mean he shouldn't put on the show. Pay-per-view was the only way.



If fans want to watch, they'll buy it. If they want to see it live, they'll buy a ticket. At the gate, both shows seem to be selling. The ChevroletCenter in Youngstown will be sold out, with more than 7,500 in the house. Arum said he expects around 12,000 at the Garden, a very solid figure consideringCotto is coming off a loss, the economy stinks and Jennings is as obscure as they come.



Prior to their definitive defeats, I'd have ripped Arum for putting on a card like this, because I'd expect undefeated star champions in bigger fights.But given the severity of the losses suffered by Cotto and Pavlik, I understand Arum's position. On the surface, Cotto and Pavlik are huge favoritesagainst virtual unknown opponents. But nobody, including the fighters and Arum, knows what they have left or how either will react coming off brutal losses. Sothere's nothing wrong with Top Rank being careful with a fighter in that position and showing a little TLC in the opponent department.



One of the reasons my interest in the fights is piqued is because I keep having visions of Cotto, his face bashed in and bleeding, taking two knees insurrender against Margarito. Same goes for a helpless Pavlik sopping up blow after blow against Hopkins.



I'm actually a bit intrigued to see how they're going to bounce back. If the $44.95 price tag is too much for you, I suggest what I always suggest forpay-per-views: Get a few friends together and chip in. Cotto and Pavlik, whomever they are fighting, are usually worth the price of admission.



• Who do you like in this fight: Margarito's loaded hand wraps vs. Zab Judah's shower door? For those curious as to why The Cheater no longer appearsin the ESPN.com pound-for-pound or divisional rankings, it's pretty simple: He's banned from fighting in the United States for at least a year becauseof a major rules infraction. Therefore, he's out.



• Is it just me or does Ali Funeka look like someone took Ishe Smith and stretched him out to 6-foot-1?



• My father used to own a chain of pet stores when I was a kid. If he was still in the business, you can be sure I'd hit him up for a few better-lookingdog collars for Alfredo "Perro" Angulo.



• I really loved the feature pieces HBO did on boxing's best young fighters during the "Boxing After Dark" telecast last week. It shows that HBOreally is looking to the future and will use "BAD" as a vehicle to give the young guys exposure in worthy fights. The piece included youngerestablished fighters such as Chad Dawson, Paul Williams, Andre Berto, Juan Diaz, Robert Guerrero and Juan Manuel Lopez. Some of the rising prospects includedwere Yuriorkis Gamboa, Victor Ortiz, James Kirkland and Angulo. As much as I enjoyed it, I thought there was one glaring omission: junior welterweight DevonAlexander.



• I'm pretty psyched for next week's Juan Manuel Marquez-Diaz fight.



• When I heard that promoter Dan Goossen tried last week to get Hasim Rahman approved by HBO as an opponent for Cris Arreola on the April 11 Williams-WinkyWright undercard -- he wasn't -- I didn't know if I should laugh or throw up.



• From the moment Golden Boy's Richard Schaefer told me about his April 4 all-lightweight pay-per-view card, I liked it. I like it even more with theaddition of the Joel Casamayor-Julio Diaz fight, to go along with the other three bouts: Edwin Valero-Antonio Pitalua, Jorge Barrios-Carlos Hernandez andMichael Katsidis-Jesus Chavez. That's going to be a fun show.



• When I read that Johnny Tapia was in trouble again, admitting to falling off the wagon and using cocaine and winding up in jail for violating his probationterms, I can't say I was surprised. Sad for Tapia, but by no means surprised. I will be far more surprised if Tapia makes it to his 50th birthday.



• Quote of the day, from a delusional Kermit Cintron after his lucky draw with Sergio Martinez last Saturday: "Hell yeah, I did enough to win. I clearlywon it. I thought he hit me with a headbutt in Round 7. Nobody hits that hard." By now, Cintron has surely watched video of the fight, and though he maythink he won -- which means he's still delusional -- at least he'll see the indisputable evidence that it was a left from Martinez that dropped him inthe seventh, not his head. Guess what, Kermit? Somebody does hit that hard.




• That indefensible draw Martinez received against Cintron came on Valentine's Day. Martinez got no love.



• I want to see heavyweight Adam "The Swamp Donkey" Richards somewhere on a televised boxing card. Matched against Chazz Witherspoon on theuntelevised Jermain Taylor-Jeff Lacy undercard last fall, Richards lost but helped deliver a terrific fight. He has just the kind of style fight fans like tosee from heavyweights.



• I saw some quotes from David Haye manager/trainer Adam Booth this week in which he referred to me as a "biased keyboard warrior," a response to mycomments in last week's blog about his pathetic negotiating skills with regard to a proposed fight for Haye against heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschkothis summer. I don't think it's bias to expose someone who spends a lot of time boasting about fights he supposedly wants to make, then manages thenegotiations like a hand grenade. Put it this way: As a manager, well, Booth is a hell of a trainer. He makes Nacho Beristain look like Al Haymon.



• Can't anyone in a big lightweight fight make weight? From Jose Luis Castillo to Diego Corrales to Joan Guzman and now Nate Campbell, they've allmissed weight in recent years for 135-pound title fights. I sense a trend.



• Don't you just get the feeling that Vic Darchinyan would trash-talk his own mother?



• DVD pick of the week: I felt old watching this week's pick as I went back to Feb. 13, 1999. How can it have possibly been 10 years since Oscar De LaHoya's tight split decision against Ike Quartey at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas? Well, it has been. Even a decade later, the fight remains oneof the high points of De La Hoya's glorious career. Defending the welterweight title, he and Quartey put on an excellent show. They both went down in thesixth round before De La Hoya, in danger of suffering his first defeat, had a huge 12th round. He knocked Quartey down again and battered him along the ropesin a memorable flurry to impressively close the show and claim the deserved victory while handing Quartey his first loss. Ten years? Damn.

 

[eagle 0n]

THE RING's No. 2 light heavyweight contender Chad Dawson will have to withdraw from his scheduled March 14 rematch with former champ Antonio Tarver after tearing a ligament in his right hand during training, the IBF title holder's promoter Gary Shaw told ESPN.com.

The injury, suffered during a sparring session, will take at least two weeks to heal enough before Dawson can resume training, according to Shaw, effectively throwing off the 26-year-old southpaw's training schedule for the rematch with his 40-year-old rival.

Dawson (27-0, 17 KOs) dominated Tarver, THE RING's No. 4-rated light heavyweight, to a lop-sided unanimous decision in their first match last October. The rematch, which was to take place at the Palms Resort in Las Vegas (the same site of the first bout), was going to be televised on HBO.

 

[bigmike23]

Light heavyweight titlist Chad Dawson suffered a right hand injury Tuesday, forcing him to withdraw from his March 14 rematch with former champion Antonio Tarver, promoter Gary Shaw told ESPN.com.

Shaw said that the diagnosis was ligament damage and that Dawson was in a soft cast, unable to train for about two weeks.

"It's not a break, it's a ligament," Shaw said. "In two weeks, he'll be able to go back into training. The question is when can HBO give us another date for the fight?"

Dawson, who has fought on Showtime the past few years, was due to make his HBO debut in the sequel with Tarver, 40, who had a contractual rematch clause in his contract after losing a lopsided decision and his 175-pound belt Oct. 11. They were due to meet in Las Vegas at The Palms resort, the same casino that hosted the first fight.

Shaw said that Dawson, 26, suffered the injury sparring with Akinyemi "AK" Laleye, a participant in this season's edition of "The Contender" reality series. He and Dawson are both managed by Mike Criscio.

"I'm bummed. I really wanted Chad to get back in the ring to show his wares and move on," Shaw said. "I'm sure Chad is pretty upset too. I'm sure HBO is pretty bummed out. Chad should be ready to fight as early as mid-April."

In the first meeting with Tarver (27-5, 19 KOs), Dawson (27-0, 17 KOs) dominated the fight, dropped him in the 12th round and won on scores of 118-109, 117-110 and 117-110.

Dan Rafael is the boxing writer for ESPN.com.

 

[shannonscrooks]

That sucks for Dawson, but hopefully that means this fight doesnt happen down the line.

 

[stringer bell 32]

Originally Posted by ShannonsCrooks

That sucks for Dawson, but hopefully that means this fight doesnt happen down the line.

 

[bobby1109]

Originally Posted by ShannonsCrooks

That sucks for Dawson, but hopefully that means this fight doesnt happen down the line.

Yea but he's probably still going to take the fight maybe mid-April...there's no one out there who's willing to fight him that HBO would pay forand he's making more money fighting on HBO than he would on Showtime (from what I've heard)...unless Hopkins stop ducking him

 

[dako akong otin]

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How Much Gasolina Left in Cotto's Tank?​

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Ricardo Lois
2/19/2009

Fans, experts, writers, gamblers, and shady characters hanging around the tattered fringe of boxing will carefully analyze Miguel Cotto's Saturday night Madison Square Garden performance against Britain's Michael Jennings with one question burning on their minds, "Was the Boricua bomber forever damaged by Antonio Margarito?"

Before his welterweight classic with Margarito, Cotto was an undefeated star in the making; a gifted boxer who was never afraid to put his well being on the line inside the ring. His trajectory was on par with iconic Puerto Rican pugilists Felix Trinidad, Wilfredo Gomez, and Wilfredo Benitez. In his first thirty two fights, Cotto was undefeated and owned twenty-six knock-outs. All was good in Cotto-landia going into the hot Las Vegas evening of July 26, 2008.

Coming off memorable back to back victories against Shane Mosley and Zab Judah, Cotto engaged in a brutual battle with the iron-like Margarito. Through out the fight Cotto was able to unleash his awesome arsenal of punches on Margarito, only to watch the Mexican-American seemingly become stronger and stronger as the fight wore one. Fueled by will or destiny, Margarito's punches damaged Cotto through the eleven rounds and eventually forced trainer/uncle Evangelista Cotto to throw in the towel.

Miguel Cotto suffered a punishing defeat, the type which leaves one wondering, "did the poor soul leave too much of himself in the ring," and has not been seen the inside of a ring since that bloody night.

How will Cotto react Saturday? Has the rising star emanating from an boxing crazed island fizzled before reaching its full glory? Jennings - 34 wins, 1 loss, 16 knockouts, with no significant opposition on his resume - has been brought across the pond to serve as a trial horse to Cotto. If Jennings puts up any sort of reasonable resistance in front of a hostile crowd of New Yoricans, it will serve as strong evidence indicating Cotto's glory days might have been left in the ring against Margarito.

Saturday night will be the preliminary test, or a much larger question for Cotto. Even if Miguel were to conqueror Jennings in impressive manner, the question will remain, "what will happen when he finds himself with a world class opponent, will he have anything left in the tank?"

Cotto vs. Jennings and Kelly Pavlik vs. Marco Antonio Rubio will headline the Saturday night HBO pay per view, promoted by Top Rank with a suggested retail price of $44.95.

The Margarito Saga

Some openly wonder if Margarito, recently suspended by the California State Athletic Commission for attempting to use plaster like hand wraps in a fight with Shane Mosley, also cheated against Cotto. This writer believes it is a mute point, because Team Cotto never complained on July 26, 2008.

A member of Cotto's corner was in attendance when Margarito's hands were wrapped, as is customary in boxing. If the person assigned to monitor the wraps did not cry foul on that night, then there are a two explanations: A) Margarito did not cheat B) Margarito cheated and Team Cotto was asleep at the wheel.

If B is the reality, it is too late to bring up any accusations or create conspiracies surrounding Margarito's hand wraps, even though these questions naturally arise after Margarito was caught red handed earlier this year.

I Predict...

Cotto works Jennings with his strong jab and wicked left hook all night long. Never one to strike with vicious one punch power, Cotto's damage will accumulate and send Jennings' back on a transatlantic flight to the U.K. as a late round knock-out victim.
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[proshares]

I think Cotto is going to come out firing in this one.

There is only one visible change in Miguel Cotto's appearance since his devastating loss to Antonio Margarito in Las Vegas in July 2008. And that is a tattoo of a set of Chinese characters running vertically down the side of his neck.

Cotto said it symbolizes those who are closest to him -- his son and wife and his family.

The tattoos Margarito put on Cotto's body, including cuts above his eyes and a bloody nose, healed and disappeared long ago. Whatever injury Cotto's psyche suffered is invisible. But that will be the most important factor in his career going forward.

As Cotto (32-1, 26 KOs) steps into the ring against Michael Jennings, a British welterweight contender, for the vacant WBO 147-pound title at Madison Square Garden in New York on Saturday night, it is the mental side of Cotto's game, not the physical side, that will attract the most scrutiny.

Jennings (34-1, 16 KOs), who took short money and traveled across the Atlantic Ocean for his first title shot, certainly will be looking for any mental chinks in Cotto's previously invincible armor.

"Probably, it is a good time with him coming off that loss," Jennings said about facing 28-year-old Cotto now rather than in the past or the future. "Then again, he probably wants to come back and prove himself and show that he's better than he was. It's a gamble."

You never know how a supremely confident boxer such as Cotto will react after the first loss of his career. But the loss to Margarito wasn't just an ordinary loss. It was not a split decision. It was not a close 12-round unanimous decision for Margarito. Margarito administered a savage beating that forced Cotto to relent before referee Kenny Bayless stopped it in the 11th round.

Cotto said he got over the loss quickly. "In four or five days, I felt OK," he said. "OK, but not better. When I got back to Puerto Rico, people treated me with the same attitude [as before]. That made me happy."

http://sports.espn.go.com...3916304&story=3916266','Popup','width=640,height=550,scrollbars=no,noresize'); return false;" href="http://sports.espn.go.com/sports/boxing/news/story?id=3916266#">[+] Enlarge

AP Photo/ Ronda ChurchillWhether or not Antonio Margarito's defeat of Miguel Cotto in July was on the level, the abuse Cotto took was undeniable.

Cotto hasn't watched the Margarito tape and doesn't plan to anytime soon. "I was there," he joked.

On the same night that Cotto takes on Jennings, middleweight champion Kelly Pavlik will defend his title against Marco Antonio Rubio in a 12-round match in Pavlik's hometown of Youngstown, Ohio. Pavlik also is coming off the first loss of his career -- a lopsided 12-round unanimous decision to light heavyweight Bernard Hopkins. Pavlik has a few built-in excuses for his loss, though he doesn't use them. He was fighting 15 pounds above his weight class, was suffering from bronchitis and hadn't sparred in two weeks because of tendinitis in his elbow.

Bob Arum of Top Rank -- who promotes Margarito, Cotto and Pavlik -- said he is always concerned about how a boxer will return from a crushing loss.

"You just never know," Arum said. "They can be fine, or you can have a horror show. You saw what happened to Donald Curry after he lost to Lloyd Honeyghan. He was never the same again. They're young enough that, physically, it doesn't take much out of them. How it affects them mentally, who knows?"

Curry, a devastating knockout artist, briefly held the WBC 154-pound title after beating Gianfranco Rosi, but he was knocked out in championship matches by Milt McCrory, Terry Norris and Michael Nunn.

There is nothing to suggest that Cotto will go down the same path as Curry, but Arum believes Pavlik's temperament might make him better suited to come back from a loss. "It probably affected Cotto more," Arum said. "Psychologically, he's that kind of guy. Kelly isn't fazed by adversity. But who knows?"

Cotto might be able to get a psychological boost from the fact that Margarito and his trainer were caught trying to use illegal hand wraps before Margarito fought Shane Mosley at the Staples Center in Los Angeles on Jan. 24. Margarito and his trainer, Javier Capetillo, have had their licenses revoked for a year by the California State Athletic Commission after an investigation determined there was tampering with the wraps. The discovery was made by Mosley's trainer, Nazim Richardson, before the bout, so Margarito wasn't using loaded gloves in the ring.

Cotto does not want to believe that Margarito was using loaded gloves when the two fought in July. He would rather chalk up the loss to Margarito's having a good night. They were supposed to meet in a rematch at the Garden in June, but that is out. Arum is appealing Margarito's one-year revocation because he believes Margarito didn't know anything about Capetillo's tampering with the hand wraps. Cotto disagrees with Arum and believes Margarito should serve his suspension. He isn't buying that Margarito didn't know what was going on.

"All I know is, when everybody gets their hands wrapped, they know what's in them," Cotto said. "They know if there's something in their hand wraps or not. As a fighter, you know if there's something in there."

Cotto said he doesn't feel as if he has lost any ground in the welterweight division since the loss, particularly given that Margarito now has lost to Mosley, whom Cotto beat in 2007. Cotto believes he can tangle with Mosley, Manny Pacquiao, Andre Berto and anybody else in the upper levels of the 147-pound division.

"I only have one defeat, and Margarito has [six]. I know I have the ability to take things in the same level that I did before the loss," Cotto said. "And I know I'm going to do it. I don't know if the writers and the people who love boxing put me lower than before. But I'm going to work to be at the same level again.

"I still feel like a champion. I made a good fight last July against Margarito. The only thing that happened was that Margarito won the fight. We brought the people a good show, a good fight, and the only people who won that night was the fans."

 

[gunna get it]

Cotto hasn't watched the Margarito tape and doesn't plan to anytime soon. "I was there," he joked.

Good one

as much as I hate to do it, Im gonna buy this PPV just off the strength that its MAC.

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[font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][size=-2] [/size][/font]​

[font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][size=-2][font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][size=+2]Williams-Wright Presser![/size][/font] [font=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]By Edgar Gonzalez/ Photos: Big Joe Miranda
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[font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][size=-2][font=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]
Halloween is celebrated at the end of October, but this year Halloween will be on April 11, 2009 when two of the most feared boxers in the world step in the ring at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, Nevada. Former Junior Middleweight World champion Winky Wright will look to stop the meteoric rise of two-division World Champion Paul Williams in a 12 round middleweight bout that is destined to land the winner on the list of boxing's best, pound-for-pound. Both Wright and Williams played host to a press conference today at the ESPN ZONE in Los Angeles.[/font][/size][/font]
[font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][size=-2][font=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]This will be Paul Williams' (36-1, 27KOs) first time fighting at Mandalay Bay since demolishing Santos Pakau with a 6 round TKO in November 2006.[/font][/size][/font]

[font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][size=-2][font=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]"They call him the Punisher because that's what he does inside the ring," stated Dan Goossen, President of Goossen Tutor Promotions, the promoter of the night. "There's a difference between feared and avoided. People might avoid Winky Wright because of his style, but people fear Paul Williams because what he could do."[/font][/size][/font]

[font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][size=-2][font=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]"You know me, I don't do a lot of talking, I do my talking in the ring," said the 6′3″ southpaw. "If Winky wants to play defense all night long then it should be an easy win for me."[/font][/size][/font]

[font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][size=-2][font=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]"I am going to get mine in, I'm known for throwing a lot of punches but come April 11, I am going to throw a lot more, my game plan is to outbox and break his defense."[/font][/size][/font]

[font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][size=-2][font=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Winky Wright (51-4-1, 25 KOs) might be the most avoided fighter in the world; despite his 18-month furlough his self-confidence today gave hope to his boxing fans.[/font][/size][/font]

[font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][size=-2][font=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]"People always ask me why don't you fight again and I always tell them the same thing. It's not me… people don't want to fight me, those rumors about me being hard to negotiate or that I demand to much money is not true. I am willing to fight anyone," declared Winky Wright. "I am very excited, people don't know the things we went thru to get a fight. I have to give credit to Paul for stepping up to the plate, it's about time someone did."[/font][/size][/font]

[font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][size=-2][font=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]"I am not all defense, yes I have a great defense but you need more to win a fight, I know it's been almost 2 years, but I am motivated and I am ready."[/font][/size][/font]

[font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][size=-2][font=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Mandalay Bay currently has Williams to be the favorite -140 to Winky's +160. Winky Wright has put his own dent in the sport for nearly two decades. A former undisputed Junior Middleweight World Champion who made nine successful defenses of his crown, Wright truly broke through on the world scene in 2004 with a back-to-back wins over Sugar Shane Mosley. Winky moved up to middleweight in 2005 and defeated Puerto Rican Superstar Felix "Tito" Trinidad. Although he would suffer a decision loss to Bernard Hopkins in 2007, the 37-year-old veteran is determined and hungrier than ever for his showdown with Williams.[/font][/size][/font]

[font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][size=-2][font=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]"Paul is one of the top young fighters in the game, but he hasn't seen what I've seen or done what I have done. This is my time to shine and I won't let this young fighter steal my spotlight."[/font][/size][/font]

[font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][size=-2][font=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Tickets are now on sale and priced at $300, $200, $150, $100 and $50 and are available for purchase at all Ticket master location or at Mandalaybay.com


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this $@$*# Gamboa fightin again this Friday

[font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][size=+2][font=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][size=+2]Yuriorkis Gamboa back in action![/size][/font]
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[font=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]2009 Prospect of the Year Yuriorkis "El Ciclon" Gamboa (13-0, 11 KOs) will be in action against Walter Estrada (35-8, 24 KOs) in an eight-round, featherweight fight on Friday at the University Center Arena in Ft. Lauderdale Florida[/font]

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[bigmike23]

if they was fighting anyone good i would buy it, but im straight will catch a online link

 

[bigmike23]

i saw that the other day and just laughed

 

[dam itz lou]

9. Ivan Calderon
Points: 60
Record: 32-0 (6 KOs)

Havent seen a win/KO ratio like that in my life.

 

[stringer bell 32]

Originally Posted by Bigmike23

if they was fighting anyone good i would buy it, but im straight will catch a online link

Pavlik and Cotto on the same card

I'm getting it

 

[shannonscrooks]

If I can find that PPV card, I might buy it. They are usually in the $20 range and to see 2 of my favorite fighters, I think I will pay that kind of dough. Notsure of its availability in my area though.

Also, read that Bradley v. Holt is on April 4 in Montreal. I love Montreal, its titty bars, loose women and boxing, may have to make that trip.

 

[gunna get it]

Shannon, TimeWarner Brighthouse has the price at $44.95

If Gamboa had any kinda other fights on that card, I'd go see that !@++

 

[yungmatt]

No way im ordering that on saturday

 

[sjsneakerheadiii]

Originally Posted by Stringer Bell 32

Originally Posted by Bigmike23

if they was fighting anyone good i would buy it, but im straight will catch a online link

Pavlik and Cotto on the same card

I'm getting it

Best believe we are getting it also.

My Dad and I have been following Cotto since day one and we see no reason to miss our first fight.

Pavlik's fighting also???

JK.

 

[proshares]

Halloween is celebrated at the end of October, but this year Halloween will be on April 11, 2009 when two of the most feared boxers in the world step in the ring at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, Nevada.

"You know me, I don't do a lot of talking, I do my talking in the ring,"

If I can find that PPV card, I might buy it. They are usually in the $20 range and to see 2 of my favorite fighters, I think I will pay that kind of dough. Not sure of its availability in my area though.
Time Warner in NYC has it I think but it's at the regular price so I doubt I'll be buying it. Mike if youget a link let me know.

Also, read that Bradley v. Holt is on April 4 in Montreal. I love Montreal, its titty bars, loose women and boxing, may have to make that trip.
That doesn't sound like a bad idea and it should be a great fight.

 

[eagle 0n]

 

[shannonscrooks]

Brian Perez should think about picking up some conditioning techniques during these training sessions.