On Saturday, July 26th Miguel Cotto (32-0 with 26 KOs) will defend his WBA welterweight title against Antonio Margarito (36-5 with 26 KOs). It has all the makings for fight of the year: Two incredible warriors with ice in their veins and a lot to prove. It’s the classic Puerto Rican vs. Mexican rivalry with immediate implications that could rock the foundation of boxing. Although the rest of the boxing world see it as a pretty big deal, Wednesday’s final press conference found two fighters living by the classic cliché – Talk is cheap.
For a fight that is being billed simply as “The Battle,” the way Antonio Margarito and Miguel Cotto handled themselves, one would think that these two world class welterweights were playing for the same team.
“I’m sick of fighters talking tough and then getting in the ring and acting like its Dancing With The Stars,”Top Rank Promotions founder, Bob Arum, said as he was obviously pleased at how these two combatants carried themselves like gentlemen in the final presser before Saturday’s showdown.
“When these two get in the ring there will be fireworks, there will be action.”
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It wasn’t your usual smoke and mirrors display of machismo that usually comes along with a fight that has so much riding on it for both fighters. With Floyd Mayweather Jr “retiring” from boxing, it leaves a huge void atop the pound for pound rankings. While Manny Pacquiao may claim that spot for the time being, it’s not too farfetched to see Cotto compete for that spot with a decisive victory. For Margarito, this is a fight that could possibly make or break his career.
“This fight reminds me of the 2000 fight between Felix Trinidad and Fernando Vargas,” said HBO‘s Senior Vice President of Sports Operation and Pay-Per-View, Mark Taffet.
While press conferences are usually filled with boastful fighters making claims on who is going to beat down who, Cotto and Margarito’s only battle on Wednesday would be who could say the least.
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“There’s not much to say,”Margarito explained to the media. “I worked hard during training and it’s time to battle.”
Cotto stepped up next and kept it just as short and sweet as his opponent.
“Everybody wants to see the best fighter go against the best fighter,”Cotto stated after thanking the usual suspects going into a fight and giving the usual “I had a wonderful training camp” spiel.
“But I’m going to climb out of the ring on Saturday as a champion.”
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Miguel Cotto Vs Antonio Margarito takes place Saturday, July 26th from the MGM Grand in Las Vegas NV.
