Eye opener: Cotto avenges loss in a one sided TKO win over Margarito

Joey Santana

NY Boxing Examiner

Every once in a while, the world corrects itself and things return to exactly as they should be. 3 ½ years ago in Las Vegas, Antonio Margarito (38-8 27 KO`s) cheated his way to another one of his victories, this time over Miguel Cotto. You read that correctly, I said another one. Don’t be naïve and think this was the only time it happened. In July of 2008 Miguel Cotto suffered the first loss of his career and the loss of his WBA welterweight title to the hands of Margarito. Six months later, questions arose about Margarito`s victory over Cotto after Margarito was caught with loaded handwraps entering his January 2009 fight with Shane Mosley. Tonight in the Mecca of Boxing, New York City`s Madison Square Garden, all those questions were answered. Margarito definitely cheated. I now know this because Margarito is a better boxer today than he was in 2008 and got taken to school tonight by Cotto.

The fight was eerily similar to the first go round, except Margarito`s punches didn’t have that same sting to them (or should I say cement) in the middle rounds where he took over before stopping Cotto in round 11. Call it running, boxing or moving effectively, but I`ll call it Miguel out working Marga-Cheato in a classic boxer – puncher style that wowed the crowd, the judges and anyone with a set of eyeballs. He set up punches, sat down on power shots and bombed the Tijuana Tornado all night long. His main target, Margarito`s right eye that was badly damaged in the fight vs Pacquiao last November but was cleared by the New York State Boxing Commission and two doctors as fit for him to fight. Cotto tagged the eye early and often with a stiff left jab and a beautiful left hook. Margarito`s right eye was bloodied by the third round and swollen by the seventh. In interviews leading up to the fight, Cotto said the right eye would be his main target and made good on his word by landing 86 of his 210 shots on the right side of Margarito`s face.

Antonio must be given a good amount of credit by continuing to come forward, applying pressure and making a one sided fight entertaining, as Cotto often retreated to safe ground to find comfortable space to put his punches together. But as the rounds piled up on the scorecards for Cotto, the swelling piled up on Margarito`s right eye and face. By the Ninth round, the ring Dr. Anthony Curreri was in Margarito`s corner checking his vision, to see if he was able to go on, but Margarito`s right eye was completely swollen shut and the bout was called to a halt. Referee Steve Smoger tried to sift through the confusion in Margaarito`s corner, but was officially told to stop the fight as Margarito`s corner pleaded for one more round. In front of over 21,000 mostly rabid Puerto Rican boxing fans, Miguel Cotto had finally avenged his first loss with a 10 round TKO victory. Cotto`s face was not without its share of blemishes, Margarito`s short uppercuts on the inside did its share of damage, but as Miguel said after the fight when asked the $64,000 question in the post fight interview, How did Margarito`s punches feel tonight as compared to 2008? Miguel replied "I'm still awake. That's my answer," he said "After nine, 10 rounds, I'm still on my feet."

 Margarito complained after the fight in his interview with HBO`s Max Kellerman that he could continue and that Cotto “still hits like a girl”, but his right eye said otherwise needing 12 stitches to repair the damage. Cotto landed 210 of 493 (43%) of his overall punches to Margarito`s 157 of 700 (22%) and a whopping 148 of 293 (51%) of his power shots. Miguel Cotto (37-2* 30 KO`s, notice the asterisk) said after the fight that he would take a few weeks off and then come back to the table to talk boxing. With the second defense of his WBA super world light middleweight title and this huge victory in his back pocket, and being recognized as the king of the Jr middleweight division, Cotto has an exciting future ahead of him. Rumor has it that Cotto can dump Bob Arum and Top Rank once his contract expires and seek out a super fight with Floyd Mayweather Jr or even Saul “Canelo” Alvarez, as both are represented by Oscar De La Hoya`s Golden Boy Promotions. The future for Cotto is bright, but like they say “nothing is set in Cement”!

 Joey Santana can be reached via email: theboxingkidd@verizon.net

Queens Boxing Gym Has Another Champion!

Marlon Espinosa: A first look at an up and coming Amateur standout

On Saturday May 14 at the LA Boxing gym in Paramus New Jersey, Proud parents, brothers and sisters, uncles, cousins and close family friends all gathered to watch the youth in the New York Metro area step in to the ring (many for the very first time) and put their own stamp on the sweet science. Featured on the bout sheet is 125lb amatuer boxer Marlon Espinosa (1-0).
The reason Marlon is featured on the bout sheet and in this article is because Marlon trains at the NY Mixed Martial arts gym in College Point NY, Which happens to be the same gym that "Yours truly" trains in. Over the past few months, I`ve gotten to know Marlon a little bit. Marlon is a 15 yr old Venezuelan Queens native, and Like any other 15 yr old kid, Marlon goes to high school and plays video games, but Marlon does something else exceptionally well, He boxes. I know this because I see it every time I`m in the gym with him. Tonight I wanted to see all the hard work he puts into his training to good use in the ring. I missed Marlon`s first amateur bout when he scored a third round stoppage, I would not be missing this one.
First of all, LA Boxing in Paramus did an excellent job with Saturday nights event. The gym looked great and all in attendance seemed to be enjoying the action and atmosphere. Luckily for Us, We didn`t have to wait long for "Our Boy" because Marlon`s fight was first to kick off the evening. Speaking with Marlon`s coaches Butch Rinaldi (NY MMA Owner and Operator) and Amanda "Tyson" Isaac (2009 Women`s 132 lb Golden Gloves Champion) before the bout, I asked what type of game plan do they put together at such an entry level point in Marlon`s career? Coach Amanda "Tyson" told me they tried to concentrate on controlled aggression, pressure and punch volume.
As the bell rang for round one Marlon came out with the intensity that was asked for by his coaches. Both fighters landed punches in bunches but it seemed early on that Marlon was controlling the ring more and getting the better of his opposition. About mid-way thru the first round Marlon`s opponent`s head snapped back from well timed punches 2 or 3 times in a row causing the referee to give him a standing 8 count. Less than a minute later, Marlon again found a home for a straight right hand that rocked his competitor as the ref came over to give another standing 8. At the end of round 1, Marlon easily had a comfortable lead, which is exactly what Coach Amanda didn`t want Marlon to feel, comfortable.
Marlon started round 2 the same way he ended round 1, in control. Halfway thru round 2 the comfort zone disappeared as Marlon was hit hard with a looping left hook that dazed him and now it was Marlon on the receiving end of a standing 8 count. Coaches Butch and Amanda yelled instructions from the corner as Marlon cleared the cobwebs, settled himself and got back into the fight. Round 2 ended with Marlon probably still up on the judges scorecards but his coaches urged him to use the game plan and close the show.
Round 3 began and Marlon, with his feet back under him, took control again. Coach Butch Rinaldi found a hole in the opponent`s defense and wanted Marlon to start throwing the uppercut. Marlon once again rocked "that other kid" (Sorry, I didn`t get his name) and the ref came over to issue another standing 8 count to Espinosa`s counterpart. Both fighters gave it their all towards the end of the fight and left it all in the ring as the crowd applauded the effort. Now it was up to the judges!
Because they dont give scores in Amatuer boxing, I`ll give you guys my tally round by round. Round 1 was an easy 10-7 round for Marlon after scoring 2 standing 8 counts vs his opponent. Round 2 could`ve been a 10-8 round for the other kid because of the standing 8 count against Marlon, but I didn`t think the kid won the round so I scored it an even 9-9 (Ok, so what, I`m biased). Round 3 was a good competitive round but Marlon took it 10-8 because he scored another standing 8 count. 29-24 was my final score in favor of Marlon Espinosa. Team NY MMA stayed around for a while to watch some of the other competition and Marlon had the pleasure of signing his first autograph for a young fan in the crowd. Great fight and Congratulations Marlon, 2-0!! We`ll work on a nickname at the gym!

Joey Santana can be reached at theboxingkidd@verizon.net