Saturday night’s fight has so many angles, sub plots and mysteries that there is not enough time in the remaining days to keep up with them all.
What I like about it is it’s mostly feel – good positive. Nobody is wearing a black hat. The fighter’s seem to genuinely like or at least respect each other.
Millions of casual fans and non fans worldwide might find themselves easing into reading or seeing a TV or internet story about the fight without sensing the sleaze that boxing has become. It may not turn into a sale, but maybe boxing won’t be looked down upon so quickly next time. It’s a start anyway.
Miguel Cotto, who may pull down as much as $10 million for his night’s work against Manny Pacquiao, is just two fights removed from a horrible beating in the ring where his opponent, Antonio Margarito, allegedly had plaster in his gloves. Margarito was caught with the weapon in his dressing room moments before his very next fight against Shane Mosley only because of an astute, veteran trainer.
The state’s commission member in neither the Cotto nor Mosley fights with Margarito caught it. So you have to ask if the state, which is ultimately liable and collects tax revenue to make things appear legit and gets comp tickets and passes from the promoter it is supposed to regulate, is unable to enforce the rules for a major fight on HBO, what about all the undercard fights where there is not all the attention?
Of course Margarito’s promoter is none other than Saturday night’s promoter Bob Arum and Top Rank, Inc.
Margarito will even have a presence fight week as the guest of an event sponsor. Isn’t that convenient? If Cotto can even walk out of the ring Saturday night, Arum wants to put him back in the ring with Margarito in a rematch.
I have not said Arum or Top Rank had anything to do with Margarito’s gloves.
Hasn’t Cotto bled for him enough?
And boxing thinks or would have you believe it’s problem is UFC.
Things should be back to normal by Monday. By then Floyd Mayweather, Jr. and his crew should be back in the fold to challenge the winner.
While a Manny Pacquiao in boxing comes along as often as Hally’s Comet (once every 75 years), boxing lives day to day with the Margarito’s and Mayweather’s of the world.
