GRAPEVINE, TEXAS?I wonder if Antonio Margarito’s collar is starting to get uncomfortable. I wonder if it is feeling way too tight.
I’m not saying he fears Manny Pacquiao, that would be ridiculous. I’m just say the man from Tijuana carries a lot of weight on his broad shoulders going into this fight, for example:
WHAT ANTONIO MARGARITO CAN PROVE OR DISPROVE SATURDAY NIGHT
That he can indeed fight ?clean? without his ?crutch? on the big stage.
That he deserved to get this fight, this payday for reasons other than being conveniently located on Bob Arum’s Top Rank opponent shelf.
That the physical punishment he absorbed in losing to Sugar Shane Mosley and beating Miguel Cotto have not left him shellshocked, that he remains an offensive force.
That long ago losses to nimble but limited fighers such as lefty Rodney Jones and Larry Dixon were just blips on the radar.
That, even in losing, he can still be useful for a revenge rematch with Cotto or, thinking ahead, as a real test for Mexico’s rising star Saul ?Canelo? Alvarez.
That, if he performs a miracle and beats Pacman, Floyd Mayweather Jr. was wise to duck and dodge him when he was boxing’s ?most feared.? If he looks too sharp in winning, he will remain ducked and dodged by Mayweather, we know this.
