Cotto-Margarito 2: Preview and Thoughts before the Showdown

FIGHT PROMO VIDEO INSIDE

              
          On December 3rd (Sunday Manila Time) in Madison Square Garden, New York City Puerto Rican icon Miguel Cotto (36-2 with 29 KOs) will defend his WBA 154-pound super championship against three-time world titleholder Antonio Margarito (38-7 with 27 KOs) in a much anticipated rematch of their epic encounter from a little over three years ago. 

First Bout Review: 

Cotto dominated the first half of that fight utilizing his superior speed, athleticism, and boxing skills. He was able to utilize lateral and backward movement and avoid many of Margarito’s punches, while landing one flush shot after another on the durable Mexican’s iron chin. Watching Margarito absorb one hard punch after another without showing any signs of being hurt or slowing down, and then coming back to stop Cotto was a sight to behold. 

Recent Fights Defeat:

Margarito - was knocked out by Mosley in 9 rounds and beaten to a pulp over the course of 12 rounds by Manny Pacquiao suffering a broken orbital bone in the process. His eye has been examined by multiple physicians and he has been given a clean bill of health, so we should not assume that he will be fighting with any sort of handicap. 

Cotto - was stopped in the 12th round against Pacquiao in a very rough fight that began as a competitive affair and turned into a one sided beat-down. 

Who's on the Advantage?

Cotto is closer to who he was than Margarito is. Antonio will not have the added physical and psychological edge of having and knowing he has loaded gloves in this fight if he indeed had them for their first fight. Cotto has the better speed and boxing ability along with the higher boxing IQ, he deserves to be the betting favorite in this fight.

What to Expect?

A battle of nutrition! Who ever stands and punch till the last round will definitely have a greater chance of winning. Look for the fight to be very similar to their first one in many ways. Margarito is very predictable and does not fight much differently from one fight to the next. He comes forward like a mummy firing fairly slow, but strong thudding punches. His best punch by far is his uppercut. It was extremely effective against the shorter Cotto and he would be a fool now to use it with great frequency in this fight. I don’t expect Cotto to try to hurt the iron chinned Margarito, but rather to land clean shots from a safe range and then tie Margarito up when he gets dangerously close to him as Mosley did very effectively against Antonio in their fight. 

Watch Cotto - Margarito 2 Fight Promo