• As predicted here at FIO, Kermit Cintron improved as a fighter, though not enough to unsettle Tijuana’s Antonio Margarito. Defending the IBF welterweight championship in Atlantic City, Cintron went out as if his 2005 loss to Margarito had never brought his career crashing down around him. Considered damaged goods after the stoppage loss that left him weeping in his corner, Cintron approached the rematch recklessly as might a man haunted by embarrassment, burning for revenge.
Margarito had suffered an embarrassment of his own, losing to comparative novice pro Paul Williams, whose windmill punching style managed to keep Margarito at bay long enough to score a decision. Margarito vowed that the loss meant that he would start fast in every fight of the rest of his career, leaving nothing at all to chance as long as he had energy left to throw punches.
Cintron was brave and chose to stand with Margarito, duly catching the Mexican with several hard punches flush in the face. But it became obvious that for all Cintron’s qualities, Margarito is made of an entirely tougher substance, and it would not allow him to falter. Damaging as Margarito’s right hand is, it was his left that took Cintron apart with uppercuts that scythed through the Puerto Rican/American’s guard, and left hooks that battered the side of his head.
The finish was so clean, so brutal, that no one could dare argue over Cintron’s inability to get up. Trying to throw a right hand of his own on the inside, Cintron removed his elbow from the exact spot at which Margarito aimed and executed a perfect left hook to the body. A ten count later, Margarito was back, and Cintron has a long, long way back from this, if he has a way back at all.
• In the main event of the Boardwalk Hall card, Miguel Cotto enjoyed a paid sparring session against former Contender star, Alfonso Gomez. The fight was a waste of time when it was announced, and pitiful to watch as Gomez had nothing whatsoever in his arsenal to trouble an elite level welterweight in Cotto.
One interesting aspect of the action was Cotto’s repeated switches from his orthodox stance to the southpaw position. It’s notable that Cotto continues to tinker with incorporating switch-hitting into his repertoire, since very few fighters make good use of the tactic. Perhaps only Shane Mosley and Floyd Mayweather have made consistent good use of it in recent years, while most other fighters tend to land themselves in trouble upon attempting to switch stances.
It was a formality that Cotto would break Gomez down before stopping him, and that was how it happened, as Gomez saw the canvas three times before the end came in the fifth round. Of course, with that pointless exercise put behind him, Cotto looks to a big fight in the summer. A 2009 clash with Floyd Mayweather might have been the motivation for using his switch-hitting, but Cotto has a much more immediate threat to deal with - Antonio Margarito. It is clear now that an undeniable contender for Mayweather will come from the Top Rank stable, and Bob Arum, will have his two champion welterweights fight one another to prove which of them is worthy to become a viable challenger to the pound-for-pound champion.
Cotto seems to have been groomed for the opportunity to challenge Mayweather, and there is no doubt that because of the lethal nature of Margarito’s style, a win over the new IBF champion would indeed solidify Cotto as the one true welterweight that deserves a chance at the biggest of the big time. However, it is that same lethality of Margarito’s that makes this writer sceptical as to whether Cotto will be able to beat the Mexican at all. Cotto boxes well, leads and counters with proficiency, but is nowhere near as elusive as Mayweather in defense, and will not be able to negotiate twelve rounds without getting involved in a brawl with Margarito, and will have to face the same physical questions that Cintron was unable to answer.
• Only former undisputed heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis’ consistent success on American soil keeps Joe Calzaghe away from being Britain’s most successful all-time fighter. It is amazing that so many American fans had never even heard of Calzaghe until recently, as if his decade-plus long championship reign was an introduction to his fight with Bernard Hopkins. In terms of talent, Calzaghe can be second only to Floyd Mayweather, and must be considered above Manny Pacquiao in the pound-for-pound ratings. Insisting on fighting his career his own way, Calzaghe’s class won out in the end, as he has garnered international acclaim, proving that a champion of the world is just that, and does not have to seek validation in America.
Crazy as it may seem, but Calzaghe’s showing against Hopkins is enough to provide a convincing argument that Roy Jones may do very well indeed against the Welshman. Calzaghe may say that he had an off night, but he did not start fast and was tentative throughout the fight out of respect for Hopkins’ countering abilities. Jones’ unravelling against Antonio Tarver and Glen Johnson respectively were spectacular, but do not necessarily diminish his chances against Calzaghe.
Johnson was perhaps the most fortunate, as he was able to doggedly pursue a forlorn version of Jones, depleted almost beyond recognition before the knockout came. It’s doubtful that Jones would dare arrive in similar form for Calzaghe, increasing the chances of a very sellable fight on HBO instead of another mercy killing for the younger champion.
The outcome of the fight would depend much on the early commitment of the fighters. Calzaghe would be well-advised to storm into Jones, diminishing the older fighter’s reserves early, disallowing him the time and the energy to think his way through situations. A respectful approach from Calzaghe towards Jones would allow the American to counter at his leisure, and as we saw against Hopkins, Calzaghe may have a fine chin, but if he doesn’t see the shot, he will fall. If it were signed, one would still have to favor Calzaghe by a mile, but it would not be a one-horse race by any means.
• Oscar de la Hoya is going through his final preparations for his fight with Steve Forbes in early May, with Floyd Mayweather, Sr. back in as head trainer. Are we really going to have to go through the melodrama of Senior coming into the camp, drumming up controversy by saying that he will give Oscar the tools to beat Mayweather, Jr., before having another crisis of conscience and alienating himself from the proceedings yet again?
De La Hoya likes to claim that Senior revolutionized his fighting style, but adding a shoulder roll and a decent straight right hand just makes De La Hoya an older, slower version of Mayweather, Jr., who proved against Ricky Hatton that the tougher the assignment, the greater the performance he will produce. In fact, though he was knocked out, Hatton forced a greater fight out of Mayweather than De La Hoya managed. And let’s face it, if not for his millions and influence, De La Hoya would not even have the chance of a rematch with Mayweather, Jr. |
