NEW YORK, (Reuters) – Puerto Rico’s Miguel Cotto and Mexican Antonio Margarito both came in under the limit at yesterday’s weigh-in for their eagerly-awaited rematch.
Cotto tipped the scales at 152-1/4 pounds while Margarito was a quarter of a pound heavier at 152-1/2 on the eve of their WBA super-middleweight bout at a sold out Madison Square Garden.
The contest is looming as one of the most anticipated fights of the year after the pair waged a brutal war in their previous clash in 2008, for the WBA welterweight title, which Margarito won with an 11th round knockout.
Cotto, 36-2 (29 KO), has lost just one fight since, against Manny Pacquiao in 2009, and currently holds the belt.
After beating Cotto, Margarito (38-7, 27 KO) lost his next fight to Shane Mosley and was then banned for a year after it was discovered that he had used illegal hand wraps before that bout.
He was badly beaten by Pacquiao after returning to the ring and suffered a serious eye injury which almost prevented Saturday’s fight from going ahead.
Today The New York State Athletic Commission initially rejected Margarito’s initial application to fight but finally agreed to grant him a boxing license after he underwent further medical examinations by an eye specialist of its choice.
“He can hit my eye as much as he wants,” Margarito said at a pre-fight news conference.
“He (Cotto) hits like a little girl. Super flyweights hit harder. He will never beat me.”
Cotto snapped back by criticising Margarito’s use of the illegal wraps. “You are an embarrassment to boxing,” he said.
