A Classic Revisited

Miguel Cotto vs Antonio Margarito II

Most of us remember the classic brawl that took place in their first fight, however, Margarito's win has been tainted with accusations of loading his gloves with plaster. After the fight there was a bit of controversy as a picture surfaced of Margarito directly after the fight which showed his hand wraps were torn, which is fairly damning. Wraps are gauze and it would be nearly impossible for them to be torn in such a manner, unless of course there was plaster underneath. After the Mosley v. Margarito fight in which Margarito was actually caught cheating it became apparent, albeit in hindsight, that most likely Margarito had loaded gloves against Cotto.

Cotto dominated Margarito early, then seemed to swell up over the period of one round. This would be consistent with plaster as it takes a few rounds to harden. The evidence seems pretty clear, therefore, I refuse to even watch that fight. I recognize there was a first fight, however, I cannot watch that knowing that Margarito was essentially using two weapons against Cotto. The second fight is purely about revenge, Margarito was never really in the fight, however, he took his beating like a man. There were a few times it seemed that Cotto had his man hurt and could have pressed him and taken him out, but he seemed to relish the moment, the revenge he was exacting against his foe. It was probably one of my favorite performances of Miguel Cotto.

Margarito after first Cotto fight

Close up of same hand wrap