Just KC
12-04-2006, 06:11 AM
ATLANTIC CITY, Dec. 2nd – In a battle of Puerto Rico’s top two welterweights, Miguel Cotto only needed five rounds to let Carlos Quintana, the vocal crowd of 7,412 inside the Boardwalk Hall, and fans watching on Showtime Saturday night know that he’s not only the best fighter from that island but one of the best 147-pound boxers in the world.
Cotto, who was making his welterweight debut after an impressive run in the 140-pound division where he held a world title but also constantly battled the scale, improved to 28-0 (23) and picked up the vacant WBA welterweight title when referee Steve Smoger stopped the fight after the fifth round on the advice of the ringside physician.
Quintana boxed well for four rounds, employing an effective stick-and-move strategy, but the crafty southpaw was still caught with accurate and punishing right crosses, left hooks and hard body shots that seemed to land with more authority than they did at 140 pounds.
“Every punch I threw was hard,” Cotto said after the fight. “I felt very comfortable at this weight. I could do anything I wanted to.”
In the fifth, Cotto, who had applied constant pressure from the opening round, did whatever he wanted to Quintana, and what he wanted to do was brutally punish his fellow Puerto Rican into submission.
Cotto scored well in the first half of the round, busting up the back-pedaling Quintana, whose battered and bruised face showed the effects of the power punches that landed in the previous rounds. A hard shot to Quintana’s shoulder put him down for an eight count with about a minute left in the round. An unsure and visibly hurt Quintana got up on unsteady legs and Cotto quickly closed in and deposited him on the canvas again. The southpaw bravely pulled himself up on his feet a second time only to be rushed and ruthlessly beaten until the bell.
As Quintana’s corner feverishly worked to refresh their fighter, ringside doctors and commissioners huddled around the corner. After about two minutes of tense deliberation the beating was mercifully put to an end.
“The corner wanted to continue but I could tell by looking into his eyes that Quintana did not want to continue,” said Dr. Dominic Coletta, the chief ringside physician.
“[Cotto] was way too fast,” said Quintana, who dropped to 23-1 (18). “I couldn’t handle his hand speed. That surprised me.”
Evangelista Cotto, the WBA title holder’s trainer and manager, said that Cotto’s speed and power will more than surprise any other welterweight in the world, it will dominate them.
“He will destroy anyone at welterweight,” he boldly proclaimed. “He is the destructor of the welterweight division.”
In the co-featured bout of the evening, Antonio Margarito retained his WBO welterweight title with an unspectacular unanimous decision over Joshua Clottey. Margarito, who won by scores of 118-109 and 116-112 (twice), had a difficult time with the Ghanaian challenger in the first four rounds of the fight.
Clottey was sharper and more accurate in these rounds of the fight, teeing off with a hard jab and left hooks to the body and head. Margarito, who seemed unsure of himself at times, perhaps baffled by Clottey’s tight defensive posture, was a little busier in these early rounds but also sloppy at times.
All three official judges scored the second, third and fourth rounds for Clottey. It looked as though the unheralded challenger was on his way to an upset victory, but Clottey said that he hurt his left hand in the fourth round, and from that point on the bout was generally controlled by Margarito’s aggression and greater punch output.
“I fractured my left index knuckle in the fourth after landing a jab,” said Clottey, now 30-2 (20). “I use my left hand a lot for body shots and combinations.”
To make matters worse, Clottey said he hurt his right hand in the seventh round. Not to be outdone, Margarito said that he injured his right hand in the fifth round. Of the two rugged welterweights, Margarito appeared to handle his adversity better, as he let his hands go with abandon in the second half of the fight.
Still, it was not an exceptional showing for the Tijuana native. His hands seemed slower than usual and his technique was downright shoddy. Margarito won the bout with sheer volume punching, and the WBO titlist admitted after the fight that he had a bad night.
“I’ve been off for 10 months, my inactivity really hurt me tonight,” said Margarito, who improved to 34-4 (24). “I couldn’t get my rhythm going and in the sixth round I hurt my right hand.”
Clottey’s style and physical strength should be given much of the credit for Margarito’s difficult outing. The Ghanaian tucks his chin very well and boxes from behind a high guard that is nearly impossible to break through with straight punches. He knew just when to give ground when Margarito turned up the offensive heat and was very good at counter punching when the title holder attempted to close that ground.
However, once Margarito got both his hands going behind constant pressure in the middle rounds, Clottey spent too much time in his defensive shell without answering back with punches of his own.
With the victory, the seventh defense of his WBO title, Margarito, who has had difficulty getting the bigger names of the sport to fight him, called out the winner of Saturday night’s the main event.
With Cotto’s awesome showing and Margarito’s unimpressive performance, the management of the budding Puerto Rican star might seriously consider taking on the avoided Mexican. However, to make a case that he deserves showdowns with any of the sport’s elite welterweights, Margarito will have to look better than he did against Clottey.
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HAHA after all that talk Margarito puts on a performance like that.
Cotto, who was making his welterweight debut after an impressive run in the 140-pound division where he held a world title but also constantly battled the scale, improved to 28-0 (23) and picked up the vacant WBA welterweight title when referee Steve Smoger stopped the fight after the fifth round on the advice of the ringside physician.
Quintana boxed well for four rounds, employing an effective stick-and-move strategy, but the crafty southpaw was still caught with accurate and punishing right crosses, left hooks and hard body shots that seemed to land with more authority than they did at 140 pounds.
“Every punch I threw was hard,” Cotto said after the fight. “I felt very comfortable at this weight. I could do anything I wanted to.”
In the fifth, Cotto, who had applied constant pressure from the opening round, did whatever he wanted to Quintana, and what he wanted to do was brutally punish his fellow Puerto Rican into submission.
Cotto scored well in the first half of the round, busting up the back-pedaling Quintana, whose battered and bruised face showed the effects of the power punches that landed in the previous rounds. A hard shot to Quintana’s shoulder put him down for an eight count with about a minute left in the round. An unsure and visibly hurt Quintana got up on unsteady legs and Cotto quickly closed in and deposited him on the canvas again. The southpaw bravely pulled himself up on his feet a second time only to be rushed and ruthlessly beaten until the bell.
As Quintana’s corner feverishly worked to refresh their fighter, ringside doctors and commissioners huddled around the corner. After about two minutes of tense deliberation the beating was mercifully put to an end.
“The corner wanted to continue but I could tell by looking into his eyes that Quintana did not want to continue,” said Dr. Dominic Coletta, the chief ringside physician.
“[Cotto] was way too fast,” said Quintana, who dropped to 23-1 (18). “I couldn’t handle his hand speed. That surprised me.”
Evangelista Cotto, the WBA title holder’s trainer and manager, said that Cotto’s speed and power will more than surprise any other welterweight in the world, it will dominate them.
“He will destroy anyone at welterweight,” he boldly proclaimed. “He is the destructor of the welterweight division.”
In the co-featured bout of the evening, Antonio Margarito retained his WBO welterweight title with an unspectacular unanimous decision over Joshua Clottey. Margarito, who won by scores of 118-109 and 116-112 (twice), had a difficult time with the Ghanaian challenger in the first four rounds of the fight.
Clottey was sharper and more accurate in these rounds of the fight, teeing off with a hard jab and left hooks to the body and head. Margarito, who seemed unsure of himself at times, perhaps baffled by Clottey’s tight defensive posture, was a little busier in these early rounds but also sloppy at times.
All three official judges scored the second, third and fourth rounds for Clottey. It looked as though the unheralded challenger was on his way to an upset victory, but Clottey said that he hurt his left hand in the fourth round, and from that point on the bout was generally controlled by Margarito’s aggression and greater punch output.
“I fractured my left index knuckle in the fourth after landing a jab,” said Clottey, now 30-2 (20). “I use my left hand a lot for body shots and combinations.”
To make matters worse, Clottey said he hurt his right hand in the seventh round. Not to be outdone, Margarito said that he injured his right hand in the fifth round. Of the two rugged welterweights, Margarito appeared to handle his adversity better, as he let his hands go with abandon in the second half of the fight.
Still, it was not an exceptional showing for the Tijuana native. His hands seemed slower than usual and his technique was downright shoddy. Margarito won the bout with sheer volume punching, and the WBO titlist admitted after the fight that he had a bad night.
“I’ve been off for 10 months, my inactivity really hurt me tonight,” said Margarito, who improved to 34-4 (24). “I couldn’t get my rhythm going and in the sixth round I hurt my right hand.”
Clottey’s style and physical strength should be given much of the credit for Margarito’s difficult outing. The Ghanaian tucks his chin very well and boxes from behind a high guard that is nearly impossible to break through with straight punches. He knew just when to give ground when Margarito turned up the offensive heat and was very good at counter punching when the title holder attempted to close that ground.
However, once Margarito got both his hands going behind constant pressure in the middle rounds, Clottey spent too much time in his defensive shell without answering back with punches of his own.
With the victory, the seventh defense of his WBO title, Margarito, who has had difficulty getting the bigger names of the sport to fight him, called out the winner of Saturday night’s the main event.
With Cotto’s awesome showing and Margarito’s unimpressive performance, the management of the budding Puerto Rican star might seriously consider taking on the avoided Mexican. However, to make a case that he deserves showdowns with any of the sport’s elite welterweights, Margarito will have to look better than he did against Clottey.
__________________________________________________ ____________
HAHA after all that talk Margarito puts on a performance like that.