The vacant WBC Super Welterweight Championship belt is on the line at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas on Saturday between Manny Pacquiao (51-3-2, 38 KOs) of the Philippines and Antonio Margarito (38-6, 27 KOs) of Mexico. If Pacquiao wins, it will be his eighth championship in eight different weight classes, a world record. For Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, it’s another way to make money and showcase the most expensive stadium in the NFL.
The hype surrounding this fight has been almost as big as the hype surrounding the Pacquiao-Floyd Mayweather fight before it fell through. The difference is this fight is definitely happening. Both sides, including the trainers and sparring partners, have been going at it with insults and trash talk.
Margarito was labeled as a cheater in January 2009 when he was caught with a plaster-of-Paris like substance in his hand wraps right before entering the ring against Shane Mosley. His wraps were changed and Mosley knocked him out in the ninth round, but the worst damage to Margarito’s boxing career was yet to come. The California Boxing Commission suspended Margarito and his ex-trainer, Javier Capetillo, for a year. Some thought he deserved a harsher punishment since Mosley could have been seriously injured. Margarito has battled back into the spotlight amid taunts and distaste from fans who feel he had been loading up his gloves in additional prior fights.
On the other side, it’s been quite the opposite for Pacquiao. Life has been so good for Pacquiao that reports have been surfacing saying he hasn’t been concentrating like he should while training. As a popular Filipino, Pacquiao was elected to congress in his home country this year. Since then, he has been attending political functions and appearing on television shows. He loves singing, and even has a couple of popular Filipino albums out. He made a couple of appearances on Jimmy Kimmel Live. Below is a ridiculous video of one of those appearances in which he sang “Imagine” with Will Ferrell.
Stick to boxing, Manny.
But if Pacquiao stays focused, he should beat Margarito. Pacquiao is smaller and more skilled so he should be fine if he keeps the pressure on Margarito, since no one can handle Pacquiao’s pace. Look for a unanimous decision or late stoppage in your online betting.
But, Margarito is a better fighter than Joshua Clottey, who Pacquiao fought in March. However, Margarito hasn’t done much to warrant backing. After the loss to Mosley, Margarito fought in Mexico while on suspension in the United States. He won a 10-round decision over the average Roberto Garcia and wasn’t impressive. At age 32, people are questioning if he has much left in the tank since most of his 45 career fights were long-lasting, back-and forth matches with pros like Antonio Diaz and Miguel Cotto.
No matter what, trash talking sells tickets and this fight has plenty leading up to it. In poor taste, Margarito crossed the line when mocking Pacquiao’s trainer, Freddie Roach. Roach, who is well known and respected throughout the boxing world, has a mild case of Parkinson’s disease. Margarito and his entourage can be seen mimicking Roach in this FanHouse (can you call it a news report?) preview of the fight.
Many people are wondering if this will be Pacquiao’s last bout. The fight, also known as the WBC Jr. Middleweight Championship, could be the last from the WBO Welterweight Champion. With Pacquiao’s recent political career taking off in the Philippines, he’s had a hard time balancing that with boxing. He was named a congressman in his native country by a landslide vote back in May. Ironically, he lost the same campaign two years ago because fans were afraid he’d give up boxing for politics. That’s how important this guy is to Filipino boxing.
WBC Super Welterweight Championship Odds (provided by Titan Bet)
Manny Pacquiao: 3/20
Draw: 29/1
Antonio Margarito: 7/2