Miguel Cotto's statements regarding beating Antonio Margarito was vindicated with his win on December 3rd by Technical Knockout. I am a Miguel Cotto fan. Based on the controversial nature and the beating in the first fight against Margarito, I wanted Cotto to win and by knockout. Typically, I will score a fight, but I chose to simply enjoy and look at the fight from a different perspective.
More than anything I was intrigued by the tension and psychological battle that made up the climactic drama that occurred prior to this fight. The HBO special 24/7 featuring Cotto and Margarito and the interview between both fighters with Max Kellerman clearly showed the existing animosity between the two fighters. Cotto accepted the loss, but accused Margarito of cheating which is consistent with the decision by the California Athletic Commission to suspend Margarito's boxing license for 1 year. Margarito denied foul play and told Cotto that he will beat him in the next fight.
For those of you who do not know, Margarito won the first fight against Miguel Cotto. After beating Margarito for 7-8 rounds, Cotto began to wear down quickly and had to take a knee to take a break from the beating that he was receiving from Margarito. The fight was stopped after Cotto's corner threw in the towel and Cotto went directly to the hospital immediately after leaving the ring.
An illegal hand wrap was discovered prior to Margarito's next fight against Sugar Shane Mosley, which brought up great suspicion about Margarito's fight against Cotto. During the Max Kellerman interview with both fighters on HBO's 24/7, Cotto referred to a picture on an iPad of a tear in the hand wraps that Margarito used in their fight. There was also red on the hand wraps that according to Margarito was from his own gloves, but Cotto pointed out that Margarito's wraps, which were replaced prior to the the Margarito / Mosley fight, also had a very similar red mark so ink seeping in the hand wraps during the fight was nullified.
Both Cotto and his wife took great offense to Margarito's actions. Cotto's wife stated that Margarito's played with Miguel's life so you can imagine how badly Cotto wanted to win this fight. Imagine the pressure of being in a hometown situation at Madison Square Garden, your wife in the audience and facing the man who previously gave you the beating of your life. Imagine having to get by the beating by the smaller, Manny Pacquiao and dealing with the loss of your father if imagining it is even possible.
Conversely, imagine Margarito's desire to set the record straight by beating Cotto with clean hand wraps. Margarito has a family of his own, the weight of Mexico on his shoulders and having to fight in Madison Square Garden, which is in the backyard of millions of Puerto Rican fans that support Cotto. Failure was not an option for either fighter, so I figured that this would be a great fight.
During the 24/7 interview, after Margarito said that he would die in the ring to win the fight, Cotto made an interesting comment. He said that Margarito's comment was foolish and that boxing was just his job. After that comment and considering his loss against Pacquiao, my thought was that Cotto appears to be soft. Perhaps this fight didn't mean as much to him as I thought.
I now realize that Cotto's comment was very meaningful and heartfelt. His response to Margarito's comment about dieing in the ring was literal. He was saying that boxing was simply his job and that dieing on the job was not as important as taking care of his family. While Margarito was posturing and battling psychologically, Cotto's intelligent and responsible reply downplayed Margarito's statement and was more substantive in that Cotto referred to his family as the motivating factor as opposed to fighting for the sake of fighting.
What did you think about Cotto vs Margarito II? As the rounds went on and Margarito seemed to have picked up steam, I wondered how the fight would have gone if Margarito's eye didn't swell shut. I believe that Cotto would have outboxed him for the first several rounds, but would Cotto have made it all the way through to the 12th round since he did not in his last two fights? What do you think?
A conversation about boxing
Sunday, December 4, 2011
Ringside Rage triggered by Boxing Judges
The official decision of the third Marquez, Pacquiao fight has thousands of angry fans responding to blogs after more than two weeks since the fight took place. Even old Youtube videos received some action from fans desiring to share their disgust over the decision by ringside officials declaring Manny Pacquiao the winner over Juan Manuel Marquez on November 12, 2011.
The official scores in the Pacquiao, Marquez fight are listed respectively, 114-114, 115-113 and 116-112. The first set of scores are at least acceptable in that they differ by one round. The third score from judge Glenn Trowbridge gives Pacquiao 8 of the 12 rounds, which by many is questionable and moreover easily arguable. So there are two winners. The first winner is Pacquiao who got the majority decision and retained the welterweight WBO title. The second winner of a not so prestigious title is judge Glen Trowbridge who is now one of the most hated Judges in boxing.
The celebration of Judge Trowbridge's involvement which lead to a virtual, online flogging started immediately when thousands of fans began booing and throwing bottles in to the ring after the decision favoring Pacquiao. All over the internet fans of both fighters posted support or lack thereof for the decision, but some fans are taking it to another level. For an example, visit Glenn Trowbridge's facebook page that was either made up by someone other than Mr. Trowbridge or brutally hacked. The posts are venomous.
Pacquiao and Marquez delivered a thrilling 12 rounds of professional boxing that kept most fans engaged and eager to see more. The Pound-for-pound best fighter in the world, Pacquiao did not seem to be as aggressive as in past fights, but he consistently showed his crafty, aggressive, speedy and illusive boxing style. The great Marquez represented boxing as a true craftsmen and artist with great defense and genious counter-punching. He was masterful and showed once more why he is one of boxing's greats.
Although both fighters showed why they are highly regarded in the sport in this fight, Pacquiao won the decision, which set off a rage throughout the boxing world. The first time these boxers met, the fight ended in a draw. Marquez was knocked down three times in the first round and put up an incredible comback to end the fight in a draw. Pacquiao won a controversial decision in the second fight. Many fans believe that Marquez won the second fight. Noting that Marquez fans came in to the third fight after the first two controversial decisions is very important because it is the catalyst for the fury seen all over the internet.
What does this mean for Marquez and Pacquiao? This decision raises all kinds of questions about future fights and in Marquez's case, continuing his great boxing careeer. For answers, just search for Marquez vs Pacquiao 3. There are thousands if not millions of post from people all over the world. However, a great portion of those post are fans venting about the decision.
Manny Santos' Score Card:
Clean Punching - Advantage Marquez
Defense - Marquez controlled Pacquiao's inevitable forward aggression and avoided Pacquiao's left hand. He blocked well and for the most part moved well. Pacquiao's defense was good and his aggressiveness and balance helped his defense. Advantage Marquez.
Ring Generalship - Marquez took created and took advantage of opportunites to strike. He also, controlled the fight through counter punching. Pacquiao was not as aggressive as in the past so the argument can be made about Marquez neutralizing Pacquiao and forcing him to change his style. Advantage Marquez.
Effective Aggressiveness - Who sustained the most skillful attacks throughout the fight? The keyword here is effective and skillful. It is possible that Pacquiao had the advantage in this category, but Marquez effectively slowed Pacquiao down with incredible counter-punching. Advantage Pacquiao
Marquez was the better boxer and the most effective overall. If this was not clear, then aggressiveness should have been used to determine the winner of the fight as oppose to aggressiveness alone seemingly being the main factor in the decision.
Note: I watched and scored the fight again after the first time. My score still stands, 115-113 for Marquez. There were a few close rounds and some obvious rounds that make the judges decision even more interesting, I agreed with 2 judges on the 12th round giving it to Pacquiao. If Trowbridge followed suit, his score would be a lopsided 117 - 111. Also very strange is that Trowbridge scored rounds 8-11 for Pacquiao, no other judge did that. - Manny Santos
The official scores in the Pacquiao, Marquez fight are listed respectively, 114-114, 115-113 and 116-112. The first set of scores are at least acceptable in that they differ by one round. The third score from judge Glenn Trowbridge gives Pacquiao 8 of the 12 rounds, which by many is questionable and moreover easily arguable. So there are two winners. The first winner is Pacquiao who got the majority decision and retained the welterweight WBO title. The second winner of a not so prestigious title is judge Glen Trowbridge who is now one of the most hated Judges in boxing.
The celebration of Judge Trowbridge's involvement which lead to a virtual, online flogging started immediately when thousands of fans began booing and throwing bottles in to the ring after the decision favoring Pacquiao. All over the internet fans of both fighters posted support or lack thereof for the decision, but some fans are taking it to another level. For an example, visit Glenn Trowbridge's facebook page that was either made up by someone other than Mr. Trowbridge or brutally hacked. The posts are venomous.
Pacquiao and Marquez delivered a thrilling 12 rounds of professional boxing that kept most fans engaged and eager to see more. The Pound-for-pound best fighter in the world, Pacquiao did not seem to be as aggressive as in past fights, but he consistently showed his crafty, aggressive, speedy and illusive boxing style. The great Marquez represented boxing as a true craftsmen and artist with great defense and genious counter-punching. He was masterful and showed once more why he is one of boxing's greats.
Although both fighters showed why they are highly regarded in the sport in this fight, Pacquiao won the decision, which set off a rage throughout the boxing world. The first time these boxers met, the fight ended in a draw. Marquez was knocked down three times in the first round and put up an incredible comback to end the fight in a draw. Pacquiao won a controversial decision in the second fight. Many fans believe that Marquez won the second fight. Noting that Marquez fans came in to the third fight after the first two controversial decisions is very important because it is the catalyst for the fury seen all over the internet.
What does this mean for Marquez and Pacquiao? This decision raises all kinds of questions about future fights and in Marquez's case, continuing his great boxing careeer. For answers, just search for Marquez vs Pacquiao 3. There are thousands if not millions of post from people all over the world. However, a great portion of those post are fans venting about the decision.
Manny Santos' Score Card:
| Official Judge Scorecards | |||||||||
| Manny Santos | Rober Hoyle | Dave Moretti | Glenn Trowbridge | ||||||
| Pacquiao | Marquez | Pacquiao | Marquez | Pacquiao | Marquez | Pacquiao | Marquez | ||
| Round 1 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 9 | |
| Round 2 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 9 | |
| Round 3 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 9 | |
| Round 4 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 10 | |
| Round 5 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 10 | |
| Round 6 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 9 | |
| Round 7 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 10 | |
| Round 8 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 9 | |
| Round 9 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 9 | |
| Round 10 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 9 | |
| Round 11 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 9 | |
| Round 12 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 10 | |
| Total: | 113 | 115 | 114 | 114 | 115 | 113 | 116 | 112 | |
Clean Punching - Advantage Marquez
Defense - Marquez controlled Pacquiao's inevitable forward aggression and avoided Pacquiao's left hand. He blocked well and for the most part moved well. Pacquiao's defense was good and his aggressiveness and balance helped his defense. Advantage Marquez.
Ring Generalship - Marquez took created and took advantage of opportunites to strike. He also, controlled the fight through counter punching. Pacquiao was not as aggressive as in the past so the argument can be made about Marquez neutralizing Pacquiao and forcing him to change his style. Advantage Marquez.
Effective Aggressiveness - Who sustained the most skillful attacks throughout the fight? The keyword here is effective and skillful. It is possible that Pacquiao had the advantage in this category, but Marquez effectively slowed Pacquiao down with incredible counter-punching. Advantage Pacquiao
Marquez was the better boxer and the most effective overall. If this was not clear, then aggressiveness should have been used to determine the winner of the fight as oppose to aggressiveness alone seemingly being the main factor in the decision.
Note: I watched and scored the fight again after the first time. My score still stands, 115-113 for Marquez. There were a few close rounds and some obvious rounds that make the judges decision even more interesting, I agreed with 2 judges on the 12th round giving it to Pacquiao. If Trowbridge followed suit, his score would be a lopsided 117 - 111. Also very strange is that Trowbridge scored rounds 8-11 for Pacquiao, no other judge did that. - Manny Santos
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)