When Miguel Cotto and
Antonio Margarito meet again on the night of December 3rd, it will
take place at the famed Madison Square Garden in New York, one of the most
historic buildings in all the world and at one time, the Mecca of professional
boxing. On Wednesday afternoon, officials from Top Rank wrapped up the deal.
There was a chance that this rematch was going back out west to Las Vegas,
where the two hooked up in a memorable battle at the MGM Grand in the summer of
2008.
Carl Moretti, V.P. of Boxing
Operations for Top Rank, told Maxboxing, "The leading candidate to host
the fight [was always Madison Square Garden]. It made a lot of sense when you
have Cotto in this type of mega-event and bring it to New York. It just adds to
it. We were able to strike a deal today and full steam ahead. It should be
unbelievable."
Cotto is a bona fide draw
not just on the island of Puerto Rico but he has become the preeminent attraction in this joint. He has headlined highly
successful promotions throughout the years against the likes of Muhammad
Abdullaev, Paulie Malignaggi, Zab Judah, Shane Mosley and Joshua Clottey at the
home of the Knicks and Rangers. It was this mastery that Top Rank and Cotto
shared in early June that made the Puerto Rican Day Parade weekend a boxing
staple for “The Big Apple.” In addition to all this, based on the fishy
circumstances of the first encounter between the two and the fact that Cotto
fought essentially on Margarito's turf the first time around, you get the sense
that the second go-round simply belongs here in this historic venue (which is
going through renovations as we speak).
"Yeah," agreed
Moretti, "you could have the same fight in the ring as far as the
intensity and how competitive the fight should be. Now you're switching the
environment to the ‘Right Coast,’ as they say; the atmosphere will be
crazy." You just know the Puerto Ricans not only want revenge, they want blood.
Moretti points out," There's 450,000 Mexicans in the tri-state area, so
it's not like he's going to be shutout as far as fan support, either."
Moretti doesn't believe that
the NBA lockout had any effect on this deal. "I don't believe so. The
Knicks, if there is no NBA lockout, are scheduled to play on Friday, December 2nd.
So even if there is a season, we'll be moving in the equipment right after the
game. So whether there is a season or not, it didn't play a role in the Garden
hosting it. This was always a date on hold for an event like this."
One issue that always exists
is that placing shows in NYC is cost prohibitive. It's been reported that just
renting out the MSG for one night can run $700,000.
"Look, everybody knows
when you go to New York to do anything, costs come into play, whether you're
coming in to see a play or a Yankee game or just being a tourist. You're
dealing with the biggest city in the world, so naturally, you have some costs
that you may not have in other places. But there's also a benefit to that, so
as long as you're smart about things and you have an event that you believe is
going to do well or something like that, everyone gains from it and clearly,
fighters on the undercard and all around will gain from this exposure."
WOLAK-RODRIGUEZ
So what are the chances of
seeing chapter two of Pawel Wolak-Delvin Rodriguez underneath Cotto-Margarito
II? It just seems like such a perfect fit on this show, doesn't it?
"Well, we haven't had
any direct discussions with either camp yet because it's so fresh since they
fought but it's a natural to fight on that card" said Moretti, whose
company promotes Wolak, while Rodriguez is handled by Star Boxing. "So
once we put our budgets together and see who we want to put on that undercard,
it's certainly something we're going to consider and see if the fight can be
made again. And then we'll go from there."
LOCKED IN?
Moretti believes that with
the impending NBA lockout, arenas aren't the only ones that will be looking to
fill that void across the country left by the NBA.
"These buildings all
around the country plan for 82 game schedules and if they don't have it, they
want something in their buildings that night," Moretti explained. "In
addition to that, we've been in contact with networks that carry the NBA, both
on a national and regional level that have revealed to us, as far as if the NBA
goes down, 'Can we look at you to help fill programming?' And we're having
these discussions now."
GARDEN FLURRIES
I don't go to the East Coast
often but when I cover a fight in New York, I always make it a point to hit “Jimmy's
Corner.” I'm already thinking about ordering my first Goose and soda...Moretti
says tickets for Cotto-Margarito II will be priced at $600, $400, $300, $200,
$100 and $50...I expect this to be an electric atmosphere on this night; it
should be fun. It's just my opinion but there should be at least one or two big
shows a year in this building...Margarito's manager, Sergio “Siesta” Diaz, says
that despite whatever has been reported, they have no problems with the rematch
taking place in New York...The September 17th edition of “Top Rank
Live” will feature Mercito Gesta and Jose Benavidez from Arizona. Right now,
the plan is for Gesta to also fight the night before Manny Pacquiao - Juan Manuel
Marquez III on November 11th...How 'bout a fight between IBF
cruiserweight champion Steve Cunningham against Antonio Tarver?...
