ironmike19

Antonio Margarito- 35-5 (25KOs)

Antonio Margarito, born in Tijuana, Mexico on 18th March 1978, is a professional boxer who represents Mexico. He stands at 5'11, with a 73" reach. He is the former WBO Welterweight champion, but recently lost his title.

After a brief amateur career, compiling a record of 18-3, Margarito turned professional because he needed money. Margarito won his pro debut by 4-round decision, however he went onto have an unsuccessful start to his career, losing 3 of his first 12 bouts. After losing a 10-round decision to Rodney Jones, Margarito rebounded well and went undefeated for some time. After a string of 16 wins, over opponents such as David Kamau and Frankie Randall, Margarito got his first shot at a world title up against Daniel Santos. It ended in a No Contest, however 8 months later in March 2002 Margarito would win the WBO title with a 10th round TKO victory over Antonio Diaz. After 3 successful defences, Margarito stepped up in weight class to fight Daniel Santos once again for the WBO Light-Middleweight title. After 9 rounds the fight was close, however an accidental headbutt in the 10th round caused the bout to go to the cards and Margarito lost his title via Technical Decision.

Margarito quickly returned to 147lbs, continuing to defend his WBO belt. He beat Sebastian Andres Lujan (TKO10), Kermit Cintron (TKO5), Manuel Gomez (TKO1) and Joshua Clottey (UD12). The Clottey fight was very close, with Margarito coming on strong late in the fight to get the decision. In July 2007, Margarito fought his mandatory challenger the 6'1 Welterweight Paul Williams. Williams was undefeated in 32 professional fights, and built up a heavy lead in the early part of the fight. Margarito finished the fight strongly, however he lost a clear decision over 12 rounds with the final scorecards being 115-113, 116-112 & 115-113 in favour of Williams. Margarito returned on the undercard of Cotto-Mosley, winning by emphatic 1st round TKO over Golden Johnson.

Margarito's next bout is scheduled for the 12th April, and it is a rematch against Kermit Cintron, who he stopped inside 5 rounds, for the IBF Welterweight title. Miguel Cotto defends his WBA strap against Alfonso Gomez on the same card, the winners are expected to face off in August/September.

Updated by LeedsLad (02/06/08)