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Antonio Margarito, returning to the ring against Roberto Garcia on May 15th, is increasingly a fighter in demand.
For some time now it has looked as if Bob Arum has been building Margarito up to face off against Manny Pacquiao later on this year. Some insiders maintain that the Cowboys stadium in Texas is as good as booked for the mega fight, which would attract a lot of interest from the large Hispanic fan base in the area.
Others would prefer Pacquiao to pursue a fight against the winner of Mayweather vs. Mosley rather than taking on any lesser challengers. Which is what many regard Margarito as after his loss and subsequent time away from the sport.
Newly crowned middleweight champion Sergio Martinez has also made it clear that he wants a second fight against the Tijuana hurricane though. Speaking to Boxingscene today, Martinez said:
"I've waited ten years for that fight. I would love to fight Antonio Margarito. He's a great boxer and a good champion. I would love to fight Paul Williams again, because he helped me reach superstardom and I would love to give him another fight,"
For Margarito it might come down to choosing between fights against Pacquiao and Martinez. Both are lucrative and both would net him a title should he emerge victorious.
On first impression, fighting Pacquiao is the better option for any fighter. Pacquiao is after all one of the biggest names in the sport and would make Margarito more money in a single fight than Martinez would.
Taking a rematch against Martinez will be tempting for Margarito though, who would pick up both the WBC and WBO middleweight titles if he won. This would secure big money fights with the likes of Kelly Pavlik and Paul Williams, something that a losing effort to Pacquiao wouldn't. Looking at Pacquiao's recent opponents, none have gone on to do much else after the loss. Martinez is probably a lesser risk for Margarito because even if he loses, he can always just drop back down in weight. Also Margarito knows how to fight Martinez, and beat him in 2000 at welterweight.
Whether he would beat him today, ten years later and at a higher weight is an intriguing question, and most would agree much more interesting than seeing him get chopped to pieces against the meat grinder that is Manny Pacquiao.
The option might not even be in the hands of either fighter though, because before anything else, Kelly Pavlik has options on a rematch from his losing effort if he wants it. It isn't clear whether he will exercise these yet, but with the super six tournament still keeping most of the best super middleweights tied up for now, there isn't really any other place for Pavlik to go.
More than likely, Martinez will have to wait for a second fight against Margarito. Fighting Pacquiao might be an uphill struggle for Margarito, but beating him would not only make him the man to beat at welterweight again, but would also set up an even more lucrative rematch. The middleweight division, aside from Martinez, Pavlik and Williams (when he's there) is a pretty barren landscape, interesting fights, but not many big stars. Welterweight has a surplus of talent and possible matches that would keep a victorious Margarito busy for years to come.
Sean, Pittsburgh: "Do you think Margarito can beat either Pacquiao or Martinez?"
Given Pacquiao's dominance at the moment and Martinez's performance against both Williams and Pavlik recently, probably not. I think he has a better chance against Martinez than Pacquiao though.
Bill, Greensburg: "I keep seeing Margarito is fighting some guy in May, but I thought he didn't have a license, what's going on with that?"
Margarito doesnt have a license to fight in the U.S yet, but was never banned in Mexico, where his next fight is happening. It's looking increasingly like just a matter of time before he gets his license back though.
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