RSSOktay Urkal
Wednesday, February 14, 2007
Cotto-Judah Tenatively Set for June 9th
Now that his fight with Antonio Margarito is officially off, ESPN is reporting that WBA Welterweight Champion Miguel Cotto will defend his title against former champion Zab Judah on June 9th, provided that the two both win their tune-up fights in March and April respectively.
Cotto will defend his title first against mandatory challenger Oktay Urkal on March 3rd in Puerto Rico; Judah will face an opponent yet to be named shortly after April 8th. Judah was originally signed to face Israel Cardona on April 27th but because the fight with Cotto has now been agreed on, Judah says he can’t wait three weeks after the date to fight since it would only leave him one month to train for Cotto.
Judah can’t fight before April 8th because that is the date he will finally be eligible to once again apply for a boxing license within the Nevada State Athletic Commission after his suspension as a result of the Mayweather brawl is up.
So if both fighters win - June 9th at Madison Square Garden on HBO PPV…
Never at a loss for words, Bob Arum was sure to give his take on the fight:
“Hopefully, everything will be signed and I look forward to the fight, assuming Cotto wins against Urkal on March 3 and Zab wins his fight,” Cotto promoter Bob Arum of Top Rank told ESPN.com. “Then we will have one of the really great events in Madison Square Garden history. There will be a lot of interest in the fight. A lot of people say the Judah fight is a bigger fight than the Margarito fight.
“I’m not going to go crazy with the prices for the tickets either. I’ll price it the same as if Cotto was fighting Margarito, and I think it will be a huge sell, $500 tickets down to $50, none of these crazy prices. I think most seats will be $100 and less.”
Judah also made it known that he is very excited to get his boxing career started back up again…
“It was a big strain, but you know I stuck it out. I’m just cool,” said Judah, also a former two-time junior welterweight titlist. “I just want to look to the future. I’m very happy about this fight. It’s a blessing for me, a blessing and the answer to a prayer. I am the comeback kid. I feel like I’m a cat with nine lives and I’m back. I cannot wait.”
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Tuesday, January 30, 2007
Margarito-Cotto Set for June
Bob Arum and Top Rank announced earlier today that WBO Welterweight Champion Antonio Margarito will challenge Miguel Cotto for his WBA Welterweight Title on June 9th at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
“This is the biggest fight out there for me,” Margarito said. “I am anxious to get into the ring against Cotto.”
One interesting thing to note about this fight: Cotto is scheduled to make a mandatory title defense against Oktay Urkal on March 3rd. Will this fight still go on as planned even if Cotto loses?
Even more important: Will Cotto overlook Urkal in a big way? I’m sure that Urkal is loving the fact that his opponent has scheduled two fights in the next five months…
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Monday, January 22, 2007
EEC - January 22, 2007
A little bit of news for you as we start a brand new week. For those who haven’t read up on the results of this weekend’s fights, be sure to scroll down and check our latest posts to find out for yourself…
News, Notes, and Rumors:
- Controversial promoter Dan Goossen sent out a press release last week that ripped Bob Arum and Antonio Margarito because Magarito did not give Paul Williams his mandatory title shot, instead choosing for a showdown against Miguel Cotto on June 9th.
Arum said that he is willing to setup the mandatory fight between the two, but the fight cannot happen before June unless Cotto loses when he takes on Oktay Urkal on March 3rd.
Margarito was originally supposed to return to the ring on the undercard of Cotto-Urkal but he is still recovering from a wrist injury that will keep him out of action for a few more weeks.
“(Margarito) can’t fight until (May at the earliest), and why should he fight Williams for no money when he’d have a big-money fight with Cotto there for him in June?” Arum said to Iole. “But if Cotto loses (to Oktay Urkal on March 3), then, sure, (Margarito) wouldn’t blow the title. He’d fight him then.”
Williams can still become the champion however. How? The WBO may decide to strip Margarito of his belt for not meeting Williams in the coming months.
- Former Manny Pacquiao manager Shelley Finkel is apparently warning his former client that the result of the lawsuit between Top Rank and Golden Boy over his contract may not have the result he is hoping for…
- The Las Vegas Review Journal is reporting that Kelly Pavlik and Edison Miranda may take on each other this summer in a matchup that would bring together two of the hardest-hitting middleweights in boxing.
The fight will only go down however if Pavilk sucessfully defeated Jose Luis Zertuche on January 27th as part of an HBO televised card.
Both Top Rank and Warriors Boxing have had several meetings discussing a possible matchup between the two and everything seems to be set in stone if Pavlik wins this weekend.
“I really believe Kelly Pavlik is going to be the next big thing in the middleweight division,” he said. “... He’s exciting. People want to see that,” Arum said.
There is another unusual reason why this fight could also not happen - If Jermain Taylor wants to challenge Miranda this summer according to Miranda’s camp. Why they think Taylor would want him when he still has other top middleweights to rid of in beyond me…
Some Good Reads:
Doghouse Boxing: The Re-Education of the Boxing Fan
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Thursday, January 11, 2007
HBO to Televise Cotto-Urkal
Miguel Cotto will make his return to HBO for the first time in almost a year as the network will televise his first ever WBA Welterweight title defense against Oktay Urkal on March 3rd.
The bout will take place in Puerto Rico, Cotto’s native country where he also happens to be presently be the most popular fighter as well.
HBO won the right to televise the fight when Showtime decided to not match HBO’s offer by the Monday afternoon deadline…