By Lem Satterfield, FanHouse
When Manny Pacquiao decisioned Joshua Clottey in defense of his WBO welterweight (147 pounds) title at the Dallas Cowboys' Stadium in March, the cross-over star from the Philippines drew more than 50,000 people to the venue's first-ever boxing event.
But the 31-year-old Pacquiao (51-3-2, 38 knockouts), who is a seven-division champion, was not the only major draw in Arlington, Tex.
For ex-champion, Antonio Margarito, of Tijuana, Mex., although there only as a spectator and potential opponent, was trailed by hundreds if not thousands of autograph and photograph-seeking followers throughout his time in Texas.
All of this, despite the fact that he was actively serving a more than one-year long suspension from the sport for a hand-wrapping scandal that stemmed from his January, 2009 ninth-round knockout loss to Shane Mosley at the Staples Center in Los Angeles.
Margarito's license was revoked by the California State Athletic Commission in February of 2009, this after Mosley's trainer, Naazim Richardson, discovered the presence of a plaster-like substance in his gloves that was confiscated and removed prior to his facing Mosley.
Margarito was twice turned down for a license renewal in California, but was approved by Texas in August.
As a result, the Dallas Cowboys' Stadium will be the site of yet another fight by Pacquiao on Saturday, and why this time, his HBO pay per view televised battle will be against the 32-year-old Margarito (38-6, 27 KOs) in pursuit of the WBC's vacant junior middleweight (154 pounds) crown and Pacquiao's eighth championship in as many different weight classes.
If Sunday's reception is any indication, attendance for Pacquiao-Margarito will surpass that of Pacquiao-Clottey.
For after arriving in Dallas, Margarito was met by thousands of fans who turned out to greet him both at the Tamale Festival in Dallas, and, later, at the La Gran Plaza Shopping Mall in Fort Worth.
"The first place was the Dallas Market Hall, and it was basically a fair, although it was indoors. And then Antonio went to the La Gran Plaza, in Fort Worth, which is a shopping mall. And he did interviews and spoke to the press and signed autographs," said Lee Samuels, public relations specialist for Top Rank Promotions.
"Thousands of people showed up. But it's been this way everywhere that we've taken him. He's been getting big crowds," said Samuels, who is in Dallas handling the promotion. "When he was at the Cowboys' Stadium the last time, we had trouble moving him around the stadium a few months ago. He's very popular."
Margarito, who, like Pacquiao, will conduct an open public workout on Monday, was mobbed by fans, according to his trainer, Robert Garcia.
"Oh, man, it was crazy. It was unbelievable. I couldn't believe how many people showed up. The thing is, there were a lot of people here for the Pacquiao-Clottey fight, but, you know, Clottey didn't have any fans here," said Garcia.
"Antonio was very, very grateful that the fans showed up, and to know that all of those people are behind him," said Garcia. "I mean, you know, Antonio Margarito has a lot of fans here, so, you know, Saturday night, when the fight comes around, it's really going to be a crazy night."
The 63,315 that were on hand to witness Muhammad Ali's 1978 rematch and unanimous decision victory over Leon Spinks at the Superdome in New Orleans remains an indoor attendance record.
Top Rank Promotions' CEO, Bob Arum, told reporters during a recent conference call that he hoped to surpass "over 60,000" in attendance at the stadium
The crowd of 50,944 for Pacquiao-Clottey was the third largest for an indoor event in boxing history, and Arum said that Pacquiao-Margarito is "tracking well ahead of where we were of the Clottey fight."
Source: boxing.fanhouse.com
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