Cotto-Margarito 24/7 Finale Recap; Cotto Says He Will Take Advantage of the Bum Eye…WOODS

The uncertainties which swim in the heads of boxers, and their families and posses were examined in the second and final installment of HBO’s Miguel Cotto-Antonio Margarito 24/7.

We heard a synopsis of the licensing hassle in NY, and some of the Nov. 18 hearing in which commission chair Melvina Lathan called for Margarito to see a NYSAC-chosen doctor.

Margarito says, “I know there will be a fight. It doesn’t bother me at all.” We see some of the punishment he absorbed against Manny Pacquiao. But his sparring partners say he is in fine form training in Mexico. “He tells me every day he feels great and has no problems,” trainer Robert Garcia says. “My eye is in perfect condition,” the boxer says. Will it be after a round or two of Cotto hooks?

Cotto says he is preparing to “beat Margarito’s ass.” Trainer Pedro Diaz is seen writing out a training plan for his guy. We hear that they hooked up just seven weeks before. The Cuban hasn’t trained many pros; he ran the Cuban amateur program for almost two decades. He left behind a wife and two kids in Cuba to make his way in the US. “Right now boxing is my family,” he says.

Margarito is doing new age conditioning drills at a track. Then, on Sunday he and Garcia go to NY. The boxer says he’s totally confident. He lands after midnight and he gets to the hotel at 1 AM. In the AM, he goes to Long Island, to see Dr. Kenneth Rosenthal, who says he’s fine to fight. Then he goes back to Manhattan, to see Dr. Michael Goldstein. He is examined for two hours, and then goes to the airport.

Cotto’s camp is proceeding smoothly. He plays dominoes with his mom and grandpa and pal Bryan Perez. Then he had dinner with his kids and his wife, Melissa. They’ve been married for 13 years. She was present with the three kids for the 2008 bout. “It’s really a fight that scarred us,” she says. “Margarito played with the life of my husband,” she says. She will be ringside at MSG.

We see the NYSAC “yeah or nay” hearing on Tuesday. After he is granted a license, we see Top Rank VP Carl Moretti do the sign of the cross and bury his head in his hands.

We don’t hear about the conference call hours before in which Cotto said he wouldn’t fight if the bout didn’t take place in NY, which added another layer of drama to the crazy cake.

“I am going to take advantage of his eye like he took advantage of the plaster,” Cotto says. “It will hurt like I was using plaster,” Margarito promises.