Margarito Mosley

WBA welterweight champion Antonio Margarito unsuccessfully defended his title against Sugar Shane Mosley on January 24, 2009, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. Antonio Margarito entered the fight with a record of 37 wins against 5 defeats with 27 knock outs. Sugar Shane Mosley entered the bout with a record of 45 wins against 5 defeats with 38 knock outs. Margarito was a heavy favorite with Vegas odds favoring Margarito 4-1.

On the day of the bout however, boxing analysts felt Shane Mosley dominated the entire fight. Mosley out boxed the heavily favored Antonio Margarito through nine rounds in a shocking upset. Mosley hurt then knocked down Margarito at the end of the eighth round and eventually knocked out Margarito in the ninth. Ringside observers felt Mosley seemed a step faster throughout the entire fight and unlike Margarito's bout against Cotto. Mosley never allowed himself to be pinned against the ropes. Mosley won the WBA welterweight championship with the victory.ESPN.com: Keeping tabs on Margarito-Mosley (January 25, 2009)

Before the bout, a plaster-like substance was found underneath Antonio Margarito's hand wrap. Margarito was forced to rewrap his hands three times. The discovery prompted questions of whether Margarito had used the illegal hardened plaster in previous fights.ESPN.com: Plaster-like substance' found on wraps (January 24, 2009)

Antonio Margarito and Shane Mosley have both fought Miguel Cotto. Cotto defeated Mosley in a 12 round decision on November 10, 2007. Antonio Margarito is coming off an 11th round knockout of Miguel Cotto on July 26, 2008.

The Los Angeles location for the fight brought out a tremendous amount of star power to the event. Spotted at ringside were Sylvester Stallone, Mark Wahlberg, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Tobey Maguire, Kevin Connolly, Sugar Ray Leonard, Joe Pesci and Bernard Hopkins. Notably absent from the event was promoter Oscar De La Hoya.

• Born: March 18, 1978
• Birth place: Torrance, California
• Nickname: Tijuana Tornado
• Height: 5'11"
• Reach: 73"
• Stance: Orthodox

• Born: September 7, 1971
• Birth place La Verne, California
• Nickname: Sugar Shane
• Height: 5'9"
• Reach: 74"
• Stance: Orthodox

• "I know what I need to do to win fights and I always come to do that. I just think that my preparation, the way I work and the way I always come prepared for fights, will carry me over. I have trained very hard for this fight and I am ready to go in there and put on a good show. " — Antonio MargaritoWashingtonpost.com: Hard work the key for Margarito (January 15, 2009)

• "I always wanted to fight the best fighters in the world and I have the opportunity now to fight them. I know how important this fight would be to my career if I do win." — Antonio MargaritoWashingtonpost.com: Hard work the key for Margarito (January 15, 2009)

• "The reason why Margarito won is he won on heart. He didn't win on his skill and he didn't win because he was like the better fighter, really. He won because he had a great heart and because he broke Cotto down in the last two rounds before they stopped the fight." — Shane MosleyBoxingscene.com: Shane Mosley: Margarito beat Cotto with Heart, Not Skill (January 17, 2009)