Much as fellow "Contender" TV series alum Peter Manfredo was diced and sliced by super middleweight world champion Joe Calzaghe last year, welterweight Alfonso Gomez was shown the door in cursory fashion by WBA Champion Miguel Cotto last night at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, NJ, while former WBO Welter boss Antonio Margarito once again proved that he has Kermit Cintron's number after KO'ing the IBF Champ in six rounds during a rematch that was supposed to display Cintron's marked improvement.

Bouyed by recent wins over withered former top light welters Arturo Gatti and Ben Tackie, Gomez had expressed great confidence leading up to the title challenge of Cotto but once the bell rang, was shown to be lacking in all the requirements to defeat a reigning world champion except toughness.

Forward marched the seemingly much larger Gomez, but the 27 year old Los Angeles man was unable to put a scratch on Cotto, who took the opportunity to paint a body punching masterpiece on the canvas of Gomez's midsection. More...

Tonight, Alfonso Gomez, 18-3-2 (8), will be stepping in the ring with WBA Welterweight Champion Miguel Cotto, 31- 0 (25), for what will be his first opportunity at capturing a world title. Gomez, who made a name for himself on NBCʼs Contender series, has become more than a reality TV star and is perhaps the most successful cast member of that show.

Season one winner Sergio Mora has fought only three times against very limited competition, and although he has a shot at Vernon Forrest's WBC 154 pound title this June, he has really failed to make a dent in his boxing career. By contrast, Gomez has beaten fighters such as former two division world champion Arturo Gatti, in what was Gattiʼs last bout, and more recently, world title challenger Ben Tackie.

Gomez has been dubbed a continuous underdog each time that he has stepped up in class, but in every instance, he has silenced his criticʼs. The question on everyoneʼs mind now is "Can Gomez once again prove the criticʼs wrong?" After all, Miguel Cotto is no Arturo Gatti or Ben Tackie. Cotto is undefeated and considered one of boxingʼs current pound for pound best fighters in the world. Cotto is also one of the sportʼs most feared punchers. When you add them together, Gomez starts looking like an even bigger underdog than usual. More...

Boxing fans will be treated to back-to-back welterweight championship bouts when World Championship Boxing: Miguel Cotto vs. Alfonso Gomez and Kermit Cintron vs. Antonio Margarito is seen live Saturday, April 12 at10:00 PM ET/7:00 PM PT from Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City. The fight will be available in HDTV, as well as closed-captioned for the hearing-impaired and presented in Spanish on HBO Latino.

In the main event, a welterweight title will be at stake as rising star Miguel Cotto, 31-0 (25), from Caguas, Puerto Rico, takes on Alfonso Gomez, 18-3-2 (8), from Whittier, CA., in a scheduled 12-round contest. More...