Top Rank Boxing: Margarito, Garcia Hit Mexico Before Saturday Night Clash

Three-time world champion Antonio Margarito was welcomed by hundreds of fans for his public workout yesterday in Aguascalientes.

The “Tijuana Tornado” worked for nearly an hour under the hot sun in the Tecate Box Tour ring before signing autographs and taking pictures with fans for over one hour.

“I can really feel the support of the fans here in Aguascalientes. And I have promised them a great fight. I can’t wait to get into the ring Saturday night,” said Margarito, after the workout at the site of the San Marcos Fair.

Margarito will take on Roberto Garcia in the main event of Latin Fury 14, Top Rank’s championship extravaganza which will be seen in the U.S. Live on Pay-Per-View this Saturday night beginning at 9 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. PT.

“I feel good and I am ready to get back to work. It’s been a long time away from the ring and I am very happy to be back,” said Margarito, who has not fought since January, 2009 after losing his world title to Shane Mosley.

After Margarito’s workout, Garcia had his own workout and was also well received by the fans as he worked with his trainer Eric Brown.

“This is my championship fight. I have worked very hard to get to this point and will not let this great opportunity pass by. I have come to win this fight and that is what I will do on Saturday night,” said Garcia.

The pay-per-view undercard will feature WBA interim super featherweight champion Jorge Solis (38-2-2), of Guadalajara, Mexico, defending his title against top-10 contender and one-time world title challenger Mario Santiago (21-2-1, 14 KOs), of Ponce, Puerto Rico; top-five contenders Urbano Antillion (27-1, 20 KOs), of Maywood, Calif., and Rene “Super Chiroz” Gonzalez (27-1-1, 21 KOs), of Managua, Nicaragua, battle it out in a WBA lightweight title elimination bout; and the pay-per-view debut of flyweight sensation Alfonso López (4-0, 2 KOs), of Mexico City, Mexico, the son of legendary world champion and Mexican icon Ricardo López.

Margarito (37-6, 27 KOs), of Tijuana, Mexico, captured his first world title in 2002, winning the vacant WBO welterweight title with a tenth-round TKO of Antonio Diaz. He reigned as WBO champion for five years, successfully defending his title seven times – five by knockout – including victories over world champions Kermit Cintron, Andrew Lewis and Joshua Clottey.

After losing the title to Paul Williams in 2007, Margarito dethroned IBF welterweight champion Cintron in a rematch, knocking him out in their 2008 fight. Margarito claimed his third welterweight title when he stopped undefeated WBA welterweight champion Miguel Cotto in the eleventh round of their July, 2008 battle, arguably the fight of the year.

Garcia (28-2, 21 KOs), a native of Reynosa, Tamaulipas, Mexico who fights out of Weslaco, Texas, enters this fight riding a five-year, 14-bout unbeaten streak.

Garcia possesses impressive power in both fists, where 75% of his victories have come by way of knockout and many of those stoppages produced by devastating body shots. During his impressive streak, Garcia has captured the Caribbean Boxing Federation interim welterweight title and the Texas welterweight title.

The suggested price for the Latin Fury 14 pay-per-view is $39.95.