Margarito stuns Cotto for WBA 147-pound title

So that’s why every welterweight in the world was so scared of Antonio Margarito.

Margarito stopped Miguel Cotto in the 11th round Saturday night at the MGM Grand, blemishing Cotto’s unbeaten record and claiming the WBA 147-pound title with one last incredible barrage of punches.

Margarito (37-5, 27 KOs), the Mexican star so often ducked by the division’s best fighters in recent years, dropped the Puerto Rican champion twice in the 11th after several rounds of relentless pressure at the MGM Grand Garden.

“I told my corner I would wear him down and then knock him out,” said Margarito, who won his third welterweight belt. “He never hurt me, but that was the game plan, to come out early strong and to wear him down and knock him out. I got him with body shots, and then I hit him in the head, and then I knocked him out.”

Cotto (32-1), the respected champion attempting his fifth title defense, won the early rounds with defense and timely counterpunching. Margarito took several major shots on his tough chin, yet still kept up the same relentless attack that finally paid off in the middle rounds.

With Cotto bleeding and woozy, the champion’s corner stopped the fight with 55 seconds left, sending Margarito’s team into a delirious celebration of a long-awaited victory.