Written by Scott Swerbinsky

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2009 is shaping up to be a great year for fight fans, both in boxing and mixed martial arts. There are many big and exciting fights already announced and other that are closed to being signed. The first of those big fights happens Saturday night when Antonio Margarito makes his first defense of the belts he won from Miguel Cotto in their epic welterweight showdown last fall. His opponent? The crafty vet "Sugar" Shane Mosley, who is still fighting at a very high level. My cousin previews the fight.

2009 is shaping up to be a great year for fight fans, both in boxing and mixed martial arts. There are many big and exciting fights already announced and other that are closed to being signed.

Last week we saw the first entertaining fight of the year when Andre Berto was in action. Saturday night we will get to see two of the top fighters in the same weight class as Berto.

Antonio Margarito (37-5) will face another tough opponent in "Sugar" Shane Mosley(45-5). The fight will be held at the Staples Center in Los Angeles and tickets sales are through the roof.

Margarito for years has called himself the most ducked fighter in the game and rightfully so. He is coming off of a dominating performance over Miguel Cotto. In that win, Margarito became the first fighter to defeat Cotto. It was regarded as boxing's fight of the year in 2008. This will be the first test for Margarito as the king of the mountain.

Shane Mosley has fought a who's who in the world of boxing and has a great record to show for it. Now at age 37, there are many observers that think he is slowing down and has seen his better days. That might be true but he still has a huge heart and speed to go along with it.

This fight to me has the potential to be very entertaining and set a nice standard for fight of the year. Margarito will have to offset the speed advantage of Mosley by working the body like he always does and is famous for. The first five rounds will be the key to this matchup. Shane will have to use his footwork to stay out of harm's way and the longer the fight goes, the better chance he will have to pull off the upset.

Antonio Margarito has a great chin and wears down his opponents by stalking them. He did it in perfect fashion against Cotto. If he goes in with a similar game plan against Mosley, he will get his hand raised yet again in a dominating performance. The punch output that Margarito brings will wear on the older Mosley and could make for a one sided victory.

Experience is going to be a huge key in this fight. Shane Mosley has been in a lot of big time fights, both as the favorite and as the underdog. Antonio Margarito has always been the challenger looking to get to the top. He is now the hunted and considered a top five pound for pound fighter.  How will Margarito respond to the pressure when he is expected to win and walk thru a guy? That to me is a big question mark.

Not too many people in the boxing world are giving Shane Mosley a shot to win this evening in LA. It is right outside of his hometown and he will be looking to shine when the bright lights come on. I expect an extremely entertaining bout between two excellent counter punchers. I do think Mosley has a legit chance to win if he has the game plan to box and not slug. Margarito will bring the power punches in bunches and if Shane can avoid them early on, it should go the full twelve rounds.

2009 is shaping up as a phenomenal year in the fight world. I see no reason why this title matchup won't live up to the high standards.  We are in for a great ride and I would suggest you hop on and enjoy it with me.