Heat Check: HBO Tripleheader

Last Saturday night was a memorable one for boxing fans. HBO showcased a scintillating tripleheader featuring Cintron vs. Matthysse, Gatti vs. Gomez, and Margarito vs. Williams. And every fight left a lasting imprint for different reasons.

- The beast from Puerto Rico
Kermit Cintron looked especially monstrous in his two round destruction of Walter Matthysse. While Cintron was the heavy favorite, he was expected to be tested in the same manner Walter tested Paul Williams. And since Kermit wilted under Margarito's onrush two years ago, there was some intrigue on how he was going to handle another aggressive, durable opponent.

The test was over before the first scantron bubble could be filled. Cintron looked nothing short of a PR incarnation of Tommy Hearns as he delivered an effortless, but vicious knockout in front of the shocked Atlantic City crowd. Has Kermit improved that much under the tutelage of Manny Steward, or did P-Will make Matthysse look stronger than he is? I doubt the other top names in the division are particularly eager to face him and find out.

There have been murmurings that he'll be on the September 8th Vargas/ Mayorga card. I'd like to see him against Luis Collazo or Carlos Quintana.

- The death of a legend... and a myth.
Alphonso Gomez dominated, knocked out, and ended the career of Arturo Gatti. He also most likely ended any serious consideration for a Gatti induction into the Hall of Fame. And, in my mind, that's a good thing.

To be sure, the man's a legend for the incredible action bouts he produced in the mid to late 90s. His fights against Wilson Rodriguez, Calvin Grove, Gabriel Ruelas, Angel Manfredy, and Ivan Robinson (twice), were instrumental in building HBO's Boxing After Dark series and the Atlantic City boxing demographic. And of course, you have his classic 2002 encounter with Micky Ward, which now seems to be the baseline when measuring how good a fight is (how many times have you heard "not every fight can be Ward-Gatti"?).

In making an honest assessment of these fights, however, you see that he lost four out of seven. He also lost virtually every minute of every round against the two A-list boxers he faced (Oscar De La Hoya and Floyd Mayweather), and got demolished when he stepped up against recognizable competition at welterweight. While he does have a few good names on his record, certainly not enough to be considered an elite talent at any point in his career. Just because the IBHOF may already be watered-down, doesn't mean we have to tear down what's left of the flood gates. Moreover, the common argument that he should be inducted solely because of the excitement he brought to the sport is a stretch when equally exciting and considerably better fighters such as Ray Mancini, Cornelius Boza Edwards, and Nigel Benn have yet to sniff the Hall.

Nevertheless, I'm thankful for all the memories Gatti has provided us.

As far as Gomez, his increased stamina impressed me. I'm not sure he has the endurance to go hard for 10 or 12 full rounds, but it's clear he no longer fades after the fourth round like he has so many times in the past. A fight between him and Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. is a natural bout to make for the fall.

- The birth of a star?
Antonio Margarito was the favorite going into his bout with Paul Williams for obvious reasons. The tall southpaw from Georgia throws an unbelievable amount of punches, but very few men are built to withstand the whithering body attack, lethal uppercuts, and thudding right hands of the Tijuana Tornado.

P-Will displayed the chin and heart needed to reside within that rarefied air.

Margarito almost looked outclassed in the first four rounds. Williams' much faster, busier hands - along with his gameplan to grab and spin Antonio whenever he got inside - made Margarito look like he was moving in quicksand. In the middle rounds, however, Margarito's digging shots into Paul's sternum and rib cage started showing effect. In the late rounds, Margarito targeted Williams' chin with several short right hands. The torment he put his 6'1 foe through in the 11th virtually evened up the bout, and it seemed like a forgone conclusion that Margarito was going to own the final round, perhaps even finish Williams off.

But Paul showed the heart of a champion, shocking everyone by easily winning the 12th round - ensuring a unanimous decision.

The man is a nightmare for anyone in the division. He's several inches taller than Mosley, Cotto or Mayweather. His work rate would be too much for Joshua Clottey. Perhaps only Kermit Cintron has the size, strength, and technique to put The Punisher on his back.

The number of great matches in the welterweight division is staggering. And the summer sizzle continues to get louder.