Descending Rank

Saturday's Top Rank pay-per-view doubleheader is not only a card built on redemption for two of boxing's fallen stars.

It's also one to redeem promoter Bob Arum.

When Kelly Pavlik and Miguel Cotto attempt to get back in the win column after each fighter's first loss, both men will be keeping Arum's company above water until centerpiece Manny Pacquiao's May 2 bout.

Top Rank hasn't fared so well in the first several weeks of 2009, which is almost inversely proportional to the sport outside the world of "Mexican Bob."

Above all, Top Rank-promoted Antonio Margarito was involved in perhaps the most stunning controversy since Mike Tyson's gnawing of Evander Holyfield's ear. Margarito's and trainer Javier Capetillo's licenses were revoked for one year after the California State Athletic Commission decided unanimously that Capetillo was tampering with Margs' handwraps before his bout with Shane Mosley.

Then, Arum and his fighters were dominated by Gary Shaw's on Feb. 7. Almazbek "Kid Diamond" Raiymkulov fought evenly with Antonio DeMarco before being stopped in the ninth round. In the main event, the long-awaited showdown between Vic Darchinyan and Jorge Arce turned out to be a blowout in favor of Shaw's ultra-exciting Darchinyan.

The most recent blow came Monday, when rising star Anthony Peterson injured his left knee, knocking out a potential crowd pleaser against Edner Cherry.

Cotto and Pavlik need to take care of business to maintain appeal outside of their respective fan bases in Puerto Rico and Youngstown, Ohio. They also need to take care of Arum's business. And each certainly has a winnable fight on the split-site card.

Cotto took the high road when asked if stable mate Margarito had illegally weighted wraps when the Tijuana Tornado took him down last summer. He probably won't have to worry about Michael Jennings' power, save for the underdog bringing cinder blocks to the squared circle.

Pavlik wasn't quick enough in his lop-sided loss to Bernard Hopkins. Even at 43, The Executioner was too much for Pavlik. To his credit, The Ghost was fighting two weight classes above 160, where he is still The Ring magazine champion. He should retain the title against Marco Antonio Rubio by mid-rounds knockout and send Youngstown into a frenzy.

It's up to these two to get Arum off the hook, not for of any fondness of him but for the other fighters he represents. All we need after Capetillo's stunt is for a major promotional body to fold, sending a multitude of deserving fighters into limbo.

The Margarito Effect: It isn't often you see a guy win a single fight twice, but that's what happened last Saturday. The sad thing? He left with a draw.

Sergio Martinez appeared to have knocked Kermit Cintron out at the end of the seventh round, only to have referee Frank Santore restart the match after protesting from Cintron's corner. Of course, despite Cintron's excessive whining, a punch was landed. And yes, Cintron got up around the time Santore reached 10, but he was obviously still groggy.

To top it off, the fight went the distance with two of the judges scoring it 113-113. This is counting a knockdown. Insane.

And it had the promise of intrigue as the three losses between them were all at the (loaded?) hands of Margarito. Instead, what we got was the same heartless plodding from Cintron and not much more from Martinez, who likes to drop his hands way too much. Martinez deserved the fight, but who's looking forward to a rematch?

Until next time, the Sweet Science lab is closed.