By Lem Satterfield
It lasted over five hours, but on Wednesday the California State Athletic Commission voted 5-1 against issuing Antonio Margarito a license to box in their state. Margarito lost the ability to box in the United States in February 2009 when his license was revoked by the CSAC following a hand-wrapping scandal in January 2009.
Margarito (38-6, 27KOs) is scheduled to fight Manny Pacquiao on November 13 at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas. The vacant WBC junior middleweight title will be on the line. According to Top Rank CEO Bob Arum, Margarito has already applied for a license to box in the state of Texas. Arum is "very optimistic" that Margarito will be granted a license. Strong sources have indicated that Texas will likely grant Margarito's application for a license to box.
The ruling in California was the second setback for Margarito in 2010. He unsuccessfully applied for a license in Nevada, but the the state's athletic commission ruled that he must re-apply in California and have his case retried there before attempting to fight in Las Vegas. Arum appears confident about Margarito's chances to land a boxing license in Texas.
"The revocation is over, they've denied Antonio Margarito a license," said Arum. "But now, every state is free to grant him a license or deny him a license."
Lem Satterfield is the boxing editor at AOL FanHouse and the news editor at BoxingScene.com.com. To read more from Lem Satterfield, go to AOL FanHouse by Clicking Here.
