Margarito-Mosley moves to Los Angeles

When Antonio Margarito defends the WBA welterweight title against Shane Mosley on January 24, the fight will emanate from Los Angeles' Staples Center instead of Las Vegas' Mandalay Bay, according to the Los Angeles Times.

"We knew Staples was available, and we made a deal figuring we might as well take the fight to where these fighters' fans are," Margarito's promoter, Bob Arum, said.

Frankly, any fight that gets out of Vegas is good by me. It's not that I have anything against Vegas, as it's obviously a wonderful fight city and the epicenter of American combat sports, but it's nice to see fights in other cities, which only serves to get fans in those places anxious to see more boxing when the fights deliver.

Mosley and Margarito are both home based in Los Angeles, and the heavy Latino market should help pump up the attendance if they don't make the ticket prices ridiculous. There's really no reason with reasonable ticket prices this fight can't sell out even a good-sized venue like Staples. Promote, promote, promote, and treat the fans right, because this is almost a sure bet to be a good fight. Build some goodwill.