By Miguel Rivera

Former world champion Antonio Margarito has promised to retire from boxing if he loses on March 5th at the Mexico City Arena when he faces Jorge 'Maromerito' Paez.

Margarito, 38-years-old, has been inactive since December of 2011. He was stopped in nine rounds in his last fight by Miguel Cotto in their rematch at New York's Madison Square Garden.

The Mexican veteran wants to prove that his skills are still the same and there are no issues with his right eye. He suffered a fractured orbital bone in his 2010 decision loss to Manny Pacquiao. After multiple surgeries, the eye quickly swelled up in the early rounds of his fight with Cotto and eventually led to the fight being stopped.

He retired after that fight, fearing that his eye would create problems in future contests.

If the boxer looks good against Paez Jr. (39-7-2, 23 KOs), promoter Fernando Beltran of Zanfer Promotions may look to match him against the likes of  Ramon Alvarez (brother of Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez), or even a rematch with former world champion Shane Mosley.

In an interview with Golpe a Golpe - "I do not think about [losing]. I never thought about losing a fight and now with my return I started training eight months ago, and when I found out who my opponent was I began to tighten things up. I've said that if I lose right now, then I have nothing left to do in boxing. In my head I don't see that happening. I trust in what I do, I'm a different man, I have my wife, my children."