Light Heavyweight Prospect Mike Lee to Fight on Cotto-Margarito Undercard

Top Rank Inc. will look to further raise the profile of undefeated light heavyweight Mike Lee, 7-0 (4), by placing him on the undercard of the Miguel Cotto-Antonio Margarito pay-per-view December 3 in Madison Square Garden. It will mark the Chicago native and Notre Dame graduate's first fight on the East Coast, as well as his first fight scheduled for six rounds. 

In a press conference at Madison Square Garden prior to the start of the Nonito Donaire card last October 22, Top Rank presented Lee and his father/manager John Lee to the media. The 24-year-old spoke about the excitement he feels making his debut at the iconic fight venue, and noted that fighting on an undercard like this was particularly special for him: "Growing up and watching fighting, I was always a very big Cotto fan," he said.

Lee won the 2009 Chicago Golden Gloves; that same year he graduated from Notre Dame with a degree in finance from Notre Dame's Mendoza School of Business. As Bob Arum remarked, "This is a kid with a degree from a top university in the world, who could have gone to work for his choice of businesses." 

The Notre Dame connection has served Lee well in the early stages of his career development. Last month he headlined the first professional boxing event held on Notre Dame's campus, dropping opponent Jacob Stiers three times en route to a four-round unanimous decision. 

His already sizable fan base has adopted the traditional Notre Dame colors. The promotional materials provided by Top Rank at the October press conference quoted ESPN.Com's Dan Rafael, following Lee's decision victory over Gilberto Gastelum in Las Vegas last May: "Lee is probably the most popular four-round fighter in the world. One look around the giant ballroom at Mandalay Bay and the first thing you would have noticed was the sea of fans in blue and gold t-shirts that read Team Lee."

Lee, who has shown power in both hands and a solid ability to attack the body, now lives in Houston and is trained by Ronnie Shields. Last month he became a national spokesperson for Subway Restaurants and has already been featured in their national campaigns. This would be significant exposure for any fighter, let alone one who has only fought 19 rounds as a pro. 

The December 3 undercard is already stacked, featuring three main-event quality fights in support of Cotto-Margarito.

Welterweights Mike Jones and Sebastaian Lujan will meet in what Arum billed as an eliminator fight for a shot at IBF champion Andre Berto, or perhaps even Manny Pacquiao. WBA lightweight champion Bradon Rios will meet Manchester, England native John Murray. And in a highly anticipated junior middleweight rematch, Pawel Wolak will meet Delvin Rodriguez, following their thrilling draw last July. 

Look for the HBO producers to fit in at least highlights of Lee's performance somewhere during the program.       

Briggs Seekins is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. Unless otherwise noted, all quotes were obtained first-hand.