E.Steward: I think this will be Floyd’s toughest fight since 1st fight with Castillo

On whether he believes the bout between Floyd Mayweather Junior and Miguel Cotto will actually turn out to be a good fight:

“Well I shouldn’t have said ‘hopefully’. I should have said ‘what I expect to be a good fight’! You know Floyd is so talented and so good that sometimes if he wants to shutdown and control the tempo of a fight he can do just that, as he has done often with a lot of his opponents. But I don’t think in Miguel’s case that’s going to happen. Floyd’s going to have to be consistent all the way through and he’s going to be challenged. I think he’s capable of holding up to the challenge, but I think this will be Floyd’s toughest fight since his first fight with Castillo. He’s going to have to be right on point for this fight. Even though he’s got the skills, the ego, which I think is a very important part, and his ability to think under all kinds of conditions, especially late in a fight, those are big, big advantages that he may have.

In Miguel he’s fighting a class fighter who’s been in a lot of big fights. He had a very good amateur background, also. At this stage right now he seems to be coming back mentally I think and physically after his last three fights. I know the pride in addition to the condition of both fighters is going to be enormous for both fighters. Miguel Cotto is not just a fighter from Puetro Rico. He is probably the biggest star in their country. I didn’t realize until I was training him that boxing is not just one of their main sports. In Puerto Rico boxing is the main sport and the biggest sport, and at this time I think he is the biggest and the only really true Puetro Rican star. So based on that he’s got a lot of support, and I think the numbers in the pay-per-view are going to be phenomenal. They’re going to be much bigger than people think, and not just all because of Floyd. I think Miguel is very well liked and loved by everybody as a person and a fighter. Even though he’s lost some fights, those fights were dramatic fights. Then there was the Torres fight that he had, and even he won the fight with Clottey with his mouth cut up real bad and his eye closed. He came back strong, and the two losses that he did he lose big time, he went down to one knee. He was just beaten down. So he’s always been a true warrior, and people like Miguel Cotto! It’s that simple! He’s a very likeable person from a family viewpoint and all of that.

So based on that popularity and his exciting style of fighting and consistency, he’s going to have a big fan base and Floyd is the favorite, but I’ll tell you what! Floyd’s got to be very careful and never, ever underestimate Miguel, because Miguel is going to put pressure on him and I think he’s going to be ripping that left hook in there like he hasn’t done in a long time. Styles make fights and Floyd’s style of rolling the shoulder back and being in the rolled position where he can neutralize punches—he doesn’t do a whole lot of just bobbing, and slipping, and punching the way of Pernell Whitaker, who really was a classic defensive fighter that slipped punches and punched while he slipped. Floyd just shuts you down by rolling his shoulder and locking himself in a certain position. In that position he can’t get hit with right hands so much for the most part, but he’s vulnerable to left hooks. So Miguel is going to have to put a lot of pressure on Floyd and fight at a pretty good intense pace to take Floyd out of his comfort zone, and I don’t know if he’s going to be able to do that because Floyd is such an intelligent fighter and he has the ability to change the pace. He can make you fight at the pace he wants you to fight at. It’s going to be a very interesting fight, and even though Floyd is the favorite I could possibly see it going the other way, also.”

On whether he feels people are underestimating Shane Mosley going into his fight with Saul Alvarez given the fact Mosley is a 7 to 1 underdog:

“Nope! I mean firstly I just can’t see Shane doing too much in that fight. I just don’t see it. I’m surprised that the fight was made. I’ll be very honest with you. It’s just that one guy is heading north at such a fast pace and the other guy is heading south at a pretty decent pace. I think Saul Alvarez is just a very fabulous fighter, and I think whoever he fights would have a tough challenge with him, and I just don’t know if Shane has that physical strength and that high intensity and spirit that he once had earlier in his career. Just to say he’s going to hold him off with experience, I don’t think that’s going to be enough to me. But it’s going to be interesting to see what happens in the fight. I’m just very surprised that the fight was even made.”


CLICK HERE TO READ ENTIRE INTERVIEW TRASNCRIPT

This content is protected

 

It's a great point that I thank carries a lot of validity. I actually referred back to those exact words when I was giving my breakdown of the fight later in that show, but I don't think Cotto's going to get it done. I think he has too many vulnerabilities that will prevent him from throwing many left hooks.

I would personally give Cotto a fairly decent shot of he had Emanuel for this one. To beat Margarito, Miguel may have just needed more of a conditioning coach, but for this fight here he needs a solid strategy and an impeccable game plan.

I just don't see Cotto having too much success in this one, but be that as it may I'm still looking forward to the fight!

:good