For Pacquiao - When this fight was first announced, I cringed. I love Pac, and I respect what he has accomplished, but I thought in this case, he may have been overreaching. I must admit...I still think that. The fact that Cotto is bigger and stronger than Pacquiao is one thing, but the main thing that concerns me is that fact that he has been in with guys much, much bigger and stronger than Pacquiao for his last 8 fights. Cotto's last eight fights have been against guys over 146. This is Pacquiao's first time fighting at the weight. You tell me...who has the advantage? Who should be the huge underdog? The way Cotto has proven himself against guys like Maragrito, Judah, Mosley, and Clottey should be more than enough for everyone to realize that Pacquiao is the one who has the huge mountain to climb. I think Pacquiao is going to have to look better than he ever has to win this one. His strategy is going to have to been perfect. He isn't going to be able to make many mistakes at all. Cotto isn't going to be as easy to hit as De La Hoya and Hatton were, and he isn't going to be able to avoid Cotto's assault the way he was able to avoid Hatton's. The bottom line is, is Pacquiao can stand up to Cotto's shots, and he can execute some great footwork, then he has an excellent chance. If Pac keeps finding himself trapped on the ropes, or trading with Cotto, he isn't going to make it. With that being said, a win for Pacquiao against a guy like Cotto, should place his name up there with the all time greats...possibly top 10 or 15 or ALL TIME. Forget TIME (Asia) Magazine, Pac should be on the cover of every sports magazine in the country. Maybe the New York Times will finally show some love for boxing. If Pac wins, I hope no excuses will be made...Pac haters make excuses for every one of his last five wins or so, but if he beats Cotto...what excuses could you possibly make? For Cotto - Cotto is still trying to redeem himself after getting beaten to a pulp by Antonio Margarito. To say that Margarito won under questionable circumstances is a moot point. Marg walked through everything Cotto threw that night, and he didn't have plaster on his face. Plus, for the alleged plaster to be effective, you have to be hitting the other guy, something Margarito was doing rather easily, for the most part. Cotto held his own against a huge Joshua Clottey, especially in the sixth round. I thought Cotto won because of the first round knockdown, and the fact that Clottey could have done more in the 12th to win it, but for some reason he held back. Miguel Cotto is a very, very good fighter. He can fight through adversity, he knows how to handle quick guys, and his chin is a lot better than people give him credit for. Cotto hits hard, and he knows how to cut off the ring. He looks very focused and determined coming in against Pacquiao...these are things that worry me. A win for Cotto in my opinion won't mean much. If Pacquiao wasn't as popular as he is, I don't think Cotto would have taken the fight, because he probably wouldn't think it was worth it, beating up on a little guy. Cotto is making a big thing of it on camera, like he has this huge obstacle to overcome, but I don't think he is the slightest bit worried. If I was a Cotto fan, I'd be thinking, if Miguel can handle guys like Judah, Mosely, and Clottey...why wouldn't he be able to handle a small guy like Manny Pacquiao? Cotto doesn't deserve nearly as much credit if he wins a Pacquiao would, because he is fighting a much smaller guy who has much less experience at the weight, and most of all, because he has handled himself well against guys who are much bigger, and in some cases, just as technically proficient as Pacquiao. Cotto beating Pacquiao would be like...the worst NFL team beating the very best NCAA team. Yeah, you won, but you won against smaller, less experienced guys. That NCAA team might be beating everyone in their sector by 30 points, but would they stand a chance against even the most pitiful NFL team? No, because the NFL team has bigger, stronger, and more experienced guys. That's the way I see Cotto vs Pac. I don't think Cotto is better technically than Pacquiao, but what technical skills he has, size, and experience against big guys is more than enough to convince me...Pacquiao win would deserve much, MUCH more respect.
It will shoot Cotto into a household name (or close to it) and it could shoot pac into being top 50 atg
I think the win is almost of equal value to each boxer. Whilst Pacquiao stands to make history (albeit down to the way in which weight divisions have been changed), Cotto stands to be he who stops this, somewhat 'vigilante esqe' train Pac is on. Now whilst I agree that De Le Hoya and Hatton were somewhat cherry picked opponents for Pac and cannot be used in anyway as to benchmark competition against Cotto, Pacquiao has proved: 1. He has carried his speed with him, all the way from age 16 at 106 lb, all the way to 140lb 14 years on. 2. His power has come up with his weight. The punch that ko'd hatton wasn't in anyway down to a lack of Hatton's punch resistance, it detonated on his chin and I guarantee any1 who caught that would have gone. Now I hate to talk too much about his fights against Hatton/DLH, because on the scale of things those victories are nearer the bottom end of his creditable facets. My point is, Pac is a freak of nature, tremendously talented and whether you like it or not, THE current global icon of boxing. Everybody is awaiting a Mayweather/Pac showdown, fight of the decade, top 50 fights of all time etc etc, were even seeing people refer to Pacquiao as top 10 atg. Cotto is the bollard in Pacs warpath, and has just as much to prove here as Pac. What better way to elevate his global status and to rid himself, and possibly the entire boxing community of the ghost that is Margarito that haunts him, than by defeating the prior mentioned, Pacquiao. Bloody looking forward to this fight, booked the 15th off work
Overall good thread, you present some points though I think the fight is more significant for Miguel than what you think and if he wasn't one bit concerned, he wouldn't have really made the effort to be 120% prepared in camp (going to tampa and going to vegas early). But none of these guys Cotto has faced has the kind of speed and footwork/movement Pacquiao has, which is what makes this fight very intruiging. This fight will be Pac's speed vs Cotto's strength. Will Pacquiao be able to work those angles while not tasting some leather as he did in the JMM and Erik Morales fights? True. However, this will likely not be his gameplan and I certainly don't see him purposely exchanging with Cotto. THe gameplan will be similar to that against Oscar. In and out, different angles, don't let Cotto set his feet. A win against Cotto & Mayweather & another belt at jr middleweight/middleweight possibly could. If Margarito in fact had Plaster, which I believe he did, that could have certainly affected the outcome; cotto wouldn't have been as busted up or hurt by the punches (less bleeding, swelling, etc). In addition, he may have not gassed out the way he did. Loosing large amounts of blood isn't healthy and certainly being swollen and bloody would make it easier for the opponent to inflict more pain and damage by each blow. He held back because he was being hit back and it took its toll, if not physically, mentally. The same reason Shane became a bit gunshy mid way through the fight with Cotto, when Cotto let off the gas later, he let Shane back in the fight. A win for Cotto would put him in the spotlight, and he would probably get a good amount of credit since many have written him off and see him as a tune-up/setup fight for a mega fight between Manny Pacquiao to fight Mayweather.
