Cotto Vs Mayorga..................

"We just have to take care of business" - Miguel Cotto speaks in Los Angeles

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Fight week has officially arrived for this weekend's Miguel Cotto-Ricardo Mayorga WBA junior middleweight title fight and the evening's participants could be found inside of the Millennium Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles on Monday afternoon. The fight is a contrast of character with Cotto's subdued nature being on the same stage as the wild theatrics of Mayorga.

For as much curiosity and intrigue as a guy like Mayorga brings to a promotion, this fight is about Miguel Cotto and the last leg of his career. The 30-year old used to have an almost invincible feel about him but over the past two and a half years he has shown himself to have weaknesses on the big stage, as evidenced during his TKO losses to Antonio Margarito and Manny Pacquiao under dire circumstances in Las Vegas.

Cotto was stopped by Tijuana's Margarito in the 11th round in July of 2008 after fading late in a contest he was in control of. Against Pacquiao he fought fire with fire early before being dropped in rounds three an four and overwhelmed the rest of the way, ultimately losing via 12th round stoppage.

Each of those losses have dug deep at Cotto and he has expressed his desire to one day extract revenge on the only two men to defeat him. Before anything he must find a way to get rid of Mayorga and he insists that he isn't focusing on exactly what his Nicaraguan opponent brings to the table.

“We just have to take care of business," Cotto told the assembled media. "We can’t think about anything specific regarding Mayorga. We just have to think about ourselves. I think Mayorga is past his peak. He was at his best maybe five or six years ago.”

During Cotto's early years as a prizefighter he was a calculated assassin who endeared himself to audiences with his seek and destroy style. He appeared to show weaknesses in his armor in getting buzzed by the likes of Ricardo Torres and DeMarcus Corley but he always found a way to persevere, showing Arturo Gatti-esque shades along the way.

You could always tell there was something special about Cotto and he insists that after hooking up with trainer Emanuel Steward last year, that he is looking to go back to his old ways.

“Just the confidence in myself," Cotto said of the changes the Kronk trainer brings to his psyche. "We are trying to find the Miguel Cotto of 10 years ago. To get me back to the way it was when I started. After 10 years to change things about my style is very hard.”

It can't be the easiest thing dealing with the constant antics of a guy like Mayorga, who seems to behave more like a child than a real man at times, but Cotto isn't fully buying his outlandish facade.

“Before the press came in he came over to my table and said hello. I think it’s an act just to sell the show," said Cotto.

Whether or not the show sells remains to be seen but it appears that Cotto is dialed in and ready. Five days and counting until Cotto-Mayorga kicks off at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

"I train from the heart. I'm coming to knock Cotto out." - Ricardo Mayorga

Ricardo Mayorga is no stranger to playing the role of the spoiler.

After all his first title-winning effort was then considered a pretty notable upset when he blasted out Guyana's Andrew 'Six Heads' Lewis in five rounds in their rematch in March of 2002 to seize the WBA welterweight championship. Lewis had gained some clout for his shifty southpaw style and ringing power but against Mayorga he was overwhelmed and chopped down to size, with the Nicaraguan relishing every minute of his conquest.

Eight months later Mayorga again spoiled the plans of many when he emphatically blasted out Augusta, Georgia's Vernon Forrest in three intense rounds. Forrest was riding a career high after being the first man to defeat 'Sugar' Shane Mosley half a year earlier but all of his technique and skill was deemed relatively ineffective against Mayorga's crude and suffocating attack, as he fell prey to a crippling right hand that had him tasting canvas in the third.

As oddly-inspiring as those victories may have been, several years have passed since Mayorga could truly be called a world class fighter and at 37 years old he is a notable underdog heading into his clash against WBA junior middleweight champion Miguel Cotto this Saturday night. Mayorga faces off with the Puerto Rican star at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada in a fight that is surely looked at as a do or die opportunity for the foul-mouthed Nicaraguan.

Mayorga is very familiar with Cotto's resume and feels the Caguas fighter is actually the one who is ripe for the picking.

"I train from the heart and I've given 110 percent," Mayorga told the press yesterday afternoon in Los Angeles. "All the Puerto Ricans coming to the fight will leave as Ricardo Mayorga fans. The best time of his career was when he fought at 140 [pounds]. When he came up to 47 and 54, that's when he made the mistake."

Mayorga very well may have a point, as Cotto looked like a polished and lethal machine in tearing through a colorful list of foes during his days as a junior welterweight and has since suffered the only two losses of his career after moving up to the welterweight rankings. Cotto was stopped in eleven rounds in July of 2008 by a surging Antonio Margarito and again saw himself being halted late in battle less than a year and a half later by Filipino sensation Manny Pacquiao.

Speaking with images of those bouts in his head, Mayorga issued up a bold prediction for this weekend's affair.

"The concept is; go for the knockout, not just the win," he continued. "I'm coming here to not only beat Cotto but to knock him out. Don't take a knee on me like you did with Margarito. Let me finish punishing you. I come from a country where women give birth to men."

As the press conference rolled on Mayorga became even more vocal, pulling up his shirt to show Cotto just how great of shape he is in with the fight less than a week away. While Cotto didn't appear to be visually enticed, it is worth noting that Mayorga weighed over 162 pounds for his last bout, a December TKO over Michael Walker, and him coming in pristine condition helps to show just how competitive this one could be.

There are so many angles you could take with a fight like this but sometimes the less talk the better. Mayorga closed up his verbal berating by simple telling Cotto what he can expect in between the ropes come March 12th.

“Look at these fists. You will see these Saturday night up close.”

 

Gona go for Cotto on points