Cotto vs Foreman Fight Predictions from Alfonso Gomez,"King" David Estrada,Etc

By: Ben Mercado, Jr. and Richard Spilotro

Tonight’s Miguel Cotto vs. Yuri Foreman fight seems like just what the [fight] doctor ordered for Cotto. Top Rank has, in genius fashion, granted Cotto (just recovering from a devastating 12th round stoppage at the hands of Manny Pacquiao) an instant opportunity to bounce back, in big style. Fair or not, you have to admire the confidence Bob Arum has in his Puerto Rican superstar. Heck, you might even wonder of Arum is using Cotto as his “answer” to Don King’s Felix Trinidad. Hmmm…. but before you cats conjure up the rumor mill, previous reports a couple months ago regarding a potential “Cotto vs. Trinidad fight” was nothing but an April Fool’s joke… at the hands of PR media…but who knows…

Moving on, let’s consider some facts on this fight. It’s obvious that Miguel Cotto has, by far, the more decorated resume of either fighter. Miguel has fought none other than the likes of Zab Judah, Shane Mosley, Alfonso Gomez, Antonio Margarito, Joshua Clottey, and of course, Manny Pacquiao. Remove Antonio “Plaster of Paris” Margarito, and Cotto only had one loss in those recent bouts.

Yuri Foreman, on the other hand, really only has Cornelius “K9” Bundrage and Daniel Santos as recognizable fighters on HIS resume. The K9 fight ended in a no decision due to an unintentional head butt, but it must be mentioned that Yuri was ahead on all judges’ scorecards at the time (three rounds were completed). The Daniel Santos fight saw Yuri boxing beautifully, and at certain points in the later rounds, it even appeared that he was hurting Santos…who was wobbled on a few occasions. But the Santos that showed up to that fight, was not the Santos we’ve seen in recent years, especially since he’s bested Antonio Margarito, Jose Antonio Rivera and Joachim Alcine. Either way though, you cannot take anything away from Yuri’s performance.

Given what we know of both fighters, I’d love to be able to say with confidence that this should be an easily won 154lb title for Cotto. But I cannot really say this, as there are more factors at stake, which may contribute to the end result. One of these factors is Sergio Martinez. Why? Well, because similar to Yuri Foreman, Sergio has a largely unrecognizable resume, having fought most of his bouts in Argentina…but we’ve all seen how he has burst onto the scene with his fights against Paul Williams and Kelly Pavlik.

I don’t pretend to make a comparison of Kelly to Yuri, but I ponder the weight an unrecognizable resume has these days. As styles make fights, and upsets are more common than we think (did Troy Ross really get KOd in RD 5 today?), it’s not as simple to go with the more experienced fighter.

But don’t take my word for it, let’s hear what some of the pros (fighters and writers, alike) have to say…

Alfonso Gomez, who fought Cotto in 2008, had this to say to Chicago Boxing News:

CBN: Alfonso, how do you feel about Cotto moving up to 154lbs? Some, like myself, see this is a better division for him, but what do you think he'll have to do to get past the long and lanky Foreman? Do you see Cotto easily getting inside?

Gomez: “I think Cotto is going to win within 6 rounds. Yuri's resume is not even close to the accomplishments and level of opposition that Cotto has. (Including myself hahaha) So for me, it seems like a great opportunity for Cotto to get another title in a 3rd weight class.”

CBN: Foreman's claim to fame so far was beating a seemingly tired and unwilling Daniel Santos. While I applaud Foreman's victory, I feel that Santos hadn't really even shown up, for whatever reason. What kind of chances do you give Yuri Foreman, against the stronger, more experienced Cotto?

Gomez: “I don't think he has the power to stop Cotto from coming forward, so eventually Cotto’s power, persistence and experience will get Yuri. The only way I see Yuri winning is if he taps Cotto all night and runs...and even then, they'll give it to Cotto.”

CBN: I believe that this fight is somewhat of a must-win for Cotto. Will his career be in jeopardy because of a loss to Foreman?

Gomez: “That all depends on the way the fight plays out.”

CBN: Either way, Alfonso, would you agree that a Cotto loss would seriously damage his chances at another [legitimate] title shot in the near future? At the same time, would you agree that a Foreman loss would just be viewed as a learning experience for Foreman? I can't see Yuri's career path being damaged by a Cotto loss...especially if he can bounce back like you did...and keep going.

Gomez: “In Cotto's last fights, we've seen how mentally and physically diminished he is from the Cotto who first stepped into the Welterweight Division. That could be because he's faced the best in the best weight division (Mosley, Judah, Clottey, Margarito, Pacquiao, Gomez) so now mentally Cotto knows he’s not fighting the best super middleweight and that might be a plus for him. Losing this fight will hurt his career, nevertheless, Puerto Ricans are a loyal bunch and I'm sure they'll follow their champion until the end. If Yuri wins, well, he'll be a millionaire soon, [laughs] plus it will prolong his career in bigger fights and paydays. Let's just hope they both give a hell of a fight and they both come out healthy from it.”

David Estrada, calling from ringside at Yankee Stadium, had this to say about tonight’s fight:

CBN: David, Who do you pick for tonight’s fight?

Estrada: “Cotto will win because of his experience and his new trainer {Emanuel Steward]. I haven’t really seen Yuri fight, but I have to pick Cotto…he needs this.”

CBN: How much does Cotto have to lose here? If Cotto doesn’t win, is his career over?

Estrada: “Cotto needs this win. If he loses, this will tarnish his legacy”

CBN: What do you think about Alfonso Gomez’ insinuation that Yuri Foreman will have a hard time winning due to the home town [Puerto Rican] crowd?

Estrada: “Yuri may not have that difficult [of a time getting a] decision…you may think this will be a Puerto Rican crowd, but a lot of Yuri’s [Jewish] fans will be there”

…David Estrada makes a great point…New York, while having a huge Puerto Rican population also has one of the biggest concentrations of Israeli descendants…and they will surely come to support one of the only Jewish fighters in the sport.

More notable quotes:

Ramon Valenzuela, Sr., father of Ramon Valenzuela, Jr. (from Chicago, 1-0 since he turned pro) also had some great words to say to CBN tonight:

“Ben, if Cotto really wants to be inside the reach of Foreman, he's fast enough to do it. Will he be willing to take [the] Foreman jab to do so is the question. Cotto had an excellent training camp in which he sparred Domenic Dolton and Leandre White, both very talented young fighters that can box and slug and are also tall!

”Foreman is an excellent boxer that can win this fight if he stays and fights in spurts and then give angles and use his superior footwork. If he chooses to just box while on his toes, like a younger Santos used to do, then he will loose because Cotto will eventually catch up to him.

Ben, I believe this bout is very important to both boxers (they both are the same age) but I feel Foreman will be a bit [hungrier] to be in the spotlight, but, will that be enough?”

We also had a chance to catch up with Ross Thompson on his thoughts on this fight:

“I think Yuri Foreman wins this fight. I know him from Jersey…we used to train together at the Red Brick Gym in Jersey. He don’t have the power but he can box…. he can out box Cotto all night. He’s hungry, and he knows what he’s doing.”

CBN: Do you think Cotto need to win this fight to be on top of the game?

Ross: “It all depends on if it’s a competitive fight, and what Yuri does. Make no mistake, Yuri is a good guy, he’s dedicated…he can win”

Larry Hamel, of the Chicago Sun-times had this to say, exclusively to Chicago Boxing News:

“Not sure where Cotto stands in the big picture. He was pretty hard-used by Manny…I like Cotto with a caveat. Not sure how much the beatings he absorbed against Margarito and Pac-Man [as they] have chewed him up…. It will be difficult for Foreman to keep him at bay, but then he is the naturally bigger guy…Cotto must beat Foreman to remain a fighter people will clamor to see…. Now that I'm thinking about it, I'll go out on a limb and pick Foreman. I just don't know how much fight there is in the Cotto dog after that beating by Pac-Man.”

Ricky Spilotro, founder of Chicago Boxing News:

“If I was a betting man I would choose Yuri Foreman to win this bout. Miguel Cotto did not look good his last three fights against Margarito, Clottey and Pacman… meanwhile Yuri looked good his last two fights, beating Daniel Santos and looking quite well against Cornelius Bundrage.

“My heart wants Cotto to win but my mind says Foreman; I will go with my heart and say Cotto. He has so much to prove and this is a must win for Cotto; a loss here and you will no longer be hearing Miguel Cotto on any “pound for pound” list. He has a lot to prove to himself and his fans and what better place to do it than Yankee Stadium???

What do you fans think? Check in with us LIVE in less that 45 minutes as we open up the round-by-round fight summaries and discussions!

This content is protected

Photo Credit : Jason DeCrow


To comment on this visit our Facebok page
http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=127426723946104&id=108101055885901&ref=mf

 

Looks as if David Estrada and Alfonso Gomez wer both correct on their predictions.