Miguel Cotto vs. Yuri Foreman.

Thats good point. Were either of Hattons loses down to "wear and tear"? He just wasn't good enough to win either fight but still had enough to beat Paulie in between.

 

Not an easy fight for Cotto, Foremans got good footwork, solid whiskers and quick short counters that will trouble Miguel coming forward. 4 inches taller, 5 inch reach advantage for Yuri, has a decent jab but im not sure he has the power to keep Cotto off for the distance so Cotto will have some success. A lot is said about Cotto, is he shot? If not will his power go up 2 154? But I think this depends on Foreman. Cotto's clearly mixed with the MUCH better opposition, will the big step up in class faze Foreman? Will his natural advantages be enough to keep Cotto at bay, considering Cotto clearly tires in later rounds? Foremans quick feet and clever boxing brain will keep him at distance but he can spoil ok up close too. I think Foreman could spring a points upset here, wouldnt be suprised if he gets screwed on the cards though

Hatton-Cotto could still be a cracking fight now. Cotto doesnt fight well when pressured, on the back-foot he's v vulnerable but has enough power to drop Hatton and will be a massive threat early on. A proper old school war could break out

 

Gaz I see what you mean, he beat Paulie well. Really hurt him in the 2nd round.

By the time of the Pac-Oscar fight he was a fat **** again, you could see post-fight when he said he'd be happy to fight Pac, saying he was a modern-dar phenomenon or whatnot.

Despite his style, it's his lifestyle that caused him to wane so quickly IMO.

 

Hatton v Cotto is one of the millions of fights that SHOULD have happened but never will. After he had beaten Tszyu I reckon Hatton's sheer pace and will would've broken Cotto. But sadly we will never happen.

Frikking sport!

 

Hard to say Flea, he's had 5 fights in the last 3 1/2 years and he's won the 3 he was expected to win and lost the 2 he was expected to lose.

With form like that its hard to tell when (or even if!!) any decline started.

 

What gets me is they wait and wait trying build these fights up as much as possible and then we don't get to see them because 1 guy gets beat, or retires or moves up in weight.

And half the time when we do get to see them its at the wrong time or the wrong weight, Chavez-Camacho at 147 is a classic example.

 

Some good points here ^^.

I would love this fight if I was Foreman and his camp. You've got a guy that just hasn't looked good recently and has taken punishment. Yes he's been against top competition but at the same time he hasn't looked good in himself fundamentally. Well, he looks good for a few rounds but then folds.

You've got the size, the reach. You've got a guy coming up in weight who has a short stocky frame to begin with.

You also know you've got a very natural style to hang with Cotto when he's at his best (early in the fight). It's a very natural thing for Foreman to use movement, to fire off a few long combinations, to tie up and frustrate. But he can't be too negative, he needs to keep Cotto working. The plan would be to take Cotto later into the fight and take advantage. It's a very obvious gameplan to work around.

 

At 140, Cotto was a bit more aggressive, focussed less on his boxing but was definitely more "chinny". I think a fight against Hatton would have been a war :fire and Hatton would have stopped him late on :yep

 

I was surprised how good he was, even though Santos was a little below par that night.

 

Considering Cottos career, it is a good move for him. It allows him to keep building his legacy in big winnable fights. Maybe set up a rematch between him and Margo at 154 for the title. He won't be so drained and Margo might not have so much of a size advantage. That would be a good fight.

 

:good cheers mate. This is stylistically an intriguing fight, similar to Hatton Malignaggi though Cotto is in a worse state now than Ricky was then. I particular agree with the highlighted, when Miguel works at his quite pedestrian pace and is given time to get his range/good jab working and start throwing then hard body shots he's still a threat. Until the 2nd knockdown in the Pacquaio fight he was jabbing beautifully, if Yuri stays in the pocket too long and doesnt keep busy he'll be in a for a world of pain. He seems too clever a fighter to do that though, Santos was v poor but Foreman was frustrating him all night.

I wonder if the hungers still there for Cotto. Winning this opens many doors, as mentioned Williams-Cintron winner, maybe berto-quintana victor and i wouldnt be surprised if margarito or mosely rematches are on Bob Arums mind. Got an awkward assignment first though 4 sure