Pac - Cotto - My round by round report

Manny Pacquiao, 49-3-2, 37 KOs v. Miguel Cotto, 34-1, 27 KOs.

1 - Both fire crisp jabs. C looks bigger. Tactical power punches. Neither get in much. C a bit busier. C going for body with hook. C very sturdy and strong. P boxing a bit trying to get a sense about his opponent. P not really landing much. Just feeling out. C seems calm. C looks confident and aggressive. Cotto round. P might not be strong enough for this guy, but it is early yet. Mostly just a feel out round, but the intensity is palpable, the punches quick and crisp, so the round felt exciting even though neither landed very much.

2 - P looks quick and a bit more amped to start, letting hands go much more than in the previous round, but C keeps nice guard. C's punches are crisp - even when blocked they move P. P fires off some quick lefts that land. Good pace. Each man fires off crisp shots meant to do harm. Pac lands nice left uppercut and sneaky right that seems to stun slightly. C fires back but P landing a bit more. P has a sneaky well timed right hook. P is getting his timing and range down better - lands a lead left. C still more of the stalker, looking to hit the body with heavy shots, while P is in and out. C landed a hard hook that was partially blocked but boy was it heavy. C landed a hard low blow with straight right to leg. Pac is quick and animated, and likes to jump in with quick combos of punches. C looking to fire fewer but heavier punches. C fires off combo. They take turns firing combos, but P landing and throwing more. Good pace. Both mean business. Danger in every punch and combo. Pace perhaps too fast. Condition will be a factor. Woah, P fires off combo and right uppercut gets through but C fires back and lands a left thrown from the southpaw stance. P round but he had to work hard. Key to me seems to be uppercut, to which c seems vulnerable. Both need to watch D because punches are so powerful and fast.

3 - C firing crisp jabs. P likes to bounce around and then step in with quick shots. After landing a very well timed counter right jab, P fires a quick combo (right jab to head, straight left to body, right hook to head, and glancing left uppercut) and C goes down to canvas on his hands mostly from the right hook to the head. More of a flash, his knees didn't touch, just his hands, and he seems okay, rising right away. P very fast. C firing hard shots. P boxes and attacks with quick shots. C steps in and lands left from southpaw stance. P covers a bit. P so fast when he attacks, but he ran into a left hook. But P takes it. P looking to time C with quick well timed shots. C steps in more and is not slow himself, but not as fast as P. C rips shots to body. C fires jabs. C moves head as P works. P so quick. C lands another hook. P so fast. C works hard combo. Slight head butt. C lands a nice left uppercut as P was covering. P more cautious with guard. That butt might have affected him. P 10-8.

4 - Terrific fight so far. True pros with speed and power. C firing off hard shots. Crisp C jab lands. P moves, blocks, and eludes with head movement. P comes back with his quick shots to body and head. C guard fairly good. They exchange hooks. Pac flurries to head and body. C hard right to body. C landed straight right but Pac flurries so damn fast and lands some good ones, but he's a bit wild and c landing crisp hook counters. Exciting stuff. P looks a bit tired or hurt, covering. Either taking a breather or he was stunned. C works body and head as P maintains tight guard. C actually lands nice right. P might be hitting wall, covering again. He snipes a right hook, spins off ropes and comes back with flurries of punches. C steps back towards him on attack but oh wow looks like P was playing possum bc he times and hits C with blazing fast right hook behind ear and lightning left uppercut directly on chin in combination and C goes down. C hurt. P fires fast combos but c saved by bell. 10-8 P.

Wow P is fast. I can barely see these punches or count them when he flurries. These are hard fast flurries when he gets going.

5 - P boxing about as C stalks and works. C lands a hook that partly blocked but so heavy handed that it can move P. C still live in there, working and throwing crisp shots. P taking break. Certainly not following up the advantage gained at the end of last round. P bouncing. Takes jabs. P blocking again. Eventually P gets going again, alternating between fast flurry combos and sniping quick singles. Hard to block or elude such fast punches. P lands some hard lefts and quick rights. Good timing by P. Very fast fight. C lands jabs and hard right to body. P covers and rests for a moment again. P likes to move, block then fire off suddenly. Both working again. Overall, this round P seems to be resting a bit and not landing quite as well or as often. C lands hard left uppercut as P was just covering. C landed a hard left to chin that seems to hurt. P takes it fairly well but C still has serious power. P had better be careful. C lands another hook. First round since first that C might have won. Close. Heck of a fight.

6 - C working and P boxing, picking his moments to fire off quick shots. Wow what a right hook P landed - directly on the jaw. Such speed. C gets hit with these super fast shots thrown from anywhere. Impossible to see them coming. P just so relaxed now. C still lively and fires off hard shots that have danger. P seems more comfortable than C though. C good when punches and P not doing much, but when P throws he's superior. P just so blazing when he goes. C boxing and moving now. When C moves back it invigorates P, who steps forward with quick combos, usually landing at least one solidly. They take turns boxing and moving and then attacking. P lands hellacious left to jaw, but C landed some hard shots in return. P needs to remain calm and fight smart because even though C getting hurt, C still game and lively and firing killer punches back that if land can do damage. But looking like P's fight now.

 

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Those punches weren't any harder than anything else C got hit with and had taken and continued to fight and move. C had not buckled or anything. He wasn't particularly hurt. He could have continued. His face looking bad means nothing. That's just exterior damage. I can understand justifying the stoppage on cumulative damage. But it was the 12th round, so I think he was entitled to a few more seconds to collect himself, particularly since those punches weren't any more effective than anything else he got hit with. It was clear that Bayless was looking to stop it because he just didn't want C getting hit anymore, as opposed to anything particular about those punches. But quite frankly, C was getting hit less often those last few rounds due to all his footwork.