Can Cotto win back respect if he beats Foreman?
February 24th, 2010
By Eric Torres: As an avid fan of boxing it pains me to see the the lack of respect a fighter can lose when he has gone through a tough time. The case is no different with Miguel Cotto, whose career and resume reads far more superior in MY OPINION to any of the welterweights out there (except Manny Pacquiao). If you do some research and compare you will see that that statement is not far off. I know that might be difficult for the Mayweather Supporters out there, but the proof is in the pudding Cotto has fought stiffer opposition, has won, proven himself to be a warrior that never has backed down from a fight and has never made excuses for not wanting to fight someone.
Cotto needs to take back the respect he has lost somewhat over the last year or so. It is obvious that when you put great fighters up against great fighters there can only be one winner and one loser. The truth is that Cotto lost to a cheater (Margarito) and someone who is probably going to go down as one of the greatest fighters who has ever stepped into the ring( Pacquiao). It does not take away from Cotto and his legacy thus far.
Cotto now is presented with the opportunity to take back what he lost and much more. I believe he will be to much for Yuri Foreman to handle. Like I said great fighters beat up on one another and the unfortunate things is that Yuri Foreman is not a great fighter. Yuri is the same exact type of boxer that Michael Jennings was and Look what happened there.
Cotto will come into his next fight with so much passion and desire to restore his name and legacy that Yuri will be a stepping stone and a sacrificial goat. Cotto will conjure up all the emotional feelings he has had since his fathers passing and allow that to be the motivational factor that will see him to glory. Most importantly Cotto as in Mosleys recent success, will make everyone forget about the rough patches in his career but rather concentrate on the high point of his past & his bright future in the sport.
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Boxing is like politics the best should fight the best eliminate the greedy & corrupt people then the sport will thrive again.
C.M.D. boxing is one the most corrupt sports. The problems related to boxing is the substance abuse, handwraps, & dives. To me the first two are the most frequent. In boxing rules differ from State to State making it a little more difficult or that much easier. I believe the should do whats best for the sport, fighters, & fans using the best means of testing for every fight, if you get caught or are involved with illegal wraps you should be banned. These are things that effect the lives of people, their family, future, careers they worked so hard for
I hope Cotto uses all his pain & adversity to improve like Manny does. At the very least i hope he’s happy & enjoys what he does savoring every moment.
Love the article & concur. KingAlex I can’t agree with you at all. When Cotto defeated Carlos Quintana he was undefeated & beat Pual Williams. Pualie was also undefeated. Mind you Cotto was weight drained at 140. Judah gave Mayweather problems as well as Cotto but Cotto knocked him cold. AM, Mosley, & Clottey were all avioded fighters. The reason Cotto gets credit is because he gives you his heart & soul everytime he steps in the ring. A gentleman, fights everyone, doesn’t clinch, headbutt, ect. Low blow happen when your a body puncher & Clottey was going to clinch so Cotto slipped out causing Clottey to fall. Cotto fought Clottey with a brutal cut & the close rounds go to the champ I had him winning because of the knock down along with the later rounds. What disturbed about that fight was Cotto never changed to South paw like he used to which would of protect that eye more giving him visability. He’s naturally a lefty also. That IMO opinion showed he’s mentally shakin up but thats just my opinion. I’m a huge fan of Cotto but he needs a great trainer. He’s a well rounded fighter but need better movement & defense. The upper cuts get him to much & he needs to start working the body. AM definitely cheated. Why wouldn’t he have. Cotto’s corner never checked him otu it was the biggest fight & probably last shot he had to make it big. Also Puerto Rican’s & Mexican fights are one the biggest rivalries in the sport, the pressure was on. Cotto out boxed & out classed AM the wraps took there toll & if they weren’t there that night he AM’s best weapon his chin would have been chisilled to nothing. Mosley is stronger than AM & his face was a quarter of the way banged up compared to AM. Why would AM use wraps on Mosley & not AM. Freddie & Pacman wouldn’t have went after Cotto if he wasn’t mentally damaged. Listen to Freddy & what he says about taking a beating like that. I hope he comes back & it makes him stronger he’s a great fighter & gives the sport what it needs. My favorite fighter & i wish him the best he has all my respect. Here’s to a real sportsman who’s a fearless warrior & great example of what the sports about.
how do u cheat n boxin???
Cotto izz a gud fighter….evry fight i c of his izzz gud….no 1 cheats n boxin….
first of all he never lost respect . fighting cheaters doesn’t count. the only way to beat cotto is by cheating. and that’s real talk. foreman wont be able to do much against cotto, he bit of too much to chew. so what if yuri is taller, the bigger they are the harder they fall. miguel has way to much skill for foreman. it’s like a pitbull vs a maltese.
yeah but c’mom foreman??? Wanna be the best then fight the best plain and simple he couldve cherry picked pwilliams smartinez or even kcintron & everybody wouldve luv dat—> everybody!
Cotto is a legend in my eyes. Fights the best, good record, great style. Beat Foreman and retire with 1 more superfight. Margacheato is a disgrace. And Pacroid needs to take a $50m drug test
With all do respect if he wants his name & legacy out there then he should fight the best at 154 i really want his name out there but this is not the way by cherry picking this guy win loose he wont get credit for this fight
he’ll be alright…he’ll do fine at 154, stronger, better, more natural
then it should be pac/cotto ii at 154!
i hope cotto beat this foreman!
in my eyes cotto didnt lose any respect. yes i agree people have said he was finished because of his losses, but it doesnt mean he isnt respected anymore. he will probably remain one of the most respected fighters of his era forever.
i have equal respect for everyone who steps through those ropes and puts their body on the line, right from the very top with guys like cotto and pacquiao, right down to the grass roots of amateur boxing.
the only ones i cant muster any respect for are the cherry pickers like mayweather, who rather than risk their own records and safety, put a lesser skilled fighter at great risk for the sake of a payday.
good article, here’s to hoping cotto does get back on track
Look I like cotto he has all my respect I’m just sayin when it comes to crunch time he doesn’t have the wins yes he has good wins over paulie quintana clottey and mosley but when it comes to PAC and Margarito he just got out matched but and it’s a BUT they are suspected of cheatin sooo that’s 2 losses that can’t be taken away but can’t really be losses in his and everyone elses eyes I hope PAC don’t use steroids because that would be devestating to cotto and I really like cotto
Finally someone has hasn’t written off Cotto. I was beginning to think there were only wannabe boxing writers here. Good thing I was proven wrong. Losing 2 fights against a cheat and the pound 4 pound king is nothing. These are guys that Mayweather doesn’t want to enter the ring with.
Eric torres you are a smart man thank you for finally writing a great article that makes sense. Im tired of all this writers hating on cotto who do not now about boxing. Look at cottos history its amazing and definately better than mayweather. Even the great ali lost a few times. So all cotto has to do is get his trainer back or atleast a trainer not cheerledaer and he will be just fine. So any one here who talks trash of cotto dont know about boxing.
Cotto to me is undefeated in my eyes . his 2 losses came from cheaters…I like pac in all but no one walks away from 40 mill…over some blood drops wtf ….it makes me wonder now even more since he took the fight with clottey so quickly
I’m a pac fan, but I have a lot of respect for cotto . Pacman have 3 losses and cotto only have 2, all great fighters have losses too.
Cotto never lost respect,he’s a warrior and a hard fight for any1.He will beat margarito in a rematch and maybe even fight berto a fight he would win but just short of Pacman and the great Floyd Mayweather
Great Article!
cotto was a great boxer. eventhough he loss to pacquiao or margarito i still have the respect and the confidence that he can still be called one of the greatest welterweight. mabuhay!!
Cotto=warrior the man feared no one took on all comers when he leaves the sport he will be missed.
Cotto is still a great WW. A lot of people that write him off, probably have never boxed or fought in a sport before. Boxers that take all challenges lose some and win some, the champions are the ones that come back from those losses. I still support Cotto and hope he takes the fight to Yuri Foreman.
@ Bowie
well umm he has only fought one GREaT fighter and that’s PAC but like I said He is accused to of cheatin he is good but under pressure he doesn’t come thru!!! Idiot
Wazo, Cotto didn’t took a fight against DLH at 147 in LA(Dodger Stadium) and Pacman took it in Vegas, so Cotto doesn’t have excuses for not fighting Oscar, he lost the chance of his life by not taking him(he would have really destroyed Oscar that night). About Hatton, they never met at 140(like PBF) because both preferred to ducked him.
Cotto will rock Foreman, you can count on it.
he never lost my respect even if i’m more of a pac fan. y? coz he is a warrior.
Cotto has been nothing but an overrated throughout his career. I like the people who said he has a greater run than a lot of the welterweights when he hasn’t won any of his big fights: Margarito(cheating or not) everyone knewhe was going to get hit hard(just watch the HBO commentators predicting how the fight will end if the fight kept going that way, and it happened). Pacquiao, to say Pacman cheated is just because you are from PR or you hate Pacman, he simply lost to a guy that is a great and never anyone told Cotto that he doesn’t belong that high. Mosley was nothing but an unknown for 3 yrs. before fighting Cotto, look at the guys he fought after losing for the 2nd time to Wright. Everyone expected Cotto to retire Mosley, knocking him out and Mosley resurrecte his career that night with his performance(but PBF will not get credit if he defeats Mosley because he was old 38, he was 36 when he fought Cotto fighting unknows or dead men(like Vargas) but Cotto gets credit. Clottey, they simply gave him the decision to fight Pacquiao(Clottey won 114-113 on my card). Carlos Quintana??? an unknown that time that came up winning against Joel Julio, WOW. Judah, coming off losses against PBF and Baldomir, also a 1 rd. NC, so that if it doesn’t count for PBF it doesn’t count for Cotto.
i bet floyd is still afraid of cotto!
@chale man
margarito is convicted. pac is suspected…by floyd sr. and his believers but never by the commission. get your facts straight kid… or get that soy sauce back to your mom. you’ve been staying too long in that internet cafe!
Cotto lost to 2 suspected cheaters. MARGARITO with handwraps and PAC with ROIDS. Both are suspected but not convicted of having done this in the COTTO fight. COTTO has the respect, but he wasn’t given any when they made him come down in weight and put his belt on the line. and we all know if MARGARITO did cheat then the savage beating he took with loaded wrapd messed him up and with his head coach gone he was just easy picking for PAC. So no COTTO still has respect. Hell of a fighter I’m Sure if he had his old trainer and MARGO didnt ruin him and he didnt have to fight at a catchweight he could have given PAC hell and Probably would have won, but he was just easy picking for PAC to increase his PAPER legacy. cotto still has it, but he might need some time to get back into it, he has taken some savage beatings and needs time to physicaly and mentaly heal.
Cotto wasnt cheated he was Beaten By 1 very good and one great fighter .I Repeat he was beaten badly .if he fights any tough guys again he may get hurt realy Bad. He is a breve Warrior and i like and respect him but its time……..
Cotto is respected for not ducking anyone in the welterweight or light welterweight! he lost to two cheaters margarito who lost the respect of many mexicans, and pacquiao for not taking the random drugs he lost respect also!
When boxers fight the best, they win some lose some ,they keep the sport alive. When they cherry pick to protect their record the sport suffer because the fans are denied fights that could had being historic.
I dont think martinez and williams will last 2 rounds against cotto, cotto is so tough you can even send martinez and williams at the same time in the ring with cotto and cotto will surey dismantle them both! Only pacman can destroy cotto LEGITIMATELY!!! viva puerto rico!!!!
cotto will knock out foreman
Eric torres u are an idiot bro, respect??lol srsly go write baseball articles instead!
Cotto never lost my respect, as matter of fact I think he is still one of the best fighters in the sport. Manny worked him, and Margerito (who obviously cheated) beat him, but only after Cotto beat the hell out of him for about 5 rounds. And Cotto was still at the top when he fought Manny, and in my eyes hasn’t lost anything. It’s just certain that he isn’t the best pound for pound fighter in the world. I think he is number 2 or 3 after Manny and Floyd. Cotto’s beaten damn near everyone… and there is no reason to count him out at all. I think it is ridiculous to pretend like he’s done for.
I do not think a fighter loses respect with a lose rather they lose their position amongst the best. I respect Cotto and everything he has done but I do not think he is the same fighter he once was. Nor do I think he was as great as his supporters proclaim. I find it amusing how so many writers trash PBF to support someone else.
if cotto win hes only going to be a paper champ at the weight,and will get destroyed by the top guys.example martinez and williams.but cotto was a gr8 champ,i just think his play boy lifestyles caught up in him,much in the same way as hatton,so after foreman he should retire.
i don’t believe that cotto lost any respect by being run down by manny. cotto lost a lot in the margarito fight and it showed with manny. but a win against foreman would be a fitting end to his career.
kfc has the weakest record so far thats why objective boxing experts are not impressed at him! boxing writers association of america nver consider him great!!
Cotto deserves and commands respect. IMO he is far more skilled than most boxers in the sport. So what if he’s on a slide right now. He may be on a down turn right now, but he’s a champion and it won’t be long before he’s back on top. At least he can say he fought the best. That’s more than Mayweather can EVER say.
the guys gonna beat this idiot Foreman , whos obviosuly a micheal jennings type of fight for Cotto , but idk where cotto goes after this ? .I dont think hell retire end of the year, he didnt say anything about a 3rd world weight title in his retirement statement. Any ideas, What does Cotto do next ?
cotto should beat foreman and take a break for a while to let him self heal mentally,he has been in a lot of wars taken a lot of punishment he can then come back stronger,also he should also think about bringing back his old head coach hasnt been the same fighter since he fired him,look what happened when tyson when he fired rooney
Cotto is an elite man, His lost to a cheater and the legend of sport , I don’t understand why people hate him , especially this site . PBF been ducking Cotto for years , Bertos dodging the big time, apart from that, hes fought the best in the sport available. Its funny how Pacquaio gets recongnition for taking the DeLa Hoys fight and hatton fight, when if Cotto had not lost to margarito he would of taken those fights, and won comfortabely.
He never lost MY respect. He only lost to clottey in my opinion. The other two who beat him are cheats pacquiao and margarito
Just because the guy lost the last around doesn’t mean he’s sure to lose this time. Cotto is better than that. Who knows if he’s learned something out of Roberto Duran’s book.
has that bum cotto not retired yet
If he does a real number on Foreman then its a start. But i reckon hes on the decline and 1 more defeat and beating later and i think he will recognise that himself.
this figures to be a distance fight. Cotto the boxer puncher and Foreman the boxer mover.
manny has a better resume at welter out there? he has a great resume but not at welter. beating an old oscar and damaged cotto isn’t better than cotto’s resume at 147. quintana, judah, mosely and clottey is way better. as far as career wise with the current stars at 147, you can make an argument that floyd and shane had a better overall career than manny.
cotto lost to a better fighter nothing more. Moving up will be for good for his career and picking foreman as an opponent is a excelent choice. Only a handfull possibly just the hardcore fans will purchase to view the bout if cotto chooses someone less difficult to beat. Only few people like to watch a miss match( mayweather vs marquez). I like cotto to rejuvinate his career and take in control again. Choosing foreman is good start.
BoxingFan3 What real great fighters does he not do well against? lol He has beaten every top level welterwieght out there other than berto who is overrated & flyod who now is fighting someone Cotto beat. He lost twice one to a cheater & one to an Legend in the sport. That is far from your statement that he does not do well against real great fighters. Remember when you put great fighters up against each other it is not supposed to be a walk in the park, so naturally you are going to look human.
I think the only way cotto can gain respect back is by tko foreman or a stoppage because if he takes a beating then that’s really cotto last fight I dnt see him gettin another shot at a big name fighter for a big pay day cuz he doesn’t do well against the real great fighters