Cotto-Foreman bout likely to take place at Yankee Stadium

By William Mackay: According to the latest news, the Yankees have cleared a date for the Yankee Stadium to be available for Miguel Cotto (34-2, 27 KO’s) and World Boxing Association junior middleweight champion Yuri Foreman (28-0, 8 KO’s) to use the stadium for their June fight. The fight between Cotto and Foreman, which still hasn’t been finalized, was supposed to be taking place on June 12th at Madison Square Garden, in New York.

However, Top Rank Promotions president Bob Arum, the promoter for both Cotto and Foreman, wants the fight instead to be moved to the Yankee Stadium so that more fans in the area can attend the fight. Arum is also the promoter for WBO welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao, and has successfully scheduled Manny’s title defense against Joshua Clottey to take place on March 13th at the Dallas Cowboy stadium, in Arlington Texas.

Arum is smart to have these fights switched to larger venues than typical small arenas, because it enables him to make more money for the fighters, and his promotional company while at the same time serving a larger need by making the fight available to more fans. In the case of the Cotto-Foreman fight, its unclear how many fans will want to see this fight? Cotto is the star attraction in this fight and will be able to pull from the large Puerto Rican fan base in the New York area.

Foreman, a Jewish fighter, will be able to draw from the large Jewish community in the New York area. But it’s still unclear whether the two of them will be able to sell out the 50,000 seat Yankee stadium. It might be an overkill for a fight that matches Cotto, who has lost two out of his last four fights by knockout, against Foreman, a fighter that is little known outside of the hardcore boxing fans. Foreman’s style of fighting, which involves a hit and run mixed with a lot of grabbing, is often frustrating to watch for many boxing fans. I think it’s a little presumptuous of Arum to stick this fight in Yankee stadium when it matches an obscure fighter, who has only a handful of meaningful fights during his career, against a recently beaten up Cotto coming off a one-sided 12th round stoppage against Pacquiao. Cotto is really at a point where he’s struggling with his career and trying to find his way. It doesn’t seem like he’s at a high point to be fighting a little known guy in a big stadium.

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