By Dan Ambrose: WBC middleweight champion Sergio Martinez (51-2-2, 28 KO’s) has reportedly agreed to terms for a title defense against 33-year-old former three division world champion Miguel Cotto (38-4, 31 KO’s) on June 7th at Madison Square Garden in New York, New York. Cotto still needs to agree to his portion of the contract for the fight to move ahead. However, this is a fight that Cotto really wants, as he’s eager to try and capture a 4th division world title.
Cotto prefers to fight the 38-year-old Sergio Martinez rather than the middleweight champion considered to be the best in the division in Gennady Golovkin, and that makes a lot of sense. Cotto’s chances of winning a world title are much better if he faces Sergio than if he were to fight Golovkin. Indeed, Cotto doesn’t match up at all with Golovkin, and that fight would likely result in another stoppage loss for Cotto.
“It’s 160. It’s for the world title,” Sergio’s adviser Sampson Lewkowicz said to RingTV. “If Cotto wants to fight for the world title, then that’s what it is. Now, it’s in the hands of Cotto. Sergio is very happy. There is no issues on the side of Martinez. From our side, everything is ready. Now we’re waiting for the decision of Miguel Cotto.”
It’s good that Cotto isn’t asking for a catch-weight for the fight, because he’s the one that’s really interested in trying to capture a 4th division world title. It’s already less interesting that Cotto has chosen this point in Sergio’s reign as the WBC 160 lb. champion to fight him instead of facing him when he was at his best in 2010. The way it looks now, it’s like Cotto waited Sergio out until he got old before deciding to fight him. Sergio is coming off of a long injury layoff following his close win over Martin Murray last April, and there’s major questions whether Sergio is a shot fighter at this point.
Cotto would have impressed more fans if he had decided to fight WBA 160 lb. champion Gennady Golovkin instead, because not only is Golovkin in the prime of his career, but he’s also considered to be the best fighter in the 160 lb. division. By facing Sergio, it might look to some fans that Cotto is cherry picking by looking for the weakest link for him to try and capture a world title the easy way. Adding Sergio’s scalp to his resume at this point in Sergio’s career doesn’t mean nearly as much then if Cotto had been able to do it when Sergio was at his best.
Win or lose against Sergio, Cotto will likely fight former WBA/WBC junior middleweight champion Saul “Canelo” Alvarez later in the year rather than taking the logical unification fight against Golovkin.
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