By Chester Rivers: Unless you’ve been living under a rock you’ve probably heard by now that Miguel Angel Cotto is the new middleweight champion of the world. He is considered the lineal champ of the division because he defeated Sergio Martinez who defeated Kelly Pavlik who defeated Jermain Taylor who defeated the last undisputed champion Bernard Hopkins. Now, I’ll give you guys a few minutes to decipher. Got It! Okay, moving on!
The fight was fought at a catchweight of 159 pounds with Miguel Cotto weighing in at 155. My question is, can Cotto continue to reign as the middleweight champ if he’s the smallest guy in the division or should he use the title (in name only) and cash out?
Let’s face reality. Sergio Martinez was a junior middleweight who out hustled his opponents to win and maintain his middleweight title. He was the smallest of the three reigning belt holders in the division and in less than 5 defenses his body is so beat up it’s in his best interest to retire. Let’s not make excuses, Cotto defeated him without a doubt but in reality this was a shopworn Sergio Martinez. Will Cotto be able to compete with men who may out weigh him by 15 pounds entering the ring on fight night? Can he take the power of Gennady Golovkin or Peter Quillen when it’s proven he could not tolerate neither Margarito or Pacquiao’s power at welterweight?
So, who should Cotto face for his middleweight title defense? Bob Arum has already announced that Team Cotto will probably be active again in December. This will probably be a stay busy fight against a stay busy opponent. We should really look at the date surrounding Cinco De Mayo weekend 2015. That weekend is normally reserved for the Floyd Mayweather Jr. showcase and sweepstakes. Every fighter from 140 to 154 await this date hoping their name is called. The last major challenge for Mayweather, outside the MMA / WWE / boxing match with Marcos Maidana, came against Miguel Cotto. Remember, Mayweather has already announced he no longer plan to work with Golden Boy since the resignation of Richard Schaefer.
Why is this a good fight for Mayweather? I’ve re-watched Cotto’s victory over Martinez and his defeat to Mayweather and his strategy was basically the same. Freddie Roach really did not make any significant adjustments to Cotto’s style are arsenal. The difference was Mayweather’s mobility and speed. Since that fight Mayweather Sr. has stepped in and put Mayweather Jr. back on his bicycle and has him even more mobile. Cotto patented left hook to the body would be ineffective against the straight rights of Mayweather (remember Martinez is a lefty).
Why is this fight appealing to both? The middleweight title is one of boxing’s most coveted titles. Mayweather would cement his place in boxing history as TBE with this trophy in his case. For Cotto it’s simple if it don’t make “Money” it don’t make sense.
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