By Michael Byrne: Last Saturday night, Miguel Cotto was beaten by Saul “Canelo” Alvarez. Whilst the judging was frustratingly, and perhaps suspiciously wide, the decision was definitely correct. Already in the twilight of his career, fighting only for money and with no clear weight class, what does the drawing board have to offer Miguel Cotto?
The most obvious point is that he must drop back down in weight. He won the lineal Middleweight crown, but he hasn’t fooled anyone; he’s not a Middleweight and he never will be. In fact, this may be the only reason he found himself beaten on Saturday night. Cotto out-boxed Canelo for the majority of the bout, but his punches had no impact. On the other hand, every punch Canelo landed thudded into Cotto’s head or body and forced him backwards. It seems pretty clear that this was the difference; he lost the fight because he was fighting a bigger man.
Ideally, Cotto would drop back down to 147 and try to make some noise in the post-Mayweather glory division. Maybe this isn’t feasible at this point in his career, so let’s assume he fights at 154. There are interesting fights for Cotto at 154. Erislandy Lara, the Charlo brothers, Liam Smith (who now has the WBO belt), and Demetrius Andrade. The problem is that Cotto is, by his own admission, fighting as a mercenary. He won’t take a fight unless there’s huge cash in it for him. He’s trying to create a comfortable future for his family as he prepares for his exit from the ring. Cotto’s guaranteed purse for the Alvarez fight was $15m, as opposed to $5m for Canelo.
There seem to be two interesting options for Cotto at this moment in time. Firstly there is a rematch with Austin Trout. This is problematic because Trout isn’t a big name, and this wouldn’t make the kind of cash that Cotto wants. But Trout has looked weak in recent outings, and it would be an excellent opportunity for Cotto to avenge a loss. It’s certainly not going to be PPV, and his purse certainly won’t be eight figures, but it seems to be his best option at 154.
The fight could be hyped better than any other in the division. Secondly, there have been whispers of Timothy Bradley looking to move to 154 for big fights, and Cotto’s name has been mooted. Bradley would be a perfect idea for Cotto if the idea is indeed realistic. He has name value, and whilst an excellent technician, Bradley is too small and lacks the power to compete with Cotto.
Trout or Bradley seem like the only two options Cotto would likely consider for a 2016 fight. If he doesn’t opt for either of these, then we may indeed have seen a legend in the ring for the last time on Saturday night.
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