By Eric Torres: Now that Miguel Cotto (35-2, 28 KO’s) has captured his fourth belt and third in another weight class with his 9th round stoppage of WBA junior middleweight champion Yuri Foreman (28-1, 8 KO’s), some of you might be asking yourself where does he go from here? I have some ideas on what he should and not do. Last night, Cotto showed what he had been lacking and lost along the way. He proved to a lot of his doubters that he has the heart of a champion and that is he willing to fight the best out there. As a big fan of Cotto, I say slow down, what’s the rush. What Cotto does not need to do right now is as followed.

Cotto does not need to get into the ring with Manny Pacquiao just yet. Cotto endured a heart wrenching defeat at the hands of Pacquiao last year and I feel that it would not benefit Cotto at this stage to take on such a tough fight right now. I truly believe that Cotto would fare better against Pacquiao this time around given that A. There is not catch weight. B. Emanuel Steward is training him now and C. It is a higher weight class. I understand that Bob Arum is probably going to want to make this fight, but if I was Cotto’s people I would advise against this.

Cotto does not need to get into the ring FOR NOW with the likes of a Paul Williams, Sergio Martinez or even Antonio Margarito. Cotto, more than any other boxer out there, has earned the right to take a step back and enjoy his status as the new junior middleweight champion. Cotto has faced the most elite boxers out there and and I feel as with his fight with Alfonso Gomez, he should be thrown a sacrificial lamb to get his confidence back up even more for the future fights.

I firmly believe a fight with Corey Spinks would be a great fight for Cotto. Spinks called out Cotto prior to his fight with Foreman, stating he would love to fight Cotto. I say this is a great move for Cotto. Not only would he be fighting a name in the division, but he would be taking on someone who not only lost to Zab Judah, but got knockout by him. Spinks is not a big time puncher with only 11 TKO’s in is 42 professional fights. This would be a relatively safe fight for Cotto and it provides Cotto some more time to get his feet wet in the junior middleweight division.

Another prospect is to finally throw Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. In the ring with an elite fighter, provided he gets by John Duddy. I actually believe they are grooming Chavez Jr. to beat his old dad’s record with of 115 wins, with many of them what I consider to be bums (Junior has 41 wins over mostly 2nd tier opposition). There have been a lot of rumors circulating that Bob Arum wanted to make the winner of the Cotto vs. Foreman fight an opponent for Chavez Jr. For Cotto’s sake and his rebuilding process I say go for it. It provides Cotto with a so called name that is undefeated and it minimizes Cotto’s risk. It also provides a Puerto Rican and Mexican rivalry that would generate an enormous amount of money and would bring fans out by the masses.

Last but not least Cotto can even decide to go back down to 147 to fight Andre Berto. Emanuel Steward and Cotto both stated that it would not be a problem to go down if there was business there that made sense. Andre Berto in my opinion is still not a tested fighter. Yeah, Berto beat Carlos Quintana in his last fight, but a lot of ringside observers feel he lost to Luis Collazo, me included. Andre Berto would be a great fight for Cotto and it would be another chance for Cotto to collect another strap. I am not taking away anything from Berto, all I am saying is that it is time for him to step up & fight an elite fighter. He is actually built for Cotto in the sense that he tries to fight inside a lot and that is when he gets in trouble. Yes, Berto has a speed advantage, but we all know speed alone does not bother Cotto. So this fight would make a lot of sense for Cotto.

In closing last night provided Miguel Cotto with a huge step forward. It also provides Cotto the opportunity to be able to continue rebuilding his confidence hence leading up to the bigger fights in the junior middleweight division. The sky is the limit for Cotto now. He has managed to climb out of the darkness and back into the light. Cotto must understand that he can call is own shots and hopefully now with Emanuel Steward in his corner to guide him much the same way Roach guides Pacquiao, Cotto’s outlook is better. The future is brighter now for Cotto, his legacy has been cemented.

In this writer’s eyes, he has done enough to garner praise, admiration and the respect from many boxing fans out there. Now in the second phase of his career he has set himself up for brighter things. The difference now is that he has slowly built up the confidence to know that anything is possible if you allow change. The change that Miguel Cotto allowed into his life after the passing of his father and after his defeat at the hands of Pacquiao was a step in the right direction. Hopefully, he continues this change and forges ahead without succumbing to the same mistakes of old. So I say to you, Cotto, congrats on your 4th belt and 3rd in another division, but enjoy it and savor it. March to the beat of your own drum and keep on making your fans proud.