By Dan Ambrose: Former IBF light welterweight champion Paulie Malignaggi (28-4, 6 KO’s) faces Jose Miguel Cotto (32-2-1, 24 KO’s) this Saturday night in a real test for the 30-year-old Malignaggi at the MGM Grand, in Las Vegas, Nevada.

The Malignaggi-Cotto fight will be taking place on the undercard of the Marcos Maidana vs. Erik Morales fight. Malignaggi is hoping to resurrect his career as a welterweight, although putting him with the 5’5” Cotto isn’t going to be the kind of fight that’s going to get Malignaggi ready for some of the better fighters he’ll have to face if he wants to challenge for a title.

Cotto can punch, but he doesn’t have the size like someone like Mike Jones. A fight between Malignaggi and Jones would be ugly, because of Malignaggi’s lack of power and height. However, it’s doubtful that Malignaggi’s promoters want to put him in with any real threats until he’s ready for a nice cash out fight against one of the champions.

However, Malignaggi may not get to that point if he gets hit with some of Cotto’s bombs. Cotto may not be a big fighter, but he punches hard and might be problems for Malignaggi if he can connect with some of his power shots in the first six rounds. If Cotto lands with any regularity in the first half of the fight, Malignaggi probably won’t make it to the later rounds because Cotto has superb power for someone so short.

Malignaggi moved up to welterweight last year when he defeated Michael Lozado by a sixth round TKO last December. In his bout before that, Malignaggi was stopped by Amir Khan in an 11th round TKO in May.

Cotto was stopped by Saul Alvarez last year in a 9th round stoppage in May. Cotto gave Alvarez problems in the first five rounds, but then tired out and was taken out.