By John F. McKenna (McJack): Many boxing fans are already buying into the hype that the upcoming fight between undefeated superstar World Boxing Council (WBC) welterweight champion Floyd Mayweather Jr. (42-0, 26 KO’s) and WBA light middleweight champion Miguel Cotto (37-2, 30 KO’s) will be competitive.
Floyd and Miguel will clash on May 5 at the MGM Grand Arena in Las Vegas and the hype machine has been well under way over a month before hostilities begin. Some of Cotto’s fans are going so far as to predict that their hero will pull off what would be a huge upset against “Money” Mayweather.
Boxing fans throughout the illustrious history of the sport have been notorious for going with their hearts instead of their heads and the Mayweather – Cotto fight is no exception. Even before the first show of the hit HBO 24/7 reality series has aired the expectation by many boxing fans is that Cotto has a real chance to be the first fighter to defeat Mayweather.
History has shown that when two fighters step into the ring that anything can happen. And this writer would be the first to concede that Miguel Cotto is a very good fighter. Floyd Mayweather Jr. however is the elite fighter in boxing and is one of the best defensive fighters to ever step into the ring. Floyd is also a master strategist and tactician and the best fighter at making adjustments that this writer has ever seen.
At this stage of his career Floyd is not about to take on any fighter who he thinks has even an outside chance of defeating him. Presently it is all about protecting his “0” which Floyd will most likely take into his retirement with him. At 35 Mayweather is sill at the top of his game and has not lost any of his reflexes or his blazing speed. With regard to his career he knows where he is and where he is going. It is obvious that Floyd cares a great deal about his legacy and wants to protect it at all cost.
Cotto acknowledges how much his loss to Antonio Margarito in 2008 hurt him. The beat down he suffered at the hands of Margarito took away his confidence. When Miguel came back last December and scored a 10th round TKO he got some of that confidence back. But the Margarito that Cotto defeated in December was not the same fighter he was in 2008.
Margarito is a one dimensional fighter who fights only one way. He bores in with the intention of inflicting maximum damage to his opponent. It is far easier to prepare for a fighter like Antonio than an elite fighter such as Mayweather. It is highly likely that Floyd will quickly expose the flaws in Miguel’s fighting style. Nobody does it better.
It is also likely that Mayweahter will use his rapier like punches and pin point accuracy to make a mess out of Cotto’s face by the middle rounds. It is doubtful that Miguel will be around to hear the final bell.
Comments are closed.