Floyd Mayweather vs Miguel Cotto Set For May 5th
by Gautham Nagesh
The dominos fell into place for the boxing world on Thursday, as a number of prominent matchups were announced or confirmed, finally bringing clarity to the summer schedule.
Pound-for-pound king Floyd Mayweather announced he will meet 154-lb titlist Miguel Cotto May 5th at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. Combined with reports Manny Pacquiao will fight top junior welterweight Tim Bradley in June, it appears unlikely the superfight between Pacquiao and Mayweather will take place this year. Another prospective Pacquiao opponent, Juan Manuel Marquez, looks poised to fight Lamont Peterson at Cowboys Stadium this summer.
Mayweather announced the fight at his licensing hearing in front of the Nevada State Athletic Commission on Wednesday. The Commission unanimously approved his license, after he promised to serve his 90-day jail sentence for a domestic violence incident involving the mother of his two children. Floyd was reportedly grilled about his guilty plea, claiming he made it to save his children from testifying.
“Miguel Cotto is a world class fighter who can never be taken for granted and continues to prove he is one of the best in boxing,” Mayweather said. "It will be a challenge for me to compete with him at this weight, but this is the type of test I thrive on and gives me the motivation to train even harder.“
The fight will be only Floyd’s second at 154 lbs. after beating Oscar de la Hoya in 2007. Both fighters have agreed to Olympic-style drug testing for the fight, one of Mayweather’s pet causes.
"I have no doubt in my mind that my title belt collection will increase once again and Cotto’s reign as champion will come to an end on May 5,” Floyd added.
“I am here to fight the biggest names in boxing,” Cotto said. “I’ve never ducked anyone or any challenge in front of me. I have accepted everything to give the fans what they like…great and exciting fights. That is what the sport of boxing is all about; making the fights that the fans want and deserve to see. On May 5, stay tuned, because I will convincingly beat Floyd Mayweather.”
Cotto has been seeking Floyd’s number for years, but PBF never seemed too eager when Miguel was in his prime. Back then the Puerto Rican was an undefeated sensation with selling power, a skilled boxer willing to mix it up as needed. He’s since suffered brutal losses to Pacquiao and Antonio Margarito, the latter under highly questionable circumstances. While he remains on the edges of pound-for-pound contention, Cotto’s standing among the fight press no longer matches his considerable drawing power.
Cotto has rebounded and rebuilt from those setbacks, culminating in his feel-good stoppage of Margarito in New York in December. At present he’s the top-rated fighter at 154 lbs. by both ESPN and Ring Magazine. But doubts linger among the hardcore fight crowd. While Cotto boasts solid wins over the likes of Josh Clottey, Yuri Foreman and Ricardo Mayorga in recent years, none were truly dangerous, with the possible exception of Clottey. Even Margarito was a plodding shell of his former self. Certainly no one Miguel has beaten can stand up to the incomparable Mayweather.
Floyd has his own concerns, including the impending incarceration that awaits him after the fight. But none of the craziness surrounding his personal life has managed to derail him yet, and there’s little reason to believe he won’t be ready for Cotto. Mayweather’s inactivity draws plenty of flack from the fight press, but his salesmanship and work ethic cannot be denied. In the absence of Pacquiao, Cotto is probably the biggest fight out there for Floyd both in terms of challenge and the potential windfall.
The lukewarm reception comes from the prevailing opinion Floyd will cruise against Cotto. Miguel is at his best when sticking and moving, using his counter-punching ability and skill to control the fight from the outside. He gets into trouble when he tries to brawl and takes too much damage, as he did against Margarito and Pacquiao. He is a strong puncher but lacks true one-punch knockout power.
All of which makes him unlikely to be the first to defeat Mayweather. Floyd is a master of defense and could write the book on counters. He’s faster than Cotto and strong enough to take his punches. Floyd should be able to land the right hand all night without letting Cotto touch him. A clear decision for PBF seems to be the consensus prediction. The foregone nature of the verdict is just evidence of Mayweather’s supreme ability.
But that doesn’t make the fight any less exciting or worthy of taking place. Miguel Cotto is the top junior middleweight and Floyd Mayweather rules at welterweight. Both are first-ballot Hall of Famers and two of the sport’s three biggest box office attractions. They will fight in four months in Las Vegas and likely sell more than 1.5 million Pay Per Views. In other words, this is a colossal fight and once you get between the ropes, anything can happen.
We’ll do our best to ensure Stiff Jab is ringside. Something tells me most of the critics will come around as well. There’s no telling how long either of these men will continue to fight, so fans are unlikely to take a pass. It may not be the fight everyone wanted to see, but Mayweather-Pacquiao is now clearly the clubhouse leader for biggest fight of 2012.