Manny Pacquiao vs. Miguel Cotto In The Works

Great news for all the boxing heads out there.

It appears that a fight between Manny Pacquiao and Miguel Cotto is in the preliminary stages and could very well happen in November. I don’t think you could make a more exciting fight than this unless Mayweather decides to fight Pacquiao, so fans are definitely getting what they want to see this year. Check the details:

“Manny told me what to do,” Bob Arum said. “Manny told me, ‘Go ahead, make that fight.’ So it will go Nov. 14 at the MGM Grand here in Vegas.”

What with Cotto’s badly cut left eyebrow area, I asked if that might cause a date delay.

“No because it’s not that bad. Miguel is delighted to get a fight against Manny, trust me. Miguel very much wants this fight. It will be a sensational fight the way they attack.”

As far as the explosive, arena-shaking ovation more than 17,000 fans gave Pacquiao when Michael Buffer introduced him, Arum said the fighter was thrilled.

“Manny really enjoyed and liked that,” Arum said. “He was impressed by Cotto’s fan support and told me it reminded him of how the British fans stand with Ricky Hatton.

This fight is gonna be one of the most exciting things we see all year because their styles are very suited for each other. Manny is a fast offensive fighter, Miguel is all-heart and never clenches his opponent. Team Pacquiao made a VERY smart move by targeting Cotto because:

1. His defense is mediocre. Cotto has been put on his ass and rocked PLENTY of times, this plays into Manny’s hands.
2. Cotto is relatively slow, he doesn’t wow anyone with handspeed.

These two things are the exact reason Manny Pacquiao didn’t fight Shane Mosley (who has excellent handspeed and excellent defense). Shane approached Team Pacquiao immediately following his destruction of Ricky Hatton, and was basically told to kick rocks. It wasn’t about money, it wasn’t about weight, it was about the fact that Mosley is very dangerous and the risk outweighed the reward.

I highly doubt Manny would kick Cotto’s ass the way he kicked Hatton’s ass, because Cotto is a tough cookie, but Manny will win nonetheless.

Source: http://www.sportaphile.com/2009/06/15/manny-pacquiao-vs-miguel-cotto-in-the-works/ (June 15, 2009)