Does Cotto still have many good rounds?
[Boxing]
Four-time world champion and future Boxing Hall of Fame candidate Miguel Angel Cotto, 37-4-0, 30 knockouts, is once again trying to keep his boxing career alive fighting veteran journeyman, Delvin Rodrigues on Saturday, October 5, 2013 at the Amway Center, Orlando, Florida.
Cotto from Caguas, Puerto Rico,will be fighting in Orlando for the first time in his boxing career although he actually considers it his new home away from home, after his successes in Madison Square Garden a few years ago.
“I have maybe 3 or 4 fights left in me”, Cotto stated while smiling as he trained in Freddie Roach’s, Wild Card Gym. “I want to make all of my remaining fights count. Perhaps a rematch with Mayweather, or Pacquiao, certainly a championship shot at Carlos Molina who recently defeated Ishe Smith for W.B.O. Junior Middleweight Title, and hey, why not, a fight with Canelo Alvarez .”
Cotto who surprisingly broke his contract with Golden Boy Promotions after 2 heart breaking defeats, one to ring master Floyd Mayweather, on May 5, 2012, and then to Austin “No Doubt” Trout in December 1, 2012, in his attempt to win a 5th. world crown, has re-signed with his original promotion company, Bob Arum’s,
Top Rank, which almost immediately produced his next fight with journeyman veteran, Delvin “The Jaguar” Rodriguez, from Santiago De Caballeros, Dominican Republic, 28-6-3 draws, 16 knockouts. Rodriguez was also Intercontinental Junior Middleweight Champ, on 2011, and also U.S.B.A. 147 Champ from 2006 through 2009, but has not fought in the “lime-lighted” mega fights like Cotto.
Wanting to get a “fresh start” as he stated, Miguel Cotto even contracted the training services of Hall of Fame Trainer Freddie Roach for this cross- roads fight. “I am very happy to be able to assist Miguel in the preparations for this fight. I am really not here to change anything , I want him to go back to the basics that he has abandoned in the last few years which made him a 4 time world champ. Miguel is a great boxer and a punishing body puncher and all I want for him is to go back to those fundamentals that made him very dominant in that ring against his opponents. A trainer never changes a fighter’s style, he improves on it and also corrects the bad habits he may have fallen into.” Roach further stated that maybe he-Cotto-would not have lost to Mayweather nor to Trout if those mistakes had been corrected earlier.
Freddie Roach then stated, “we are not looking past Delvin Rodriguez, we know how competitive he is and his great desire to beat Miguel and go on to mega fights perhaps with Canelo Alvarez or maybe be one of Floyd’s 4 remaining fights on his victory tour towards retirement.”
Is Miguel Cotto making a big mistake looking past Delvin Rodriguez ? Many experts felt that Cotto while trying to win his 5th., world crown looked past little known former W.B.A. Champ Austin Trout on his way to a possible mega match with then undefeated Saul “El Canelo” Alvarez and he lost. Is he making the same mistake again? Well, he better not because Delvin Rodriguez is ready and wants his place in boxing’s lime light that he has been chasing for many years.
Rodriguez stated at his last press conference, that he has gone to a tough training camp away from distractions, “to prepare for a war with Miguel Cotto. I have always admired him-Cotto- but he is in my way towards reaching my goal of ring glory, and nothing will stop me from realizing that dream. Cotto has been a world champ 4 times and I am still looking forward to my first world title, so I am ready to do whatever it takes to defeat Cotto and realize that dream for me, my family, and my country, the Dominican Republic.”
First of all, both, Cotto and Rodriguez 33 years of age, share a common opponent-Austin Trout and both lost by unanimous decision although Trout dominated Rodriguez almost knocking him out in the later rounds while he did have a tougher time with Cotto. Since then Rodriguez has won 4 straight fights while Cotto took a long”break” until he decided to fight Rodriguez which perhaps makes Miguel Cotto, a little “ring-rusty”.
“I feel that I am in the greatest shape of my life now and of course want to continue fighting until my body tells me ‘No Mas’!”, stated Cotto, while his wife Melissa declared, “I know that this is another fight but all I ask God is to protect him from injuries so that he could come back to me and our 4 kids safe and in good health.”
Will Miguel Cotto win and get another shot at the “brass ring” of ring glory-another world title?- I think so. Delvin Rodriguez is a good fighter but not in the caliber of Miguel Cotto. Rodriguez will be competitive fighting the fight of his life in the first few rounds, but Cotto”s ring generalship will take him into “deep waters”, and Cotto will win by decision.
I really don’t see a knockout on either side, although Cotto cuts easily which could cause a stoppage.
