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Cotto retains title, eyes to fight Pacquiao
Published: 14 June, 2009, 12:57
Edited: 14 September, 2009, 02:45
Miguel Cotto (AFP Photo / Ethan Miller)
Puerto Rico's Miguel Cotto has retained his WBO welterweight title with a grueling split decision win over Joshua Clottey of Ghana at Madison Square Garden.
The clash in New York wasn't that easy and it was indeed closer than Cotto and his legion of noisy fans expected.
Cotto knocked down Clottey with a stiff left hand at the end of the first round, but the challenger recovered to take the second.
In the third, an accidental clash of heads opened a gash on Cotto's left eyelid, but the Puerto Rican overcame the grisly cut and several ferocious rounds from Clottey afterwards. He then regained control of the bout, went through with it and won it narrowly, but quite deservedly.
Judges Don Trella and John McKaie scored the bout for Cotto, 116-111 and 115-112 respectively. Tom Miller scored the bout 114-113 for former IBF champion Clottey.
Clottey was so devastated by the narrow loss that he screamed after the decision, “Oh no! This can't happen.”
“I fought my heart out,” the Ghanaian said in a televised interview after the fight. “I'm chasing the guy. He's running. I'm blocking the punches. So I don't know what I have to do to win the fight.”
No one seemed to be caring about the losing side – all eyes looked at Cotto’s corner after the fight.
“You have to use your skills and you have to use your mind,” Cotto said. ”I understood if I'm moving the last four or five rounds, I'm going to get the victory, because I'm in front of the fight. If I keep working I'm going to get the win.”
“I just tried to keep to my plan and forget about the cut,” he said, adding, “I just tried to forget about the blood running into my eye and make my people proud.”
And finally, Bob Arum, promoter of the best pound-for-pound boxer Manny Pacquiao, expressed his preference for the Filipino ring icon to face off with Cotto in his next fight. Speaking after Saturday’s title fight at Madison Square Garden in New York, Arum said he would speak to Cotto and his advisers to organize a possible Pacquiao-Cotto tussle, which he feels would be a “tremendous fight”.
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Is true that the fight was tigh to cotto besides the cut on his eye I saw the fight at Madison Square Garden and Clottey showed that regardless the lost he can fight Cotto or even Paquiao and he is a dangerous contender, my point of view is clear all I would like Cotto to do is to get a better trainer he needs adjustments on his style. I do have my son coming out pretty soon he is training to be a profesional boxer and I know he is a very heavy puncher all we training him is on the speed then he will come out on Cottos,Clotey,Pacquiao welter weigh division. Watch out he will be out there competing his trainer use to work out with mano de piedra Roberto Duran also Esteban De Jesus and some others champions we will try to come out with a new technique of boxing. His name Daniel Rosado
This fight must be very good. Cotto who is regarded as best fighter in his division is strong and has the height and reach advantage but only a knock out will allow him to win the fight. We all know that Cotto had a hard fight with Clottey when the match lasted for 12 rounds. In this case, Cotto will find it very diffiult if the fight will go until 12 rounds without a knockout. If this will happen, I am doubtful if Cotto can take or sustain so many solid punches from Pacamn starting the 1st round till 12th. MP must stick to his plan and tactics and should allow the fight go full distance, be smarter and use every space of the ring. A knock out by MP will happen only if the referee will stop the fight because of injury that will be sustained by Cotto or if Cotto will just quit due to too much punishment just like what happen to Oscar dela Hoya. My bet is for Pacman via unanimous decision. Because of Pacman speed, manny will get advantage in points. This is going be a tough test for both fighters and so many things will happen on this fight. I wish both boxers all the best and may the best man win.