By Lem Sattefield
WBA junior middleweight champion Miguel Cotto (35-2, 28KOs) is taking off for the rest of the year and plans to return in 2011 against a major name. Cotto returned to the ring in June, with new trainer Emanuel Steward, to win his current title with a ninth-round stoppage of previously unbeaten Yuri Foreman.
There are two likely options for Cotto's next fight. He could be facing the winner of Manny Pacquiao vs. Antonio Margarito, which takes place on November 13 at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas. Or he could defend his title against undefeated Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. or Mexico.
Both Pacquiao and Margarito have knocked Cotto out in the past, but he promises to avenge those defeats if given a second chance.
"I am available to fight Manny again after his match against Antonio Margarito. We all have bad nights. But if the second fight is a reality, the result would be very different. I'm here to fight the best names out there. If Antonio Margarito is a good option for me after the Pacquiao fight, then I will fight him and beat him," Cotto said.
Top Rank was planning to match Cotto with Chavez in December. The plan was changed and now Chavez will fight Alfonos Gomez on December 4. Chavez is another option that greatly interests the Puerto Rican champion.
"This is a fight that has been in the making. I was ready to make it. If it happens, it will be a great fight, and I will win it," Cotto said.
Lem Satterfield is the boxing editor at AOL FanHouse and the news editor at BoxingScene.com. To read more from Lem Satterfield, go to AOL FanHouse by Clicking Here.
