Cotto's Adviser: Miguel Eyes Margarito, Pacquiao, Chavez

By Lem Satterfield

According to Gabriel Penagaricano, legal adviser to WBA junior middleweight king Miguel Cotto, there have been discussions regarding several big name options for 2011. He was originally scheduled to return on December 4 against Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. in a major pay-per-view. Once Chavez fell out from the contest, former champion Kermit Cintron and unbeaten contender Vanes Martirosyan were offered as replacements. Not satisfied with the opponents, Cotto opted to wait until early 2011 for a ring return.

"Miguel was willing and ready to do that fight [Chavez]. But after Chavez Jr. decided that he was not willing to fight Miguel, then, those other two opponents came to the table," said Penagaricano. "But Miguel felt that, with much respect to both, neither represented enough of a challenge for him to sacrifice training etc. for them. I guess that he was looking for a bigger fight, and he thought that he had one in Julio Cesar Chavez Jr."

Cotto's adviser has spoken with Top Rank and discussed several possible options for 2011. The three main players are Julio Cesar Chavez Jr., Manny Pacquiao and Antonio Margarito.

Margarito and Pacquiao each own stoppage victories over Cotto. Top Rank feels that it's better to wait until the outcomes of - Pacquiao-Margarito, scheduled for November 13, and Chavez Jr. vs. Alfonso Gomez on December 4 - to begin serious negotiations for Cotto's next fight.

"Miguel is a Top Rank fighter, so we discuss fights that our promoter presents to us," said Penagaricano. "The names of Pacquiao, Margarito, they have been mentioned, but nothing concrete has been discussed as far as fights with them. In general, for future, Pacquiao, Margarito, and Chavez Jr. have been discussed for next year."

"But Miguel is ready at any time for a big fight. He's ready for December, January, February, March. But I think that strategically, our promoter wants to wait until those results are in, and then, we'll sit down and discuss options."

HBO is pursuing a Cotto fight for early next year and the pressure has been put on Arum to deliver.

"HBO is after me to give me a date for the first quarter for a Miguel Cotto fight, and will give me a date for him. After all, Cotto's fight with Foreman got the highest rating of the last two years, so they want him back. We'll all collectively sit down and figure out what's best for Miguel," Arum said.

Lem Satterfield is the news editor for BoxingScene.com and the boxing editor for AOL FanHouse. To read more from Lem Satterfield, go to AOL FanHouse by Clicking Here.