Juanma Lopez Receives His Fighter of The Year Award

By Jhonny Gonzalez

The Puerto Rico Boxing Commission held their annual awards dinner on Wednesday night. WBO featherweight champion Juan Manuel Lopez received his 2009 award for "Fighter of The Year." Juanma had previously won an award for "Rookie of The Year."

"The award is very important to me because this is my second consecutive year [to win an award]," said Juanma. "And if we continue running and working well, there may be a third [year]."

Additionally, the Cotto family received a lot of honors during the evening. Junior welterweight Jose Miguel Cotto received his award for "Comeback of The Year," and unbeaten second cousin Abner Cotto received the award for "Rookie of The Year." The night was dedicated to Miguel Cotto Sr., who passed away in January from heart failure.