By Miguel Rivera
Hall of Fame trainer Freddie Roach believes Miguel Cotto has a lot left in his gas tank.
Cotto will return to the ring on August 26th at the StubHub Center in Carson, California. The former four division's return will be showcased his return. This will be Cotto's first bout since losing a twelve round decision to Mexican star Saul "Canelo" Alvarez in November 2015.
In the other corner that night, will be tough Japanese junior middleweight Yoshihiro Kamegai. The vacant WBO154-pound title will be at stake.
If everything goes as planned, Cotto wants to have a final career fight in the fall - likely on December 2 at New York's Madison Square Garden.
"I think [Cotto] was overtraining at one point in his career before coming to train with us. We had to lower the load a bit, "Roach said to Jose Sanchez. "[Manny] Pacquiao, casually, is in the same situation now. I think maybe he trained too hard for the [Jeff] Horn fight. I'd like to lower the intensity, but he's one of those guys who never wants to slow down."
"Duran was a great lightweight but he went up and even won a title at 160 (pounds) if I'm not mistaken, like Cotto. You do not find guys like that very often. They're special people. They have not lasted so long in boxing by chance. Mayweather, Pacquiao and Cotto can still fight with a high level of competition. Maybe not at their best, but the three are such good fighters that even fighting below their maximum capacity - they are still top-level fighters. "
Roach would like to see the 36 year old Cotto continue his run, against the winner of next month's clash between Canelo and IBF, IBO, WBA, WBC middleweight king Gennady Golovkin - taking place on September 16 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
"Miguel will retire at the end of the year, but I wonder if he will remain retired. I think he's going to knock out Kamegai because he's a very aggressive opponent and I think he's going to find a good shot at some point in the fight. If that happens, they're mentioning Gennady Golovkin as the next fight. If Golovkin beats Canelo and then Cotto faces him, I think it would be a great fight, on a historic level. And if he wins that, he'll want more I think. But first he has to deal with Kamegai."
