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[crillz]

Cotto cannot beat Margo in a rematch...People dont understand what kind of MENTAL Beatdown he received. When you answer the bell and you know your not going to stop or hurt the guy accross you it gets in your head. HE can try a new game plan either way....Physically he good its in his head we need to worry about. You cant improveon Cottos fight plan it was perfect for 6 rds. If he waits to look for opening and so forth he will get hit. Margo wont allow any game plan to work. His relentlessness,heart and chin will not alow for cotto to execute.

See normally if this was different circumstances I can agree but Cotto DIDN'T bring in the right game plan, basically we're basing a rematch on how Cotto looked using a style he was never supposed to use in the first place. he never attempted an assault to the body, he was backing up with no need, he came with the mentality of a boxer when he should have been a smarter puncher. the only way to beat Tony is to sit and outfight him, fight him smarter than what he can to you. if you back up though and allow for him to back you up and counter you then he will look more impressive to the judges because he's coming forward, landing hard shots and staying consistent but if the other guy AIN'T backing up, AIN'T getting caught on the ropes, AIN'T attacking the body then he isn't making it competitive.

The reason I feel Cotto would win a rematch is because on that day it was a different person in there, that wasn't the same guy who beat Quintana, a better skilled opponent. he didn't show up and he did a lot of things he was never supposed to do. I think the mental damage was already there before the beginning of round 1 it's just that it hadn't shown itself, even still early on the superiority in skills showed when after fighting the worst 1st half of a fight technically he still managed to get the better of it, it wasn't until he was spent that he couldn't fend off no more, Tony just threw the punches so of curse they landed, something like how Cotto was hitting him except there was more technique behind Cotto's punches.

Just not to drag this further I have to once again agree with homeboy, Cotto lost the fight more than Margarito won it. I think in a rematch it will be a completely different animal, one who now has a point to prove and nothing to lose no more, he can let his chips fly and bring it al.. sometimes you need to lose it all to make you understand how valuable what you have is, it makes you want it back all the more. when you want something and you get it thats great but when you want something BACK and get it it's all the more enjoyful and I think thats how Cotto will look at this, as an opportunity avenge himself. think on it, imagine how Paul Williams felt when after that beat down he took he came back to win such a devastating manner, it's fulfilling and you will see Paul a more confident fighter in the future, I predict the same for Miguel. 100

[crillz]

Cotto should have clinched a lot more. That's all there is to it. He could have won without body punching.

he's a naturally smaller man, to clinch him would have been worse because to just even hold him down would have taken a lot out of him as opposed to body shots where he could have landed to the body and kept moving avoiding the extra weight leaning on him. I think he should have attempted to clinch when stuck on the ropes JUST to get out of them whether for 2 seconds or 10 but once out not only does he STAY out but attacks the body, that would have been a good way to include clinching but it's evident that mentally there was something wrong because the whole night Cotto had 1 target, his face, and for a person whose built his entire Boxing reputation on body punching somehow that just doesn't right. 100

[DanielTurcotte3]

this is the talk that I mean. I think that Evangelisto is a great trainer in terms of being able to bring some fighters up the ranks and what not. But Cotto has always lacked defensive ability. This is something that can in fact be taught in a gym with work. Speed, power, and natural boxing ability is something that a fighter is born with. People can be taught to be more defensive savvy so to speak.

Look at James Toney for instance, yes he always had this ability, but I look back at his fight in 91 with Michael Nunn. Toney was young, yes and green at the time, but he got hit with many many hard clean shots. Over the next few years, leading up to RJJR, he worked on his defense in the gym. He learned to turn, roll his shoulders, deflect punches and come back with counter shots. After his fight with RJJR, and up too the years 97 and beyond, he became a defensive wizard. This was all gym work though my friends.

Cotto with the right trainer could in fact turn himself into the same type of fighter. He had oppurtunities all night to counter Marg, in which a lot of times he did. But he simply would have to take 1-2 shots, and clean ones at that, then counter with a lead right, or a left hand. He didn't possess the ability to roll effectively, make Marg miss and come back withthose counter shots. With the right trainer and a FOCUS on DEFENSIVE, someone like Roach or Steward could turn him into a savvy defensive fighter, who already possess the ability to counter effectively. They could teach him to turn, roll, and duck these incoming punches all the while still opening up his opponent for those clean counter shots the likes of which he landed all night.

Problem is is that Cotto needs to take this inciaitive. He needs to become a defensive fighter who wants to make people miss, then pay the price for missing. All this can be done, BUT can it really be done with Evangelisto Cotto in his corner?!?!?!

[DanielTurcotte3]

Too add to that, Steward really turned Wlad into a defensive minded fighter. He doesn't get hit with those wild clean shots anymore. He short and composed with his punches, and doesn't give away those oppurtunities for big punches very much anymore. Now we haven't seem him in there with a ****er just yet since Steward came on board, but I think we have seen HUGE strides in his defensive ability since Steward came on board.

Also Roach with Toney, and also look at Pac. He used to be a brawler, one dimensional. Straight forward with hard left hand straight and a mean one two. Now Pac gives fighters angles, baits them into throwing a wide looping shot and counters with great accuracy with his left hand straight. He's not great defensively but he's made HUGE strides defensively because iof Roach

[cortdawg25]

you really think so? I don't know I just think that due to the obvious mistakes he made I think with a reformed game plan and a fresh crack at Tony I think he'll be better prepared to win.. the part I put in bold is my feelings about this whole ordeal wrapped in a nutshell, very well put accept I don't think he fought a dumb fight he just fought the wrong fight, see even with so many mistakes he was still making Tony's head jerk back every second, it was his fight to win all he had to do was Box correctly and stay off them ropes where the hardest punches landed. if he can do this then I smell a trilogy.. btw I don't think this will change Cotto, I think he gonna get stronger. he now knows his breaking point now so I think he'll be ready fight well enough not to reach it again. 100

the only reason why I say he was dumb because he didn't box. he counterpunched and really threw some bombs back when he got hit, but he circled maragrito in 1 direction all night and didn't punch to slow margarito pursuit when fleeing. everytime Cotto threw a punch he had set his feet. after 6 rds of beautiful hard shots and the guy still coming strong...u gotta atleast think i'm not going to KO this dude so i'm jab and score pts to get this win. At times in the fight I felt like Cotto actually thought he could hurt or would hurt him at any moment.

it;s so much easier to slip punches and counter in the middle of the ring and it wasn't like margarito was really forcing him to the ropes, a lot of times he was simply going to the ropes. i just thoguht he fought a dumb fight.

[cptroyce]

Crillz - Good thread btw..

I posted this on another thread, but it is better suited here.

>> I've been a Margarito fan for years. That being said..I always liked Cotto as well.

Both have a great work ethic. Cotto is "heart attack serious" in his approach to training and the sport. Margarito has the determination to get the respect he always should have had.

I have watched that fight five times now. Cotto hit Margarito with terrific shots..punches and combos that would clearly have taken many others out and goodnight. But they just didn't have any effect on Margarito..so much so, that not only ddin't they hurt him, but most importantly they took nothing away from his stamina.

Amazing to see; especially after the fact.

Margarito, did not back up at all the entire fight..11 rounds of coming forward every round; that's gruesome pressure

However, if Cotto could have lasted the fight, he would have lost by two maybe three points. So in the end a respectable showing, even though Margarito took him down.

If anyone gets the chance to see the fight again (HBO on demand), after the second knockdown, Cotto looks at his corner and shakes his head indicating " I'm through..no more"..then the towel comes in.

I'd like to see a rematch..would be a lot of drama built into that..IMHO. <<

Every fighter has a true mental image of himself..all the BS and PR aside. If Cotto's was that of unbeatable, "I'm your nightmare", that image has been broken. It remains to be seen if he can if he can put that back together again.

Margarito has been fighting professionally since he was 16 I think..avoided by the big money fighters and fights most of his career. A close decision loss to Williams does nothing to change his world. He just vindicated himself in the eyes of the boxing world.

In a rematch, there would be two very different mindsets in that ring. For me that's where the drama is.