Pacquiao’s Choice Should Be a Real "Welterweight" Fight

[sidespina]

You've got it the wrong way round. It's the Pac fanboys who don't seem to think Pac can beat Cotto unless Cotto comes in weight drained. Otherwise they would want Pac to fight a 100% version of Cotto, and not a weight drained Cotto. It's obviously in Pac's interests to do so, from a legacy point of view. The only possible reason for asking Cotto to come in lighter than 147 is in the hope that he'll come in weight drained. There is no other possible reason.

The real Pac fans want Pac to fight Cotto at 147, or to fight a Jnr Welterweight, because they realise that is what will benefit his legacy and gain everyone's respect.

While I do think Manny should fight at 147; just for historical significance of it; casting him as some sort villain for considering a catch weight is downright wrong. It's also amusing that Cotto fans don't seem to think about what kind of legacy Cotto is making, fighting supped up 130 pounders. Just like Juan Ma, beating a way smaller Gerry Penalosa. Yeah, good win, but with asterisks, as that what you guys want for Cotto as well?

I think Cotto fans; are scared of Cotto fighting Manny in fair level playing field. There's nothing fair about a smaller guy giving up several pounds both during the weight in and during the actual fight. Weight drained my ass, Cotto is not going to be weight drained at 144 or 145, gimme a freaking break.

Cotto fans, just want to see everything stacked in their favor. Which is cowardly.

[sidespina]

He is a "*****" we are not forgetting that he fought in different divisions. He fought David Diaz who was not the best lightweight, does that make him great when Kendall Holt had knocked out Diaz? Manny didn't ask to fight Juan Diaz or Nate Campbell at that weight! Why? Could it be that they wouldn't be weak! He fought Oscar and made him come down to not 147 but 145! Why do you think Oscar weighed so low. Get real he's a fraud Bob Arum and Team Manny has fooled all of you guys. Get real!

You've got to be the ******est person I've ever meet. Did you expect Manny to fight Oscar at 154? What a freaking dip****. Juan Diaz sucks; anybody who gets beaten by two old men ain't worth fighting. Nate Campbell deserves to be ignored, seems like his reputation is made up of one good showing against Juan Diaz.

[emokillss]

noypi

if u really believe how great pacman is there is no reason 2 not fight in a 147ww bcuz he already did that against delahoya so y not against cotto,u will say that he's bigger on what 1/2 inch height,same reach pacman see big opportunity 2 beat cotto in his last fight,lame xcuse to make even the playing fields thats y they need catchweight while they accept 2 fight delahoya in the same WW,it only shows that team arum want's 2 assure a win and will shoutout 2 the world that his fighter is the greatest,i see the path here pacman is following the foot step of mayweather they cherrypicks opponent but at least mayweather fought hoya in hoyas term,IMMORTALITY TAKE IT IT's YOURS this is a rare opportunity for my fellow fillipino to immortalize his name in boxing don,t settle 2 be 1 of the best be the greatest that u can be,greatnest is not just winning it's taking all the odds facing all challenges,want 2 be the best beat the best that's what roy jones did when he fought ruiz in HW,that's what MMA couture did when he face SILVA and LESNAR they put there name to the test,don't let pacman deminish his achievements i thought his fighting 4 our country but the looks of it his now fighting 4 the money, well his a politician now what's new,but i still believe in pacman he can still win WW to kill those doubters win or lose ur still our filipino champ......bow!!!!!!: nanay dionisia

[Dave Rado]

It's also amusing that Cotto fans don't seem to think about what kind of legacy Cotto is making.

Cotto's fans know that it's not a legacy fight for Cotto, at any weight. They don't really want the fight to happen but they understand that Cotto has never had a really big payday and that he feels he deserves one.

[Dave Rado]

dave, pac is not asking anybody to come weight drained.
everybody knows that manny is not a welterweight.
manny will fyt cotto at 147 if he has his ways, but his entire team won't let him.
and why can't you let cotto fyt manny at a more competitive "catchweight"??
on the other hand, what would it make of cotto if he beats manny at 147, it is expected anyway!!
it just proves the old adage of "the big good man beats the small good man".
it is cotto's decision to go down to what level he is still comfortable.
he's not being forced to go down to 142.
cotto fought clotte at 146, is 144 really too much for him as to say he is weight drained?!?! c'mon man.....

i would love manny to fyt at 147 and be victorious.
surely he will become among the ATGreatest.
but let's not be very selfish, think of the consequences if he can't absorb cotto's punches coz he is really a midget.
can anybody in conscience accept that if it ever happens?? his team specially
"YES!!".... i heard all the pachaters say.....

If Roach doesn't think Pac can absorb Cotto's punches without Cotto being weight drained, he should simply advise Pac not to take the fight. He should not try to get Cotto to come in weight drained. In any case, Pac isn't the midget you think he is. Where he started is irrelevant. He is now an exceptionally strong and powerful Jnr Welterweight. He was the first Jnr Welterweight that Hatton has ever faced who looked stronger and more powerful than Hatton. And from Jnr Welterweight to Welterweight is only a 7 pound jump, it's much smaller than the jump Henry Armstrong made when he won the Welterweight title. I think it's highly unlikely that Pac would be unable to be competitive with Cotto at 147. He might lose, and Cotto would probably be the favourite, but Pac has won against the odds many times and he might do it again. Pac's fans should have more faith in his ability!

He would get massive credit from beating Cotto at 147. He would get massive credit even if he lost, because of his courage and his desire to truly challenge himself. But he would get zero credit from most neutral boxing fans if he beats a weight drained version of Cotto. It is Pac's legacy that Roach and Pac's advisers are seriously damaging.

As for what it makes Cotto, as I said in a different post, this is not a legacy fight for Cotto, at any weight. It's just a money fight for him. The legacy fight for him is to rematch Mosley. But he's fought a string of top Welterweights and beaten all but one of them, so arguably he deserves one big money fight. But for him to come in weight drained would hurt Cotto's legacy as much as it would hurt Pac's, because it would be his own fault for signing the contract. There's nothing for either fighter to gain legacy-wise by making a catchweight fight.

[Dave Rado]

Great post by BennyST in another thread:

One problem with this is that it just pushes the fact that if you are a top guy in the sport you can basically do what you want while keeping title and rankings which you don't really deserve. It's like this Pac/Cotto fight that may come up. Because Pac is the big dog at the moment he can say I want the fight at 143 but it will be for the WW title, even though it's not at the WW limit. So, he's getting some amazing ranking for not actually doing it properly.

I think this all started with Leonard's fame back when he fought LaLonde for the LHW fight, even though it was at the SMW limit. LaLonde was known to struggle with the LHW limit but he was obviously offered so much % that he was never going to refuse and it gave Leonard the chance at winning a LHW title without ever fighting at LHW and, even better, fighting a guy that was coming in highly over-trained and dried up.

It's starting to become the norm now. If you have the fame, you can keep rankings and titles and get new ones without actually doing the work necessary or fighting the fights that would actually give them to you.

[reibby_salao]

regarding issue of having catchweights

pacquiao is not to be blamed asking for a catchweight. Because being the draw these welterweights wants to have a piece of him for bigger payday. That's why, true enough that if they want to fight pacquiao it's just fair to make it go both ways. And i think that's fair enough. Anyways why would they agree to fight if they think they can't make weight? Does that make sense?

[emokillss]

pacquiao is not to be blamed asking for a catchweight. Because being the draw these welterweights wants to have a piece of him for bigger payday. That's why, true enough that if they want to fight pacquiao it's just fair to make it go both ways. And i think that's fair enough. Anyways why would they agree to fight if they think they can't make weight? Does that make sense?

the answer is MONEY,but the problem is u put a handicap to ur opponent and still asking for his belt if u won,i want 2 see them fight but maybe no bet at stake..........

[dexros]

Catchweights!

If it is only for Pacquiao, he would fight Cotto at 147. The people inisisting about the catchweight are his handlers. Don't you criticize Pacquiao about catchweight because this is a regular thing in today's boxing because of the day in advance weigh-ins. A lot of catchweight fight happened lately. Even Juan Diaz Vs. Paul Malignaggi on August will be fought at a catchweight of 138 Lbs. Oscar De La Hoya's middleweight championship fight against Bernard Hopkins was fought at a catchweight of 156 Lbs which is closer to junior middleweight which is 154 Lbs than the middleweight limit of 160 Lbs. However, in this fight all the middleweight belts were at stake even if they are fighting at a catchweight of 156 Lbs. This is the reason why De La Hoya lost his WBO middleweight belt because even at 156 Lbs which is a catchweight it is still within the limit of middleweight which is 160 Lbs. With this happening, Hopkins took De La Hoya's WBO middleweight belt to add to his WBA, WBC, and IBF versions of the middleweight title. Going back to Pacquiao, the only reason he is entertaining a fight out of his junior welterweight territory is to give a better entertainment to the fans. Would you rather have Pacquiao fighting Timothy Bradley than welterweight superstars like Mayweather, Mosley, and Cotto? It just makes sense to entertain us all!

[LastQuark]

You want Cotto who weighs at 160 at the night of the fight to fight Pac who weighs 148? It's a mismatch. Cotto is just too big.

Weight drain only happens only to undiciplined fighters who do not prepare well ahead of the fight and try to cut weight only few days before a fight. De La Hoya prepared very well by weighing 150 months before the fight. He is NOT weight drained. He and his fans are just making that as an excuse AFTER the loss. Just ask Dundee.

Catch weight is a way to level the playing field by meeting at the middle.