Fight Plans: Cotto vs. Pac, (Intelligent posts only)

[KRITKL]

For Cotto, I think he has to do what he does best, time Pac with his jab(like he did to Clottey to get a KD)or a right when he is coming in to throw off his rythm and pressure Pac, but he has to land shots and not let Pac get away without getting hit. If he does this I think Cotto being the biggest guy Pac fought will be enough to stop him.
For Pac, he has to fight just like he did DLH. Go to the left to nuetralize his left hook, and get in and out with combos. I think Cotto will be able to time him with a jab or right hand a couple times, but if he can take it, which I think he can, he hacn't been hurt really since like other posters said in the 2nd JMM fight and in the Larios fight he did get caught by a left hook while he was on the ropes(something he can't do with Cotto)that had him hurt but not close to getting stopped and just continue to box instead of trading with him he can get a decision. The only way I see Cotto getting stopped is by tko, I think he's to tough to get KO'd.
I don't have a pick on who is going to win, like another poster said the 1st couple of rounds will show how the the fight is going to go. This fight should be the ****, I can't wait!

[ßringer]

Pacquiao

Unlike Cotto ; there is no "main key" to victory for Manny Pacquiao in this fight. I think the gameplan for a Pacquiao victory is one that is multifaceted, and I will outline what I feel the main keys to victory for Manny Pacquiao are.

1.) Overconfidence. Manny's the overwhelming favorite in this fight, and he knows it. He's also coming into this fight riding one hell of a wave of popularity and dominant performances. He needs to keep his mind sharp, and stay focused on the opponet infront of him. I believe the Hatton and De La Hoya performances, while amazing in their own right, were not as impressive as everybody else seems to think.

This fight is his to lose, and Manny needs to keep his mind sharp, and not let those performances go to his head.

2.) Speed. You're the faster guy in this fight, act like it. Show Cotto angles, overwhelm him with flurries and combinations, get in and get out. Due to your speed, you don't necessarily have to make every shot count, you can afford to miss a little because A.) Cotto's not an exceptional counter puncher, and B.) It will still look good to the judges and the fans. Use your speed to your advantage.

3.) Avoid clinches. Like I said ; I look for the bigger, stronger Cotto, to try to make use of the clinch in this fight to try to wear you out a little bit physically. I don't expect him to clinch as excessively as a Ricky Hatton, bu I do expect him to try to smother your speed a bit. You need to avoid this. How? Well that's all going to come down to your footwork and your ability to get out of range before Cotto can get off.

4.) Cotto can't fight well going backwards. If at any point in the fight you have Cotto on the defensive ; jump on him. He doesn't fight particularly well on the backfoot, and he's even worse fighting off the ropes. Jump on him and overwhelm him with activity whenever you have the chance.

[ßringer]

I agree with Investing in the body early on. If cotto can tag pac downstairs from early on, along with the clinches, pac will be significantly slowed down later on and cotto could at that point switch from boxer-puncher to just puncher and hammer pac with extra hard shots. I also agree and disagree with ur point on Cotto making pac feel his power early on, cuz if pac tastes the power of cotto, being a warrior it will make him want to brawl with cotto to prove he cant get hurt. It could go either way: pacs speed and carried power with tear cotto up or cotto will take advantage of pacs willingness to stay put in the pocket and not move as much.

About the body shots ; that's all up to Miguel. He earned his reputation as a fierce body ****er at 140, but ever since he's moved to 147 he really has been "hit or miss" with it. With Quintana and Judah ; he worked their bodies over quite well. But with Clottey and Margarito ; he either neglected going to the body as often (Clottey), or he completely ignored it (Margarito).

It's up to him to take Manny's speed away ; and body shots are the quickest way to do that.

About making Pacquiao taste his power ; Manny's chin hasn't been tested since 130lbs. The last good shot he got caught with was the hook from Marquez that wobbled him in their rematch ; Diaz, Oscar, and Ricky never managed to land anything of significance whatsoever.

So if I were Cotto, I'd want to hit him with a nice left hook upside the head early to A.) See if he can really take full on Welterweight power, and B.) Welcome him to the fight.

If Manny is stunned, or hurt ; it will be obvious.

If not, and he wants to respond with overwhelming activity ; I'd clinch his ass.

[tesla_power]

Cotto

The main key to victory for Miguel Cotto is to neutralize Manny Pacquiao's speed. Manny fights in a darting fashion, he comes in on angles, and he likes to get in, get his shots off, and get out of range without taking much return fire. Cotto's going to have to neutralize his speed from the opening bell to win this one.

How's he going to do that? Well he can do that in either one of two possible ways.

1.) Investing in the body. Cotto has the reputation of a notorious body puncher, but lately it's been just that ; a reputation. Against Clottey he went to the body in spurts but I really felt like he could've invested much more of his time and energy down there than he did. Against Margarito he completely ignored going to the body whatsoever, and instead he opted to be a strict head hunter under the false assumption that he could crack Margarito's chin ; bad idea.

Cotto needs to remember "what brought him to the dance" so to speak, and invest in the body early and often.

2.) Physical wear. Make no mistake about it, Miguel Cotto is the bigger, stronger man in this fight. By fight night he'll likely outweigh Pacquiao by at least 10lbs and he needs to use every bit of his strength and weight advantage to his benefit to wear Pacquiao down minute by minute, and round by round. How does he do this? Simple ; First off he needs to let Pacquiao taste his power early, so that Manny understands his role in this bout as the smaller man and plays along accordingly.

Secondly ; Clinches. If I were Cotto in this fight, when Manny comes in firing his shots, I would avoid what I could, counter when I could, and then clinch him. In the clinches I would get off what shots I could, all the while leaning on the smaller Pacquiao with my weight advantage. This, coupled with all of his movement, will really strain Pacquiao's legs over the course of the fight and it will ultimately pay dividends by slowing Pacquiao down in the late stages of the fight, therefore making him much more of an open target.

Pacquiao analysis coming soon.

Great Analysis and I would agree on those but...

Here are my thoughts on those two.
1. Investing in the body
-- I doubt that Cotto could pull this off without setting it up. IMO, Pac's movement must first be negated by a jab before any attempts on the body or dig it in when both of them are trading.

2. Physical wear
-- Agreed. Never considered this before but will add clinching is not is Cotto's arsenal yet because he considers it not manly. If he will get rid of this mentality, then it will work.

[ßringer]

Great Analysis and I would agree on those but...

Here are my thoughts on those two.
1. Investing in the body
-- I doubt that Cotto could pull this off without setting it up. IMO, Pac's movement must first be negated by a jab before any attempts on the body or dig it in when both of them are trading.

2. Physical wear
-- Agreed. Never considered this before but will add clinching is not is Cotto's arsenal yet because he considers it not manly. If he will get rid of this mentality, then it will work.

I think the jab will be essential to him investing in the body, but he could also time Pacquiao a bit and rip him when he comes in.

And you're right about Cotto with the clinch ; we all know he rarely ever does that, even when hurt and fighting for survival.

But if I were him I would ****can that attitude and use it to my advantage in this fight because I really think it will prove effective in the later rounds.

Also ; clinching gives a great oportunity to dig in some body shots on the inside.

[shogunn]

Manny will have to take it easy the first couple of rounds and feel Cotto out. Cotto is tricky toe to toe and his sneaky jab could be trouble, as long as Manny doesnt stay in front of him and go to war he should be ok. I think Roach will have a similar gameplan as he did agaisnt ODLH. Get your offense in, but dont stay stagnant. I look for Cotto to be the aggressor as Manny will try to keep him moving side to side.

Remembering Cotto vs clottey, I kept thinking Manny could take him. Both Cottos and Judahs workrates severely slowed towards the latter rounds. Cotto seems to tank around the 8th. If this is a 12 round fight, Manny's stamina will be the key, as he's as fresh in the 3rd round as he would be in the 12th. Cotto was almost a punching bag by the 10th, but clottey for whatever reason coudlnt capitalize. if Mannys quickness and stamina is there at the end, Cotto may be goin down by the 10th.

[-EX-]

About the body shots ; that's all up to Miguel. He earned his reputation as a fierce body ****er at 140, but ever since he's moved to 147 he really has been "hit or miss" with it. With Quintana and Judah ; he worked their bodies over quite well. But with Clottey and Margarito ; he either neglected going to the body as often (Clottey), or he completely ignored it (Margarito).

It's up to him to take Manny's speed away ; and body shots are the quickest way to do that.

About making Pacquiao taste his power ; Manny's chin hasn't been tested since 130lbs. The last good shot he got caught with was the hook from Marquez that wobbled him in their rematch ; Diaz, Oscar, and Ricky never managed to land anything of significance whatsoever.

So if I were Cotto, I'd want to hit him with a nice left hook upside the head early to A.) See if he can really take full on Welterweight power, and B.) Welcome him to the fight.

If Manny is stunned, or hurt ; it will be obvious.

If not, and he wants to respond with overwhelming activity ; I'd clinch his ass.

Well Clottey's guard blocked the body pretty well...but yea against Margarito he neglected the body...and was trying to box and move all night...

[vince_carter123]

Cotto's size strength will factor in greatly I believe. Hatton kept lunging in and Pac timed him and caught him. De La Hoya and Diaz were too slow to both Manny. Cotto has underrated hand speed IMO. 145 shouldn't bother Cotto, but you never know. I think he'll be fine. He weighed 146 for Clottey and looked healthy. I can see Cotto landing a straight right on him and Manny going down. I think Cotto hits harder than any opponent Manny has fought before.

much harder

[El Angel]

much harder

I'm very interested in how Manny reacts to Cotto's punch. I also want to see Cotto reaction to Manny's punch.

[El Angel]

Pacquiao

Unlike Cotto ; there is no "main key" to victory for Manny Pacquiao in this fight. I think the gameplan for a Pacquiao victory is one that is multifaceted, and I will outline what I feel the main keys to victory for Manny Pacquiao are.

1.) Overconfidence. Manny's the overwhelming favorite in this fight, and he knows it. He's also coming into this fight riding one hell of a wave of popularity and dominant performances. He needs to keep his mind sharp, and stay focused on the opponet infront of him. I believe the Hatton and De La Hoya performances, while amazing in their own right, were not as impressive as everybody else seems to think.

This fight is his to lose, and Manny needs to keep his mind sharp, and not let those performances go to his head.

2.) Speed. You're the faster guy in this fight, act like it. Show Cotto angles, overwhelm him with flurries and combinations, get in and get out. Due to your speed, you don't necessarily have to make every shot count, you can afford to miss a little because A.) Cotto's not an exceptional counter puncher, and B.) It will still look good to the judges and the fans. Use your speed to your advantage.

3.) Avoid clinches. Like I said ; I look for the bigger, stronger Cotto, to try to make use of the clinch in this fight to try to wear you out a little bit physically. I don't expect him to clinch as excessively as a Ricky Hatton, bu I do expect him to try to smother your speed a bit. You need to avoid this. How? Well that's all going to come down to your footwork and your ability to get out of range before Cotto can get off.

4.) Cotto can't fight well going backwards. If at any point in the fight you have Cotto on the defensive ; jump on him. He doesn't fight particularly well on the backfoot, and he's even worse fighting off the ropes. Jump on him and overwhelm him with activity whenever you have the chance.

I wish Cotto would just clinch more. He just doesn't like to do it. Hopefully he changes his thinking as it could help him win. I agree that if Pacquiao can get Cotto backing up, Cotto is in trouble. I do think it will be hard for Manny to back Miguel up though. Cotto's size and strength will help come forward against the smaller Manny, making Manny back up, something he isn't very comfortable doing. Manny will have to dart in and out, but I can see Cotto with a perfectly timed punch, like the jab vs Clottey, knocking him down.