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As the Manny Pacquiao Miguel Cotto fight draws near I can’t help but think that Miguel Cotto is being overlooked. The visions of Manny Pacquiao's devastating left hand that dropped Ricky Hatton still lingers in the minds of the fans while the same can be said of the beating Miguel Cotto suffered at the hands of Antonio Margarito. It must be remembered, however, that the devastating left and the brutal beating are both part of the past. Manny Pacquiao is not going to dominate all his opponents in the same fashion and Miguel Cotto will not suffer such a harsh beating every time he enters the ring.
I've been reading many predictions and I'm surprised when I see so many of them picking Pacquiao by early knockout. And I ask on what basis does anyone believe Manny will score such an early knockout? Could it be because Freddie Roach went on record saying first round knockout or could it be because it only took Manny two rounds to stop Hatton?
Let’s not forget Cotto's heart, something I believe is being overlooked by many of the Pacquiao fans. When Cotto fought Antonio Margarito it was not a quick thrashing, it was punishment that built up over rounds until it was too much to bear. Let's also keep in mind that Margarito could potentially have been fighting with loaded hand wraps that would have taken its toll on any fighter. Miguel Cotto also showed the same heart against Joshua Clottey early this year. Cotto suffered a nasty cut above his left eye due to a clash of heads. Rather then take the easy way out, which we’ve seen many fighters do as of late and let the fight go to the scorecards, Cotto kept fighting and showed the heart of a true warrior.
I’ve been labeled a “Pacman hater” because I believe Miguel Cotto will be victorious on November 14th, but I’m not the hater that many of you think I am. I agree that Manny Pacquiao is a special fighter who possesses great power and hand speed, but I also believe this is the perfect time for Miguel Cotto to stage an upset. The speed advantage clearly goes to Pacquiao but don’t sell Cotto short on his punching power. He too possesses the power to stop any opponent in front of him. Along with his relentless body attack and his heart which I already touched on, Miguel Cotto has exactly what it takes to beat Manny.
If you’ve being doing the reading or watching HBO’s 24/7 you’ll also realize that Manny Pacquiao's training camp has not been exactly fantastic thus far. With typhoons in the Philippines that kept him from his daily roadwork, and fighting among his camp members, it would be hard for any fighter not to be distracted. Freddie Roach himself mentioned the distractions that have been going on in training camp. But the biggest red flag that has jumped out at me is Manny Pacquiao himself. He seems less eager to listen to Freddie Roach’s instructions. Boxing fans have seen this happen with fighters when they reach a certain level in their career. All of a sudden they stop listening and start doing what they want to do because they believe they know it all and no longer believe they need the advisement that got them that far.
Too many of you can’t let go of the image of Miguel Cotto in his fight with Antonio Margarito. It’s burned into your memory and because of that you have no doubt in your mind Manny Pacquiao will do the same thing, only much quicker. Right now is the perfect time for Manny Pacquiao to slip up and believe me, Miguel Cotto will be more than ready. He has much to prove and the Pacquiao fight is the perfect time to once again show the boxing world that he belongs on top.
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