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Champion Miguel Cotto has a message for challenger Manny Pacquiao as well as those who believe he can be successful during his quest to win a world title in a record seventh, different weight class: "They picked the wrong guy."
"If he thinks he's going to reach a seventh title in a seventh different division, he picked the wrong moment, the wrong fighter, and the wrong opponent," said Cotto, all-but bristling during Thursday's conference call with the national media.
"If he thinks he's going to beat Miguel Cotto," said Cotto, "he's pretty-much all wrong with that kind of thinking."
Cotto (34-1, 27 knockouts) will defend his WBO welterweight (147 pounds) title against Pacquiao (49-3-2, 37 KOs) on Nov. 14 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas at a catchweight of 145 pounds.
Cotto also addressed comments by Pacquiao's trainer, Freddie Roach, who has leveled sharp criticism not only at the champion's skills, but toward his trainer, Joe Santiago's, ability to direct the fighter.
Roach told FanHouse that Cotto's "defense sucks" and has predicted an early knockout for Pacquiao, who is a 3-to-1 favorite to win the fight.
"Forget about Freddie Roach. The thing Freddie Roach can do is train Manny the best that he can. He can't go over the ropes and fight against Miguel Cotto, you know? He can train Manny the best that he can," said Cotto.
"He can teach what he believes he can teach to help Manny win this fight, but at the end of the road, it's just Manny and Miguel Cotto," said Cotto. "No matter what Freddie Roach says, I have a very strong mind, you know? I'm not going to fall for his game."
Roach is basing his assertion largely on the fact that he believes Cotto is not the same since an 11th-round knockout loss to Antonio Margarito in July of 2008, during which he suffered a bloody face, a broken nose, was knocked down once and bled from a deep laceration over his left eye.
"That's the problem here, you can find 10 or 20 people who think they know about boxing. I can't go to a doctor and tell him how to do his job," said Cotto, who has won two straight since losing to Margarito.
"[The doctor] knows how to do his work, and I know how to do my work," said Cotto. "I'm pretty well recovered from the Margarito defeat, and I'll showed that to the world during my last two victories."
"If he thinks he's going to reach a seventh title in a seventh different division, he picked the wrong moment, the wrong fighter, and the wrong opponent," said Cotto, all-but bristling during Thursday's conference call with the national media.
"If he thinks he's going to beat Miguel Cotto," said Cotto, "he's pretty-much all wrong with that kind of thinking."
Cotto (34-1, 27 knockouts) will defend his WBO welterweight (147 pounds) title against Pacquiao (49-3-2, 37 KOs) on Nov. 14 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas at a catchweight of 145 pounds.
Cotto also addressed comments by Pacquiao's trainer, Freddie Roach, who has leveled sharp criticism not only at the champion's skills, but toward his trainer, Joe Santiago's, ability to direct the fighter.
Roach told FanHouse that Cotto's "defense sucks" and has predicted an early knockout for Pacquiao, who is a 3-to-1 favorite to win the fight.
"Forget about Freddie Roach. The thing Freddie Roach can do is train Manny the best that he can. He can't go over the ropes and fight against Miguel Cotto, you know? He can train Manny the best that he can," said Cotto.
"He can teach what he believes he can teach to help Manny win this fight, but at the end of the road, it's just Manny and Miguel Cotto," said Cotto. "No matter what Freddie Roach says, I have a very strong mind, you know? I'm not going to fall for his game."
Roach is basing his assertion largely on the fact that he believes Cotto is not the same since an 11th-round knockout loss to Antonio Margarito in July of 2008, during which he suffered a bloody face, a broken nose, was knocked down once and bled from a deep laceration over his left eye.
"That's the problem here, you can find 10 or 20 people who think they know about boxing. I can't go to a doctor and tell him how to do his job," said Cotto, who has won two straight since losing to Margarito.
"[The doctor] knows how to do his work, and I know how to do my work," said Cotto. "I'm pretty well recovered from the Margarito defeat, and I'll showed that to the world during my last two victories."
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