Mexico vs Puerto Rico...here we go...

[Optimistic]

It'll happen if Cotto gets through trout. Canelo wins if they fight. Mark my words.

Being honest, It's a 55/45 fight imo, in favor of Canelo.

He's never fought somebody as good as Cotto, but at the same time Miguel isn't the same fighter he once was. And while he's the more skilled & experienced fighter, he'll also be the smaller, weaker man in there. Canelo will also be hungry to prove he's the real deal.

How well Cotto does against Trout will also help me decide if he still has enough left in the tank for Canelo.

Regardless, if the fight happens, and Alvarez wins, I'll give him props.

[Slyboots]

Yeah, it's pretty out of hand. It's especially bad from the Mexicans. Ever since they started dominating the rivalry recently, it's given the Mexican fans a huge ego. Just my $.02.

[figzuki]

Being honest, It's a 55/45 fight imo, in favor of Canelo.

He's never fought somebody as good as Cotto, but at the same time Miguel isn't the same fighter he once was. And while he's the more skilled & experienced fighter, he'll also be the smaller, weaker man in there. Canelo will also be hungry to prove he's the real deal.

How well Cotto does against Trout will also help me decide if he still has enough left in the tank for Canelo.

Regardless, if the fight happens, and Alvarez wins, I'll give him props.

It'll probably be a good fight for 6 rounds tops, but after that I see Canelo taking over with my future prediction powers.

[-jose-]

Being honest, It's a 55/45 fight imo, in favor of Canelo.

He's never fought somebody as good as Cotto, but at the same time Miguel isn't the same fighter he once was. And while he's the more skilled & experienced fighter, he'll also be the smaller, weaker man in there. Canelo will also be hungry to prove he's the real deal.

How well Cotto does against Trout will also help me decide if he still has enough left in the tank for Canelo.

Regardless, if the fight happens, and Alvarez wins, I'll give him props.

that's how I see it, if Cotto beats Trout in a very convincing manner then we speak Canelo.

[PR ESQ.]

Cant wait for this to happen.........That would be the biggest mex vs pr fight since Chavez vs Camacho.
De la Hoya/Trinidad and Cotto/Margarito were good fight's but Oscar isn't really mexican and the Cotto/Margarito fight's were filled with controversy.

Canelo vs Cotto would be huuuuuge and would probably break some record's.

Couldn't disagree with your more. If Cotto were in his prime then perhaps your opinion would have validity. The mileage from the past wars are most def a variable that is difficult to overcome by any fighter.

[JuanRakan]

This is long but hear me out...

First of all I'd like to mention that I enjoy the Mexico vs Puerto Rico fights. I believe it's healthy for the sport because it generates a lot of money and ratings which equals better pay and demand for the fighters.

I'm biased I'll admit. Everyone is in one way or another. Whenever I see Mexico vs Puerto Rico I root for Puerto Rico since I'm actually from the island and moved to the states when I was 8. I think this is in everyone's nature to do so and I see nothing wrong with it. I also enjoy watching Mexicans fight because they have that come forward brawler style which is very fan friendly and it makes for great match ups.

However, the posters here take this to another level. There's nothing wrong with rooting for your countryman, but why all the hate between the two?

It's from both sides, I'm not gonna lie. Some posters see Mexican or Puerto Rican boxers in the title and right away say something off the deep end just to get a raise out of the other side.

Mexico and Puerto Rico have made great champions throughout the years. Mexico has more current champions and legends in the sport, I acknowledge that. Also you have to acknowledge that Puerto Rico has 4 million people on the island of which a percentage are women, children, and older people which leaves only a percentage of that for eligible people to boxers. On the other hand Mexico has a population of 112,000,000 million people which you have to also discount for older people, children, and women, which leaves more possibilities of having more people be eligible to box.

Mexico also supports their boxers more because of the history the sport has in their country, and as a result I believe they are managed better.

Even with that said, I can't take away the desire and hunger that most Mexican boxers have. They have granite chins and are conditioned very well with great technique.

Puerto Rican boxers as of late seem to have the desire and hunger but not the skill or chin to become great like the older fighters do. I see a lot of flaws with them but maybe it's because most young boxers are flawed, but they try to become great boxers and are falling short. The past few months alone I've seen two maybe three young Puerto Rican prostects try to fight opponents that they had no business being in the ring with and fall horribly short. Orlandito del Valle, Thomas Dulorme, and the lazy Jonathan Gonzales. They seem to not be managed well either. They should be brought up with better care, but It's definitely their faults and no one else's.

I have nothing but respect for any man that steps in the ring and race shouldn't change that. My point is, I'm tired of seeing ****** posts disrespecting each side without an argument. I'd rather see constructive criticism or non biased assessments of fighters and fights.

What I'm asking is, how do other people see this rivalry? Am I looking at it the wrong way?

Great post. I definetely agree with you. One thing to note is that the 3 prospects you mentioned are all managed by Lou Dibella/Shaw and another guy. I am willing to bet that if these guys were being brought up by Golden Boy or Top Rank they would have been seasoned up much better before thrown in with these lions. I do see Dulorme, with a handful of more productive fights, beating the likes of Paulie M. and Bradley. Lets see how his chin holds up going forward.


I believe the PR vs Mex rivalry is one of the strongest forces holding the sport up. Canelo vs. Cotto will definetely be the next great battle. I see it going 12 rounds 50/50 fight.

[Cuauhtémoc1520]

This is long but hear me out...

First of all I'd like to mention that I enjoy the Mexico vs Puerto Rico fights. I believe it's healthy for the sport because it generates a lot of money and ratings which equals better pay and demand for the fighters.

I'm biased I'll admit. Everyone is in one way or another. Whenever I see Mexico vs Puerto Rico I root for Puerto Rico since I'm actually from the island and moved to the states when I was 8. I think this is in everyone's nature to do so and I see nothing wrong with it. I also enjoy watching Mexicans fight because they have that come forward brawler style which is very fan friendly and it makes for great match ups.

However, the posters here take this to another level. There's nothing wrong with rooting for your countryman, but why all the hate between the two?

It's from both sides, I'm not gonna lie. Some posters see Mexican or Puerto Rican boxers in the title and right away say something off the deep end just to get a raise out of the other side.

Mexico and Puerto Rico have made great champions throughout the years. Mexico has more current champions and legends in the sport, I acknowledge that. Also you have to acknowledge that Puerto Rico has 4 million people on the island of which a percentage are women, children, and older people which leaves only a percentage of that for eligible people to boxers. On the other hand Mexico has a population of 112,000,000 million people which you have to also discount for older people, children, and women, which leaves more possibilities of having more people be eligible to box.

Mexico also supports their boxers more because of the history the sport has in their country, and as a result I believe they are managed better.

Even with that said, I can't take away the desire and hunger that most Mexican boxers have. They have granite chins and are conditioned very well with great technique.

Puerto Rican boxers as of late seem to have the desire and hunger but not the skill or chin to become great like the older fighters do. I see a lot of flaws with them but maybe it's because most young boxers are flawed, but they try to become great boxers and are falling short. The past few months alone I've seen two maybe three young Puerto Rican prostects try to fight opponents that they had no business being in the ring with and fall horribly short. Orlandito del Valle, Thomas Dulorme, and the lazy Jonathan Gonzales. They seem to not be managed well either. They should be brought up with better care, but It's definitely their faults and no one else's.

I have nothing but respect for any man that steps in the ring and race shouldn't change that. My point is, I'm tired of seeing ****** posts disrespecting each side without an argument. I'd rather see constructive criticism or non biased assessments of fighters and fights.

What I'm asking is, how do other people see this rivalry? Am I looking at it the wrong way?

Good post but you are wrong in the bolded. It's the other way around. The reason that an island the size of PR has had such good boxers, is because boxing is much bigger in PR than it is in Mexico. It's the same reason that a country like Jamaica can produce such great sprinters and compete with the U.S a country with 350 million people.

In Mexico boxing isn't as popular as you might think. The national sport of Mexico is charriada and in Mexico they play soccer, basketball and baseball. Soccer is by far the biggest sport in Mexico and it's not even close. Every little kid in Mexico dreams of being the next great soccer player for Mexico, not the next great boxer.

Also, Mexican boxers are handled TERRIBLY, worse than any other countries boxers. They turn pro when they are 15 and get thrown in there with much better competition just to make a dollar. Guys like Margarito lost 4 of their first 5 fights because he started so young. Mexico has a terrible amateur program because it's all about making money.

Saying all that, I respect PR fighters and I think it's ok to support your countrymen but to say racist stuff is just ignorant. You said it the best, any person who disrespects a pro fighter is just someone who's never boxed and likes to talk shi.t on the internet. Once you step into the ring and see what it feels like to get hit, you are FORCED to respect anyone who boxes, regardless of color, race, religion or nationality.

[Japanese Boxing]

Being honest, It's a 55/45 fight imo, in favor of Canelo.

He's never fought somebody as good as Cotto, but at the same time Miguel isn't the same fighter he once was. And while he's the more skilled & experienced fighter, he'll also be the smaller, weaker man in there. Canelo will also be hungry to prove he's the real deal.

How well Cotto does against Trout will also help me decide if he still has enough left in the tank for Canelo.

Regardless, if the fight happens, and Alvarez wins, I'll give him props.

I think people overestimate Canelo's overall game. I think he's extremely talented, there it no doubting he offensively is the real deal. He has poor defense. Cotto's jab will be established and it will be done fairly easily imo. I think Cotto will actually control the pace of the fight. Cotto is the better boxer, and Cotto has more tools than Canelo at the moment. It won't be easy, but I'd give Cotto the edge.

[SnakeVen0m]

Good post but you are wrong in the bolded. It's the other way around. The reason that an island the size of PR has had such good boxers, is because boxing is much bigger in PR than it is in Mexico. It's the same reason that a country like Jamaica can produce such great sprinters and compete with the U.S a country with 350 million people.

In Mexico boxing isn't as popular as you might think. The national sport of Mexico is charriada and in Mexico they play soccer, basketball and baseball. Soccer is by far the biggest sport in Mexico and it's not even close. Every little kid in Mexico dreams of being the next great soccer player for Mexico, not the next great boxer.

Also, Mexican boxers are handled TERRIBLY, worse than any other countries boxers. They turn pro when they are 15 and get thrown in there with much better competition just to make a dollar. Guys like Margarito lost 4 of their first 5 fights because he started so young. Mexico has a terrible amateur program because it's all about making money.

Saying all that, I respect PR fighters and I think it's ok to support your countrymen but to say racist stuff is just ignorant. You said it the best, any person who disrespects a pro fighter is just someone who's never boxed and likes to talk shi.t on the internet. Once you step into the ring and see what it feels like to get hit, you are FORCED to respect anyone who boxes, regardless of color, race, religion or nationality.

Thanks for the insight. I wasn't aware of that. Well I guess that's how they have granite chins lol. It gets tapped early so they're conditioned for it.

Problem on here is there's too many people that speak with their emotions and not their brains and it seems to get the best of them.

[RIZO24]

I use to love watching Trinidad and Angel Mafredy fighting. Those two were my favorite PR's fighters. Collazo was a beast!! I love the rivalry and I think it is good for boxing. Sometime we get carried away in here but its all for fun. Its wrong to go over board and start talking about each others country and people in general. To support your countries boxers is okay and have fun when they beat each other, but to start attacking with stuff like "Mexi****" or "Island ****" is pretty messed up and has nothing to do with boxing..