Comments Thread For: Roach: I Rate Cotto as Best Puerto Rican Fighter of All-Time

[chrisJS]

#1 is easily Carlos Ortiz. That shouldn't even be close to being debated.

Trinidad is my 2nd favorite fighter of all-time (behind JMM) but I think it's hard to separate him from Gomez and Benitez. Those three could go in any order depends on how it's broken down. Maybe Trinidad based on being more consistent and having a longer run but Benitez had perhaps the better signature wins and natural ability and probably Gomez had the most devastating run (122) and best win (Zarate) in addition to being the more complete fighter. Hard between those 3.

1. Carlos Ortiz
-------
2. Wilfredo Gomez
3. Wilfred Benitez
4. Felix Trinidad
--------
5. Esteban DeJesus
6. Miguel Cotto
7. Jose Torres
8. Edwin Rosario
9. Ivan Calderon
10. Hector Camacho

I haven't seen enough or haven't studied the legacies of Cocao Kid, Jose Basora, Sixto Escobar enough but I see some old-timers put them anywhere from 5-10 in the rankings.

[chrisJS]

All Puerto Ricans are Americans!

American citizens yes but still Puerto Ricans. I guess define "American". They are from a different country which is an unincorporated commonwealth of America. They have dual but are Puerto Ricans first and foremost.

Very hard to define or explain I guess. When I go to Puerto Rico it feels like being in Puerto Rico feels like a much different country despite using US $.

[goldenbear]

Cotto is above Trinidad....that I will say...

Cotto is a 4 division champion and like Trinidad fought a lot of stiff competition. However Cotto was damaged by loaded gloves the same loaded gloves Chito Trinidad used throughout his career until caught fighting Hopkins. So on one side we don't know how good Cotto could have been due to Margarito and we really dont know how good Trinidad really was due to loaded gloves. Cotto victories are legit and most of Trinidad victories deserves an * before Hopkins fight.

[chrisJS]

Cotto is a 4 division champion and like Trinidad fought a lot of stiff competition. However Cotto was damaged by loaded gloves the same loaded gloves Chito Trinidad used throughout his career until caught fighting Hopkins. So on one side we don't know how good Cotto could have been due to Margarito and we really dont know how good Trinidad really was due to loaded gloves. Cotto victories are legit and most of Trinidad victories deserves an * before Hopkins fight.

False statement.

The way Trinidad's hands were wrapped were legal in just about every place in the World. Vegas, California, France, Italy, Mexico etc; etc; etc; In fact I believe the Nevada State Athletic Commission used Trinidad Senior methods as a safe and proper wrap many years ago.

Per Naazim Richardson the man who caught them out on the Hopkins fight : -
"If they said we were fighting him in New York, okay then, y'all have an argument, but they weren't talking about his hand wraps when they made the fight. So by them not making it an issue, because they fought him in New York too, he knocked you out, you gotta live with it," he explained. "See, the way Margarito was getting his hands wrapped, that **** was illegal in MMA and every other sport and in every state. I can see if William [Joppy] was making that argument about Margarito, but with Tito, he just tried to wrap his hands...it could be an honest mistake."

Richardson added, "The Tito thing I think was more of ignorance. It was the fact that they were used to wrapping his hands like that all the time and most of the places you fight, like Vegas and everything, it's cool to wrap like that. So when they came to New York, they didn't think nothing of it. They just wrapped his hands the way they always wrap his hands. Well, we working by and abiding by the rules of New York, so I argued the case. But it ain't like the Margarito thing where he was blatantly trying to pull one off. One was ignorance and one was illegal."

http://www.fighthype.com/news/article17202.html

Trinidad's was the same amount of tape and gauze as any ordinary wrap just a technicality (That I'd assume no longer exists). Nothing to enhance the power. Margarito's dipped his and hardened the cast. There's a difference. A HUGE difference.

[mlac]

LOL, hes not even in the top 5

[Sun_Tzu]

I really like Cotto as a fighter and one of my favorite nights watching a fight was when he beat Martinez for the MW title. I wasnt aware of Martinez's knee issues at the time so I was sure Cotto was about to get murdered. It was a great win for him regardless of what the haters want to say about it but he isnt the greatest PR fighter ever. Top 5 maybe?

[Willy Wanker]

Cotto was great, but come on Mr. Roach. Puerto Rico has a long list of great fighters, Cotto is up there in the top 10 maybe top 5 if you can make a good argument.

Trinidad, Benitez, Ortiz.

Macho Camacho is up there too, probably right above Cotto.

[OnePunch]

American citizens yes but still Puerto Ricans. I guess define "American". They are from a different country which is an unincorporated commonwealth of America. They have dual but are Puerto Ricans first and foremost.

Very hard to define or explain I guess. When I go to Puerto Rico it feels like being in Puerto Rico feels like a much different country despite using US $.

well Cotto was born in Massachussetts, so...........

[Catrin]

wilfredo gomez and felix trinidad where way better than cotto!

hands down!!!!!

[Catrin]

Cotto is a 4 division champion and like Trinidad fought a lot of stiff competition. However Cotto was damaged by loaded gloves the same loaded gloves Chito Trinidad used throughout his career until caught fighting Hopkins. So on one side we don't know how good Cotto could have been due to Margarito and we really dont know how good Trinidad really was due to loaded gloves. Cotto victories are legit and most of Trinidad victories deserves an * before Hopkins fight.

look at cottos face after the pakiao fight!!! it looks worst than margaritos beat down!!! how are you going to justify that? truth be told tito would've ****d cotto at 147!!! not to mention that OG Ricans never conducted like the DIVA cotto pretended to be! macho Camacho was a loud mouth not a diva! but than chavez sr fix that. I rate cotto anywhere from 5th to 10th of all great PR boxers