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A brash challenger vs. a strong silent champ, a quintessential boxer vs. a murderous puncher. Malignaggi has bitten off more than he can chew and is in for a rude awakening.
Cotto is too strong and powerful and will blast Paulie into the second row early. Miguel Cotto is a terrific puncher, can get a lot of punishment without going down and has beaten many top-ranked fighters. Paul Malignaggi has only a few KOs in his record, has never been seriously hit and has never faced opponents ranked in any top-10. Not sure how Malignaggi made it to the headline of a PPV event considering who he has fought. He is a fast moving, and even faster talking, motor mouth who needs three whacks at it to turn a light switch "off". Cotto won't know if the wind went by or if he was touched by Paulie and will keep coming forward cutting off the ring. It will take time, but heavy hooks to the liver and shots to the arms will gradually take their toll on the Brooklyn native and slow him down. I think Cotto is going to punish Malignaggi the way Julio Caesar Chavez pummeled Hector Camacho. You have a powerful fighter in Cotto and a fast talking, feather fisted fighter in Malignaggi. I just think Cotto's professionalism and him being the bigger fighter will pay off.
Malignaggi hasn't fought a single fighter of note. It may not be fair to Paulie Malignaggi (He seems a likeable wise-ass. Trade the spiked hair for a duck’s ass; he’d be Fonzy), I’ve only stumbled on a few rounds of him live -- seen highlight clips, the ****-sure, fuhgeddaboudit interviews and heard the growing gym buzz from N.Y. friends who make him a live opponent. Fools gold? All I can think of is W.C. Heinz’s great novel, “The Professional,” written from the challenger’s point of view: the inhuman training, the sacrifice…24/7 around him -- The growing confidence. The champ’s seen through the wrong end of binoculars…small, unthreatening – just another W. The way Conn viewed Louis…Chuck Davey, Kid Gavilan. The fight will have the same ending as the book; this time Cotto will be full size. It’ll be say-it-ain’t-so for Brooklyn fans. Cotto grinds-up Malignnagi, after some early flash-‘n’-dash Camacho by the kid.
Before his fight with Billy Conn, Joe Louis famously said, "He can run but he can’t hide." Like Conn, Paulie Malignaggi has fast hands and can box, but he doesn’t have the firepower to keep Cotto off of him or to test Cotto’s vulnerable chin. Cotto, slower but much stronger, will cut off the ring and will walk down his challenger. And eventually he will catch him. Cotto retains his title by late round knockout.
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