By Cliff Rold

With the fistic shadows of Benny Leonard, Joe Louis, Sugar Ray Robinson, Willie Pep, and Muhammad Ali cast across the outfield ring, boxing produced a memorable Saturday night on June 5, 2010 in the Bronx.

After a sensational trip down memory lane featuring clips of old Top Rank classics played on the screens around the stadium, a roar went up with the first images of Puerto Rico’s Miguel Cotto (35-2, 28 KO) in highlight.  The roar went “Stone Cold” as highlights became the man himself, a challenger Saturday night in New York Yankee pinstripes.  The stoic former Jr. Welterweight and Welterweight titlist was trying for a belt in his third weight class.

Then came the boos.

No matter his Brooklyn home, Belarusian-born Israeli WBA Jr. Middleweight beltholder Yuri Foreman (28-1, 8 KO) was second best for the crowd.  His backers vigorously waved the flag of Israel, fighting from drowning in a sea of Puerto Rican flags.  Foreman, whose style is all stick and move, came in softly behind ethnic song play before the explosion of ironic heavy metal guitar.

Michael Buffer implored the crowd to “Get Ready” and, after a touching of gloves, the first rumble at Yankee Stadium in almost 34 years was underway.

Let’s go to the report card.

Grades

Pre-Fight: Speed – Foreman B+; Cotto B/Post: Same

Pre-Fight: Power – Foreman C-; Cotto B+/Post: Same

Pre-Fight: Defense – Foreman B; Cotto B-/Post: Foreman B; Cotto B+

Pre-Fight: Intangibles – Foreman B; Cotto B+/Post: Foreman A; Cotto A

In the opening, it was much more move than stick for a Foreman who seemed nervous under the spotlight of his first major ring affair.  Cotto was calm, his own jab doubling up and knocking Foreman off balance twice.  He did it again in round two but Foreman was warming to the action, a sharp left hook finding Cotto even as he fell behind a pair.

Foreman’s nerves ebbed enough to make the third closer but it wasn’t until the fourth that he could genuinely be argued onto the scorecards.  His right hand raked across the face of Cotto, echoing into the crowd, and Cotto wore an expression of genuine surprise at its sting.  The right would land again but as the second ticked by, defensive adjustments blocked fire and Cotto nailed Foreman with hefty shot to the belly.

With the sound of the subway racing along behind the bleachers to remind all of where they were during round five, Cotto seized the initiative again in the fifth, dominating the frame with his jab and power punching, Foreman finding gloves where his punches intended flesh.  Cotto probably won the sixth as well but it was the most awkward round of the fight to then. 

Matters got more awkward in round seven when Foreman, who had entered the ring with a brace on his right knee, slipped and rose limping.  The crowd, well, the crowd was pissed, raining boos at the thought of the fight ending early without someone losing consciousness.  Foreman slipped again moments after action resumed, rose limping again, the crowd booed again, and again he returned to the fray.  Boos then became epic cheers as Foreman stood his ground and warred with Cotto into the bell, both men letting loose in prolonged exchanges.  It was big time guts from the titlist.        

Foreman still favored his right leg as the eighth got underway, his steady movement muffled if still attempted.  At one point he struggled to keep his balance near the ropes, his leg nearly going out from under him.  It appeared the towel came in to stop the fight from Foreman’s corner but a decision was made to say “Screw the towel,” and referee Arthur Mercante Jr. cleared the ring.  The crowd, when first it appeared the fight was ending, mixed boos and cheers, happy to see Cotto win but hating to see it come that way.  It was all cheers when action resumed but controversy reigned as the round ended and went to the corner.

Michael Buffer announced that Foreman’s corner had claimed the towel had come from an outside source.  Replay on the screens showed the claim pure fiction and Mercante looked angry at being duped.  Cotto pointed to the screens and Mercante nodded to say, “I saw it.”  Shortly into round nine, a Cotto body shot and final Foreman slip were all that was needed to call an end to the night.

Cotto had dealt with the size and speed of Foreman the old fashioned way, timing his jab, defending high against a head hunting foe, and chipping away at the larger man.  He had brought his own speed up the scale, as well as his heavy hands.  Cotto had claimed before the fight that new trainer Emanuel Steward had improved his balance and it may have been the case but what stood out most was how well Cotto blocked.  It was clear that rumors of his demise were overstated, that losing to Antonio Margarito and Manny Pacquiao was merely a case of not being the better man on nights where he was in with some damn good men in their own right. 

Foreman, despite losing, proved himself game, tremendous heart displayed where firepower was lacking.  He could have quit and no one would have blamed him.  He did not.  Playing the part of one-legged man in an ass kicking contest, he did what he was paid to do.

He fought. 

That it was not enough was no shame.

Looking Ahead

After the fight, the towel controversy remained confusing.  Mercante took credit for letting it go and contradicted the earlier announcements from Buffer.  Who knows how this angle ends up; it’s at least unlikely to be forgotten.

Going forward, Foreman can hold his head up as he gets back in line.  He will remain a contender at Jr. Middleweight and can be, if given the chance, a serious test for titlists like Sergiy Dzinziruk (WBO) and Cory Spinks (IBF…but God help anyone asked to sit through Foreman-Spinks; styles make fights and their styles would not).

Cotto?  Cotto has a new lease on his boxing life.  If Mexico’s Alfredo Angulo (18-1, 15 KO) gets by former WBA champ Joachim Alcine this summer, is there anyone who would not want to see a resumption of the Puerto Rico-Mexico rivalry by way of Cotto-Angulo?

Is there any way that would be less than a Fight of the Year candidate?

Cotto could also look for revenge against Antonio Margarito (38-6, 27 KO), active again after his imposed layoff for being caught with loaded gloves prior to his loss to Shane Mosley in 2009.  A rematch with Pacquiao (51-3-2, 38 KO), if a Pacquiao-Floyd Mayweather fight doesn’t happen, could be hypothesized though Cotto didn’t look improved enough Saturday to be a serious threat in such a fight.

After all the wars, an easier payday with Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. (41-0-1, 30 KO) might provoke guffaws but it would do a monster gate and provide a solid payday. 

The point is there are options for a Cotto now 8-0 in New York City, 5-0 over the last six years as the city’s June boxing centerpiece.  Boxing came home to Yankee Stadium, Cotto came home to the winner’s circle, and the trains continued rolling behind the outfield walls.

Report Card Picks 2010: 15-10

Correction: The pre-fight report card referred to the “southpaw” jab of Yuri Foreman.  Foreman doesn’t have one of those; he’s not a southie.  Apologies for the error.

Cliff Rold is a member of the Ring Magazine Ratings Advisory Panel and the Boxing Writers Association of America.  He can be reached at roldboxing@hotmail.com