Boxing & Broken Promises

02/21/202306/11/2014 Vladimir S

A great performance is like a promise; a promise from the boxer to the fans stating in clear terms the particular skillset and degree of … continue

Miguel Cotto gifts boxing fans a thrilling future

06/10/201406/09/2014 Vitali Shaposhnikov

Sometimes boxing hands its fans surprises, outcomes that open doors to more exhilarating fights, and this is something that every boxing fan can appreciate and treasure. There are too many people out there, claiming that boxing is a lost sport, bringing less entertainment and claiming a miniscule number of new fans. While sometimes even I start believing such rumors, its fights like Miguel Cotto vs. Sergio Martinez that change my mind, bringing my thought back to where they belong: appreciating the sport and seeing it flourish.

Weeks leading up to the fight, it was clear that the majority of boxing community expected Sergio Martinez to win the fight. Why? Some claimed that he was simply a fresher fighter, with better footwork and ring generalship. Truth be told, I was one of those people. Rummaging through various forums, I found that loads of boxing fans wholeheartedly believed that Cotto was simply too old and had been through too many wars. Some suggested that he was now devoting too much time to the business aspect of his career, and that maybe it would be wise for Miguel to hang up the gloves and dive into his promotional endeavors.

continue

Sergio Martinez Ought to Hang It Up

06/10/201406/09/2014 Paul Strauss

It’s not much of a surprise Miquel Cotto was victorious over Sergio “Maravilla” Martinez. After all, the experts openly expressed their concerns over Martinez’ fourteen month absence from the ring. They were concerned about Sergio’s troublesome knee and shoulder injuries, plus a broken hand? His body seemed to be breaking down. Despite Sergio’s assurances, many experts doubted whether he could come back and regain his previously superb condition and superior abilities?

We now know they were right. However, even Cotto and Freddie Roach had to have been surprised by how easy it was for Cotto to get Sergio on queer street. For pete’s sake, Sergio was wobbled with Cotto’s first left hook! It was baffling? What a predicament Sergio was in! The opening bell had barely stopped ringing! This lineal world middleweight champion from Argentina had never been in such a dilemma.

continue

Miguel Cotto: Leverage

06/09/2014 Robert Jackson

Congratulations to Miguel Cotto the Lineal middleweight champion. Not too long ago Cotto turned down a cool $10M guarantee from Canelo Alvarez to instead fight Sergio Martinez then recognized as THE middleweight champion. Why Cotto turned down this offer was a calculated risk on the former 154lb champions part. Having previously lost to Mayweather and then losing again to Austin Trout in an upset, there was no way that Cotto would carry his skills and power up to 160lbs and beat Martinez, or could he?

Why then would Cotto embark on an endeavor that many even the odds makers saw as a ‘fool’s errand’? Cotto always saw himself as the A-side but against some of the elite fighters always came up short. Against Canelo, Cotto would’ve been the B-side, even with $10M in his pocket, and Alvarez would’ve made twice that. So what other’s saw as ‘fools gold’, Miguel Cotto and more importantly Freddie Roach saw as the ‘pot of gold’ and the end of the rainbow. Stepping up and beating the lineal middleweight champion would propel Miguel Cotto to the highest heights of his 14 year career and return him to the A-side status he always believed himself to be.

continue

Miguel Cotto dethrones Sergio Martinez by RTD 10 – a state of the art assault and battery

06/09/201406/09/2014 Ivan Ivanov

This was a bright sunshiny day for boxing and the bout brought memories of the golden days of boxing – a sold out Garden, two gladiators without any “0s” to protect and seemingly free of corporate clog and Swiss bank restraint jackets.

Another great ingredient was the job done by the referee. If you didn’t catch his name or even notice him most of the time than he did a rare feat – he did his job right without even touching the boxers. The most impressive thing a referee can do is remain unobtrusive and unimposing. Michael Griffin set a very high standard and quietly outclassed noisy star referees who won’t stop hollering and physically engage the fighters with the risk of injury to all parties.

continue

Miguel Cotto: Puerto Rico’s Shining Star

06/09/201406/08/2014 Paul Jones

By Justin Jones — Manhattan, NY – If there was any doubt surrounding Miguel Cotto’s (39-4, 32 KOs) future hall of fame status, or uncertainty about who his signature victory would be against–as all the greats possess–last night’s stoppage of former middleweight kingpin Sergio Martinez (51-3-2, 28 KOs) was it ladies and gentleman.

Cotto proved to truly be Puerto Rico’s finest as he became the island’s first boxer to ever win a title in four different weight classes. What’s more impressive about the dominating performance is that he achieved the historic feat at Madison Square Garden (MSG), the world’s most famous arena, in front of a packed house of more than 20,000–the majority of them consisting of prideful and supportive fellow Puerto Ricans. Keep in mind he did this against one of the top pound-for-pound fighters in the world previously, and on the eve of the Puerto Rican Day parade. Most of all and frankly, the fight wasn’t even close.

continue

Cotto dominates Martinez; Lee stops Jackson; Sonsona defeats Vazquez Jr

06/08/201406/07/2014 Jeff Sorby

Miguel Cotto (39-4, 32 KO’s) accomplished his goal in winning a fourth division world title in defeating a very, very old looking WBC middleweight champion Sergio Martinez (51-3-2, 28 KO’s) in stopping him 6 seconds into the 10th round tonight to capture his WBC 160lb. title at Madison Square Garden, in New York.

Martinez was hurt in the opening minute of the fight by a powerful left hook from Cotto, and he never recovered from it. Cotto went on to knock a badly shaken Martinez 3 times in the 1st round, and a final time in the 9th in a 4-knockdown performance.

The fight was stopped at the start of the 10th round by Martinez’s trainer Pablo Sarmiento.

continue

Martinez vs Cotto: Keys to Victory, Four to Explore, Official Prediction

06/07/201406/07/2014 Vivek Wallace

Tonight, the collective attention of the fight public will be planted squarely on Puerto Rican warrior Miguel Cotto and his newly-found Argentinean nemesis, Super Middleweight Champion, Sergio Martinez. Although these two men will enter the ring alone when the bell sounds, they’ll both carry two proud nations on their back when they do. While the Argentinean base is thriving on the strength of a solid Matthysse victory months ago and a strong performance from Maidana; the Puerto Rican contingent will do so with a heavy dose of anxiety. The last time Miguel Cotto took center stage at the Madison Square Garden, it was a humbling defeat to Austin Trout. This time around, he has a much more dangerous foe as he attempts to make history in the deep end of the ocean. As we get closer to the first bell, we examine the chances of both men:

SERGIO MARTINEZ (KEYS TO VICTORY)

continue

Cotto vs. Martinez: Will Martinez float like a butterfly and sting like a bee?

06/07/201406/06/2014 Vitali Shaposhnikov

When a fight like Miguel Cotto vs. Sergio Martinez is right around the corner, boxing fans brace themselves for not only a tremendous fight, but a bloody war as well.

Both fighters are thrilling, both have a burning desire for victory, and both are willing to fight each other’s fight. Having said that, there are some clear stylistic and strategic differences in both men, and I believe that it will be the style of boxing that will win this fight for Sergio Martinez.

While we all know Cotto to be an extraordinary warrior with a heart unmatched my most, he is still the type of boxer that requires there to be a brawl, or at least a few power exchanges now and then. Don’t get me wrong, he is as experienced and smart as any, but his hunger and aggression often belittles everything else.

continue

Cotto vs. Martinez: Will Sergio punch his ticket to Canastota with a win over Miguel Cotto?

06/06/201406/06/2014 Chris Carlson

So many questions linger in the lead up for the HBO PPV battle between Miguel Cotto and Sergio Martinez broadcasting live from Madison Square Garden this Saturday night.

Will Cotto’s face hold up under constant fire from accurate combination punching of Maravilla? Can Martinez make it through a whole fight without his knee flaring up? Is Sergio Martinez’s career already Hall of Fame worthy or does he need to secure a win against Miguel Cotto to help him get over that hump?

Age is more of a factor for Sergio but physically even with Martinez’s recent string of injuries, Miguel’s fighter body may be the more shopworn of the two having engaged in many brutal wars over the years.

continue