WBC middleweight champion, Miguel Cotto’s trainer, Freddie Roach, believes his fighter is the smarter and more technically proficient going into his Nov. 21 clash with ‘Canelo’ Alvarez, and that those smarts, as well as body shots, will be key to a victory Roach sees coming within ‘seven or eight rounds.’
The 155 lb catch-weight clash for the WBC title is one of the biggest fights of the year, and while Cotto will be both the older, and smaller man on the night, Roach believes his smarts and experience will be a crucial difference maker against the enormously popular Mexican challenger, who Roach claims ‘isn’t that great a fighter.’
“My fighter is the smarter fighter, he knows how to break great fighters down,” Roach told fighthubtv. “We’ll go to the body early, take his legs away from him and by the 7th or 8th round, he’ll be ready to go.”
“Miguel has the experience of how to beat guys like this and his opponent hasn’t got that yet. I don’t think [Canelo] is that great a fighter,” he added.
Roach thinks that Canelo will try to start fast early, which is when he claims he has the best chance of stopping the Puerto Rican champion, also suggesting that when he is unable to do so, the mid rounds will prove the crucial as this is when he sees Canelo beginning to fade, meaning Cotto will then seek to capitalise and pounce on him.
“He often tries to get a second wind [mid fight] but by that time he ain’t gonna be there anymore because the body shots are gonna kill him. I just feel we’ll fight smart the first four rounds, not get caught early, not get caught on the ropes or in the corner,” Roach said.
“After those first four rounds, when he starts to fade a little bit, we’re gonna turn up the gas a little bit and charge him.”
Cotto/Canelo is on HBO PPV, Nov.21/ Boxnation will screen in the UK.
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