Photo by Chris Farina/Top Rank
Miguel Cotto (39-4, 32 KOs) is now the lineal Middleweight champion of the world after having destroyed Sergio Martinez this past Saturday June, 7, 2014 at Madison Square Garden.
The great thing that Cotto has given to the sport of boxing is the fact that he is a free agent. His approach is a simple one. He sits down with his team and determines what the best available fight for him to take is.
If Saul “Canelo” Alvarez (43-1, 31 KOs) can defeat Erislandy Lara on July 12, 2014, it can be argued that he is the best available opponent for Cotto.
For 16 months, boxing fans from all over the world—especially from Mexico and Puerto Rico—have been wondering and dreaming about the possibility of Cotto squaring off against Alvarez.
Fans have wondered when this bout will take place or if it ever was going to happen. Now that Cotto is back in the mix by dismantling Martinez, boxing fans can hope for this marquee matchup to be set sometime in late fall.
This gigantic matchup will continue a very historic and deeply enriched rivalry between Mexico and Puerto Rico. Put simply, this is the best rivalry in the sport of boxing.
Notable fights between these two great rivals include Oscar De La Hoya versus Felix Trinidad, Julio Cesar Chavez versus Hector Camacho and Wilfredo Gomez versus Carlos Zarate, to name a few.
This bout should be titled “classic and colossal.” It will have all of the enormous elements to be considered an immense clash. Both boxers are huge attractions and this has the making of a mega pay-per-view.
After the fight against Martinez, Cotto increased his career knockout percentage to 74.42 according to BoxRec.com. For Canelo, entering the Lara fight, his career knockout percentage stands at a 68.89 according to BoxRec.com.
With Both fighters capable of delivering knockouts, this fight could be a high-action contest.
For Cotto, he had two previous opportunities to face Canelo, however the first opportunity was after Cotto got dominated against Austin Trout in December of 2012.
The second opportunity was when Cotto turned down an offer worth more than $10 million to face Canelo and opted to battle against Martinez.
Looking at it now, this was a genius decision for Cotto. By beating Martinez, has now set himself up for mega bouts to close out his career.
