Photo by Marilyn Paulino/Latinbox Sports
Saturday, June 7, 2014 live from “The Mecca of Boxing,” Madison Square Garden in New York City, Miguel Cotto and Sergio Martinez battle it out for Martinez’s lineal Middleweight crown, as well as the WBC belt.
But before the two warriors of the ring go at it, Round By Round Boxing’s Editor-in-Chief Alex Burgos and Sr. Analyst Gabe Rivas go head-to-head in a brand new discussion series.
Read on for the keys to victory for each fighter and let us know who you think will win, Cotto vs. Martinez.
Header photo edit by John Garita/Round By Round Boxing
Key #1 for Miguel Cotto
Tight Defense/High Guard
By Alex Burgos
Much has been made about the awesome tutelage of Freddie Roach and how he is taking Miguel Cotto back to his younger days.
The main problem–as I see it–is that Roach does not focus on defense all that much. Cotto is a veteran and judging by some of his comments–“Freddie Roach isn’t here to teach me anything new”–I don’t know that Cotto would really retain any new defensive techniques or styles anyways.
And perhaps that’s why he chose to join forces with Roach. He doesn’t want to be schooled all over again, he wants to fine tune things and really focus on his strengths.
Still, it is imperative for Cotto to keep a tight guard and keep his opposite hand up when winging his hooks.
Against Delvin Rodriguez, Cotto jumped in throwing vicious left hooks, but he would drop his right hand to his waist in the process. Martinez will murder Cotto with a swift counter if this is the sort of offense Cotto tries to employ.
Cotto does have the ability to turn his opponents really well, especially when he is backed against the ropes, so it’ll be smart for Cotto to use this tactic to keep Martinez off balance.
Cotto does keep his chin tucked, but he does not have very good head movement, so I won’t even entertain him bobbing and weaving out of harms way. He must keep his guard held high and use angles to give himself a chance to survive 12 rounds with the larger champion.
Key #1 for Sergio Martinez
Impose Your Will Early
By Gabe Rivas
Sergio Martinez, despite being sidelined for over a year due to his injuries, is the universally recognized Middleweight champion of the world.
In his fight with Cotto, he will need to make that clear from the opening bell. Martinez has every reason to be confident going into this fight, as he will be entering the ring with a size, reach, and power advantage.
Because Cotto will be coming forward for an early stoppage, as his being under the auspices of Freddie Roach suggests, Martinez needs to demonstrate that despite a year of absence, he can still bang with the best.
Furthermore, Martinez must not give Cotto too many chances to hit him. Even if he began his career at Light Welterweight, Cotto’s power is still something to be aware of.
Nevertheless, Martinez does not have to show much respect for Cotto. In the same way he showed Chavez Jr. who the real Middleweight champion is, Martinez needs to show why he feels he should have been the A side of this fight.
Key #2 for Miguel Cotto
Work the Body
By Alex Burgos
As I mentioned in the previous key, much is being made about the Freddie Roach/Miguel Cotto combination.
We got to see a fierce “throwback” version of Cotto against Delvin Rodriguez, but that doesn’t really tell us much as Rodriguez was in survival mode as soon as he took the first punch.
Cotto has always been a disciplined fighter and he’ll certainly have to be at his best—mentally speaking—to overcome the Argentine champion on Saturday night.
He might have to survive a knockdown or two to get the win, but fighting at Madison Square Garden and feeding off the electric crowd will certainly give him a boost and may help him overcome the toughest of obstacles.
If I had to focus in on one thing that Roach better be telling Cotto to do offensively, it’s work the body.
Martinez is nimble, with cat like reflexes, but his body is starting to betray him. How will Martinez’s knee hold up over 12 rounds without a brace?
If I’m Cotto, I do everything I can to make Martinez as uncomfortable inside the ring as he has during the pre-fight negotiations.
Nothing makes your body want to shut down like a vicious shot to the liver, and if Cotto is able to carry any power up to 159 pounds, he better put it all into his body shots.
Cotto must intelligently stalk Martinez and work the champion’s body early and often.
Key #2 for Sergio Martinez
Land Counter Punches from the Outside
By Gabe Rivas
Cotto has shown us that he is susceptible to counterpunches when coming forward.
In his fight with Delvin Rodriguez, Cotto was hit with hooks that, if thrown by a heavier puncher, would have probably hurt him.
Furthermore, despite stopping southpaw Zab Judah in their 2007 Welterweight fight, Cotto was clearly hurt by Judah’s left uppercut in the first round.
It seemed as if he was finding his rhythm early and was grew very aggressive. But this “old school” Cotto was hurt coming forward.
He managed to survive it order to stop Judah in round 11, but a similar mistake against a man who has knocked out top ten Middleweights could put him on the canvas.
Martinez will need to utilize his reach to set up the left uppercut along with the right hook, which is another punch he can land around Cotto’s peek-a-boo stance.
Martinez will just have to be Martinez and use his footwork, speed, and sudden fusillades of punches to knock out Miguel Cotto.
