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.

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.

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)

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.

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.

Photos: Miguel Cotto Los Angeles Media Day

05/29/201405/29/2014 HBO Boxing

May 28, 2014, Hollywood,Ca — Three-time world champion Miguel Cotto of Puerto Rico works out with Hall of Fame trainer Freddie Roach during media day Wednesday at the Wild Card Boxing Club in Hollywood for his eagerly-anticipated World Middleweight Championship collision against WBC world Middleweight champion Sergio Martinez from Argentina.

Promoted by Miguel Cotto Promotions, Top Rank®, DiBella Entertainment and Sampson Boxing, in association with Maravilla Box, Tecate and Madison Square Garden, the Cotto – Martínez World Middleweight Championship event will take place on Saturday, June 7, at the “Mecca of Boxing,” Madison Square Garden and is produced and distributed live by HBO Pay-Per-View®, beginning at 9:00 p.m. ET / 6:00 p.m. PT.

Are Mayweather & Pacquiao hoping Cotto beats Martinez?

05/28/201405/28/2014 Alexander Caldwell

Miguel Cotto’s chances against Sergio Martinez are probably slim. Martinez is likely too big and too skilled for Cotto, who never really shined at any point during his campaign north of 147. Cotto has had an exceptional boxing career and is surely a first ballot future HOF’er, but he is clearly on the downside and Martinez has the type of style that will befuddle Cotto. The boxing pride of Puerto Rico is biting off more than he can chew. If Martinez’s stamina is even close to what we are accustomed to seeing from him, this fight could be an absolute nightmare for Cotto where he endures a prolonged beating and may not even survive to see the final bell.

But who knows? This is boxing and one punch can change a fight, right? Maybe Martinez will show his age. Perhaps his long career has taken its toll and recent injuries will impact his performance. Or maybe Freddie Roach will have a magical ace up his sleeve, or perhaps Cotto will even have something left in the tank for a change over the last few rounds should he make it that far. There is even the possibility of a freak accident, a bad/controversial decision, or a botched call by the referee. Anything can happen in boxing, so maybe we shouldn’t be too quick to write Cotto off just yet.

Miguel Cotto Interview Transcript

05/23/201405/22/2014 Top Rank

TODD duBOEF: I would like to welcome everyone to Miguel’s conference call. This fight is one we have all been waiting for. Obviously Miguel wants to show time and time again how great New York is and how passionate he is for the fans there and how he has created a great brand with the Puerto Ricans on Puerto Rican Day Parade weekend. But more importantly he has a goal to become the first Puerto Rican fighter to win world titles in four different divisions. In regards to the event, I’m not going to talk about Miguel and how he feels and how he is training – I’ll let Freddie and Miguel do that. Let’s talk about the event. As we went on sale, The Garden told us it was the fastest selling sporting event it has had in many years. The demand has been incredible. The match is right. The fans are behind both Sergio and Miguel and we know that The Garden is going to be electric the night of June 7. So, let’s go to Freddie and Miguel…

Sergio Martinez media conference call quick quotes

05/20/2014 DiBella Entertainment

NEW YORK, NY / MIAMI FL (5/20/14) – World Boxing Council (WBC)/The Ring middleweight champion and Argentina’s favorite son, SERGIO “Maravilla” MARTÍNEZ, along with promoter Lou DiBella, held an international media conference all earlier today in anticipation of his upcoming world title defense and the most eagerly anticipated boxing event of 2014 against three-division world champion and the Pride of Puerto Rico, MIGUEL COTTO.

Below are a few quick notes from the call. A complete transcript to follow.

SERGIO MARTINEZ: My knee is feeling great and I have been running in the mornings. I haven’t felt this good in a very long time.

Boxnation to show Martinez vs Cotto live

05/16/201405/16/2014 BoxNation

LONDON (May 16) – This summer’s eagerly anticipated showdown between superstars Sergio Martinez and Miguel Cotto will be shown live and exclusive on BoxNation.

‘The Channel of Champions’ has once again proved its punching power by landing the mega middleweight world title clash on June 7th at the iconic Madison Square Garden in New York.

This follows an incredible 2014 which has seen the world’s best boxing channel air a host of leading matchups including Floyd Mayweather’s toe-to-toe superfight with Marcos Maidana, plus Manny Pacquiao’s sensational ring return against Tim Bradley.

The addition of Martinez’s defence of his WBC middleweight crown against a rejuvenated Cotto, to the BoxNation calendar, offers fight fans the chance to see two of boxing’s biggest names go at it in a genuine 50-50 fight.