by James Slater – Puerto Rican star Miguel Cotto, last seen losing in a brave attempt to outgun pound-for-pound king Manny Pacquiao, has been thinking and talking about retirement. The 29-year-old sure took a lot of punishment in the November fight – a fight that was thrilling to see for around nine rounds, before Pacquiao’s dominance made the fight a tough one to watch – and some people wondered whether he’d fight again after the 12th-round TKO. Well, according to a short interview he has given to FightNews.com, Cotto, 34-2(27) will likely fight again in June (it’s still way too early to expect an opponent to be named), but that he sees himself retiring from the sport at age 30 – his 30th birthday coming next October 29th..
“Ten months will fly by, so one, maybe two more fights and I will completely retire from boxing,” Cotto is quoted as saying by FightNews. “I’ve been champion three times and I’m satisfied with what I’ve done. I’ll be very satisfied with whatever God gives me the opportunity to achieve during the ten months remaining.”
Cotto is certainly entitled to feel satisfied with all he has achieved in boxing. With wins over excellent fighters such as Randall Bailey, Paulie Malignaggi, Ricardo Torres, Zab Judah, Shane Mosley and Joshua Clottey to his name, and with those three world title belts in his trophy cabinet, the exciting warrior has more than made his mark. More than likely a future Hall of Famer also, Cotto can enjoy his retirement if he indeed opts to take it.
I say if because, as we know, there have been many a great fighter over the years who has spoken of retirement and even given a date; only to change his mind. Who knows, maybe Cotto will look and feel great in his planned June return, and decide that there are more mountains he can climb. I myself thought very strongly we would not see Cotto back in a ring again after the brutal beating he took in the later rounds of the Pacquiao clash.
And don’t let’s forget the hammering the 29-year-old took in his only other loss, to the subsequently disgraced Mexican, Antonio Margarito. These two losses will hopefully not be the fights Cotto is best remembered for though. In his prime, when battling it out with and defeating superb fighters like Mosley (probably his finest win to date) and Judah – both fights being of the highest quality – Cotto really was majestic.
If he sticks to his retirement plan, it would be nice to see Cotto win his final two bouts and head off into the sunset off a victory. It will be most interesting to see who he chooses to face in what would be his 37th and 38th pro contests.